AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative has the unenviable position of following up on a game that was most impressive for its innovations and bizarre interpretations of criminal case proceedings. The second iteration never really has the same surprise factor as the first, which means nirvanA Initiative‘s first order of business – presenting a case that’s even more intriguing than the previous game’s Cyclops Serial Killings – has to land.
Thankfully, then, the opening ten minutes of the game are about as enthralling as a criminal mystery gets, with Mizuki immediately thrust into a killing that doesn’t just seem unlikely – it feels legitimately impossible, even in a world as technologically advanced as the one that AI: The Somnium Files takes place in. nirvanA Initiative follows the unravelling of the Half Body case, where a mysterious phenomena drops half of a human body into the laps of unwitting quiz participants. It’s a case that takes place across two timelines – and two halves of the original body – that sees two protagonists step into the role occupied by Date in the first title: Mizuki, Date’s adopted daughter and the inheritor of Aiba; and Ryuki, an investigator with their own AI-Ball named Tama.
The actual gameplay of AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative takes what made the original game great and expands on it, which is welcome. For all the innovation of the first title, some refinement was needed in the way its sprawling story intersected with actual gameplay mechanisms. Here, investigations still involve a Psyncer using their AI-Ball to examine crime scenes for clues before diving into a person of interest’s memories to unravel more of the story in their dreamscape. Each subject’s world is as fascinating as the last, with trippy visuals and cheeky jokes in play even during intense moments.
The new additions to nirvanA Initiative do some heavy-lifting both to keep things fresh and to pace the story. Wink Psync is a quick Psyncer tool that allows for a quick, shallow dive into a subject’s psyche mid-conversation, opening up new avenues to discover clues. Virtual Reality lets either Mizuki or Ryuki reconstruct a crime scene in their mind to attempt to uncover more intricate clues. Truth Reenactment allows the Psyncer and their AI-Ball to act out the crime as they’ve understood it, piecing together available clues to help establish a timeline.
All of these inclusions make the case feel deeper and more varied, with avenues opening up multiple timelines in the return of the flow chart from the first game that allows players to revisit situations and make choices with available information to finally get the whole story. Somniums, the dreamscapes that make up the majority of investigations using Psyncing, also have verticality now – there’s more to explore, and it allows for some clever hidden clues.
While AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative is an incredible experience, it might not be best viewed on Nintendo Switch. While serviceable, during our playthrough we ran into several framerate drops during scenes that relied on effects like explosions – it wasn’t enough to outright drag the game down, but it did feel choppy, which is especially noticeable given the cinematic feel of so much of nirvanA Initiative‘s presentation. A day one patch is available for launch which is intended to fix game stability and performance, so this issue might not even exist by the time players are elbow-deep in a suspect’s Somnium – but if it is, it’s something to keep an eye on.
That performance might be the only real blemish present in nirvanA Initiative. The sound, story, voice acting, and characters all range from amusing inclusions to show-stealers in some spoiler-heavy instances, while the gameplay has maintained the strengths of Somnium Files while making marked improvements across the board. Customizations like costumes and a Tamagotchi-esque mini-game just add to the number of things to do in a game that’s already great at capturing a viewer’s attention.
While anyone who enjoys mystery games, visual novels, or the often bizarre story-telling quirks of Spike Chunsoft games will find a lot to love in AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative, it’s really a game that shouldn’t be missed by anyone. A combination of maddening puzzles with satisfying solutions, a story that is as weird as it is excellent, and characters who make memorable impressions sees nirvanA Initiative establish itself as a worthy sequel to one of the better sleeper hits of the past several years. AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative works very hard to keep your eyes focused on it at all times, and the reward is a rollercoaster ride that’s superb from start to finish.
AI: The Somnium Files releases on Steam worldwide and Nintendo Switch, PC (Windows 10), PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in North America on June 24, 2022. A Nintendo Switch, PC (Windows 10), PlayStation 4, and Xbox One launch in Europe and Oceania is set for July 8, 2022. Screen Rant was provided with a Nintendo Switch code for the purpose of this review.
