AI: The Somnium Files

2 February 2025

👍 Recommended (67.1 hrs on record)

This is an excellent game to learn Japanese with for the intermediate & advanced learner.

The game is fully voice acted by an awesome cast. There is a message log for repeating lines if necessary -- but that should be rare, since the game is push to continue in 99% of places. This is a mature game so there is no furigana. It can, however, be hooked with Textractor to easily use browser-based lookup tools.

The story is written by Kotaro Uchikoshi, the creator of 999 and Zero Escape series. What starts as a paint-by-the-numbers detective story soon evolves into something far beyond that premise. The characters are interesting, and develop well during the game. The style is half-serious, half-joking -- some of the jokes probably won't land without being familiar with anime tropes to some degree.

Do not let yourself get spoiled! Just play the game until the end without looking up anything. It's very easy to do an achievement run afterward, if you so wish.

🔗