Let’s discover together, in this dedicated review, what are the strengths and weaknesses of Anonymous; Code, Mages’ latest visual novel belonging to the Science Fiction series: there is so much to say, but we can’t do it
Talking about Anonymous;Code in a complete review without making any plot spoilers is really difficult. The writer has reviewed several Visual Novels, but never as in this case have we felt in difficulty. Maybe it’s because we’re still talking about Mages’ new work (who still remembers Steins;Gate?) and maybe it’s because the game was postponed so many times after its announcement in 2016 that we almost forgot about its existence. And we say almost because, when Spike Chunsoft finally announced the publication in the West too, our young hearts had a rather significant jolt.
Deep Shadow | Review Anonymous;Code
Yes, because in reality Anonymous;Code arrived in Japan, exclusively for Nintendo Switch, during 2022. We therefore waited a new exhausting year before receiving the good news: the arrival, also in the West, this time also on PS4 and PC. Was it worth waiting so long? We can tell you that the answer is almost absolutely yes, although with some reservations. However, let’s start from the reason why writing a review of Anonymous;Code is so damn difficult: just because it is a Visual Novel, and therefore intrinsically linked to the concept of spoilers? Not only.
The title is the sixth iteration of the main line of the Science Adventure series, which includes, in addition to the aforementioned Steins;Gate, other major pillars of the genre such as Chaos;Head and Robotics;Notes. These are titles that will mean little or nothing to many of you, but for all Visual Novel fans, as well as the Mages series itself, they are real milestones that should be played over and over again throughout your life. You will therefore understand well our very high expectations from Anonymous;Code and how afraid we were of being disappointed. There was no disappointment, and it is therefore really difficult not to convey simple personal emotions in this review. So here we are back to the starting point.
Cyber Force Doll | Review Anonymous;Code
We are in 2037, in a post-apocalyptic version of our hyper-technological and futuristic reality. Concepts such as Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, simulations, sensors, biometric scanners and so on are therefore on the agenda. Our protagonist is Pollon Takaoka (an exceptionally impactful name, we admit), a young and promising hacker who has, in addition to his innate hardware and software espionage skills, also a big heart. A heart that definitely gets him into trouble when, following a fortuitous meeting with a mysterious yet cute Momo Aizaki, he finds himself entangled in international conspiracies between great world powers.
And we will say absolutely nothing else regarding the main plot of Anonymous;Code because, we assure you, that any additional words might be too many. What we can do, however, is analyze how much the narrative sector of this iteration of the Science Adventure series can really work and be captivating right from the start. The short answer: really a lot, but let us explain.
Overcoming | Review Anonymous;Code
What is narrated in Anonymous;Code is a mix of hard sci-fi, mystery and political intrigue that are very interconnected with each other, in an almost visceral way. To follow it fully, you will necessarily have to open every entry in the Codex, even those that seem most useless to you, because they will reveal a very long series of details that improve the understanding of the events, the world and the characters who inhabit it. As in every iteration of the Science Adventure series, missing a piece means losing significant parts of the narrative.
It all seems so complex when in reality it isn’t: it is simply a Visual Novel and, as such, follows rules. You won’t be able to passively read hours and hours of dialogue without asking yourself questions and looking for answers in the depths of the entries in the in-game encyclopedia. You will have to be attentive observers and accurate readers to grasp everything, every nuance and every excess. And it is precisely in this that Mages gives the best of himself: make complex and intriguing stories that, if summarized, might seem very banal and obvious. Vero Steins?
Breakthrough | Review Anonymous;Code
What at least made us puzzled is the main gameplay mechanic. In this case we have to make a small preview, but it’s nothing that we didn’t already know in reality. Pollon, at a certain point in the story, will be able to enter the saving and loading screen of Anonymous;Code with his viewers. What does it mean? That at certain times and under certain conditions, the protagonist will be able to bring himself back to the past, reloading a previous save, to change things.
On the narrative front we assure you that almost everything works, so it is a well-studied and implemented mechanic in the game. What made us turn up our noses a bit are two factors: the first is, trivially, that the times to use this power are scripted. This means that we will not be able to decide when to make Pollon jump into the past, but rather, and here is the second thorny issue of the matter, we will have to find specific moments to convince him to do so. All this left us, on some occasions, confused as to how to proceed, making the progress of the narrative a bit cumbersome at times.
Numerical expression | Review Anonymous;Code
It is also true, however, that as the story continues this mechanic will lead to decidedly interesting and unexpected implications. Overall, the mechanics are well integrated into the narrative, with satisfying ideas and a very well written script to withstand all this time travel without imploding after a few lines.
Aesthetically speaking, Anonymous;Code features very well-crafted cel-shading graphics, both in terms of the characters and the settings. Our test took place on Nintendo Switch evI definitely recommend playing it in portable mode, especially if you have an OLED, because the bright colors used by Mages really look very good on the little one from Nintendo. The only flaw are the animations during the “movies”, which are completely forgettable and could have easily been avoided.
Her Memory
We close this quick review of Anonymous;Code hoping that we don’t have to wait another 7 years to get our hands on another compelling interaction from the Science Adventure series. While admitting that we miss the times of Steins;Gate, even in this case the Mages guys were able to put together a scary narrative structure, with very well-written characters and twists at every corner. The main gameplay mechanics could have been better implemented as well as the money used in the animations would have been avoidable and saveable, but they are still a symbol of a company that aims to renew itself and improve, when it already knows how to do one thing excellently: narrating. And this time too she succeeded brilliantly.
Anonymous;Code is currently available on Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PC. Let us know if you’ve played it below in the comments, and stay tuned with us at techgameworld.com for all the news, guides and reviews on gaming and tech themes! And if you are interested in game keys at advantageous prices, we recommend you take a look at the InstantGaming catalogue!
Points in favor
- Impeccable storytelling as always
- Well integrated gameplay mechanics…
- Well done cel-shading…
Points against
- …but it could have been done better
- … but you could just as well not have done the animations