Karifean's Blog of Visual Novels

Ever17 -The Out of Infinity- is a visual novel developed by KID, and localized in English by Hirameki International. A prime example of a story that simply could not, would not work properly in any other medium.

One of the few openings I've always watched every time I started up the game.

Overview

The story of Ever17 follows six characters as they are trapped in the underwater theme park "LeMU", being left behind as it was being evacuated due to water leakage. The first floor is completely flooded, cutting off any possible escape, and they only have seven days before the park presumably implodes and everyone dies, so they are left with nothing other than to hope for help to arrive before that. But will help for them really come? After all, there is reason to believe that the entire accident was set up specifically to trap them there...

The catch with Ever17 is that there are two main routes which tell a nearly identical story, albeit from a different character's perspective. In the beginning the POV constantly shifts between two characters until eventually you make a choice which makes either of them the permanent POV. The other character is still there, but the whole experience ends up being rather different depending on whom you pick.

Structure

Ever17 has an interesting structure. A very early choice decides which POV path you go down. The story paths branch further with choices made in late May 3rd or early May 4th. In the Kid's POV you can end up in Sara's or You's routes, and in Takeshi's you can end up in Sora's or Tsugumi's routes. Once you have completed all of them, you can then enter Coco's route from either POV, which leads to the true end.

The X's indicate Bad Ends. Ever17 keeps track of which endings you've reached so if you want 100%, you'll have to get the three bad ends as well. With the Kid-POV routes, the two bad ends are gotten by simply failing the final choice, but the Takeshi-POV bad end is gotten by having too few affection points for whoever's route you are in. Affection points towards certain characters are gathered throughout the game by picking appropriate choices.

With Sara and You, having perfect affection points also leads to an extra epilogue with them, although simply clearing their route will also permanently unlock the epilogue for any future playthroughs.

Characters

The cast of Ever17 is great. I very much liked both main protagonists each when they're the POV character. They were both interesting characters and the development they go through is quite notable. Surprisingly, they're both somewhat forgettable when they're not the POV character, which is a bit of a shame.

Now for the girls. You - a nickname, her full first name being Youbiseiharukana - is the cheerful girl who always makes sure things are going well in the group. Sora is the assistant chief at LeMU and makes most of the effort in trying to find a way out and surveilling the situation. Sara is a friend of You's and is exceptionally skilled at programming and hacking. Tsugumi is very cold and introverted, being certain that their trapping was no accident, but she does eventually warm up to the group. Finally, Coco is a fourteen-year-old girl who looks ten and acts six, and has possibly the squeakiest voice I've ever heard in a visual novel.

My favorite of the female characters is Tsugumi, who undergoes a total change in demeanor especially in her character route. While she is a somewhat typical tsundere in the beginning, I started liking her the moment it turned out she was secretly keeping a pet rat.

Did I say rat? I meant a charming Djungarian hamster.

Story

Ever17 has one of the most interestingly written storylines I've seen in visual novels. It grips you from the beginning and although it might let off a bit when you're going through some story routes, it always picks back up.

Translation for the German: "Vitally Important Readings" *cough*

The two routes that mainly further the story are Sara's and Tsugumi's, which are also my two favorite character routes besides the final route. You's and Sora's routes can become a bit stale, but they still do well in character and plot development.

Coco's route is where everything comes together in the most beautiful way possible. The amount of plot twists and epiphanies in this route is stunning. It was this route that made me appreciate this visual novel so much that I can wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who enjoys complex stories with some science fiction and romance.

Soundtrack

Ever17 has a rather defining OST style that does a good job capturing and amplifying the atmosphere. It's not one of the best OSTs I've ever heard, but it's far from bad.

Notable tracks are the opening theme (see top of post), of course, as well as the main menu theme and a track called Der Mond Das Meer (lit. "the moon, the sea"). Besides that there are a lot of tracks that really fit the scenes they're placed in incredibly well. There's just not that many tracks that stand on their own as really great tracks.

Summary

Ever17 is a great visual novel. It has a loveable cast with a good dynamic and an amazing plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat as it unravels. The story has an overall feel reminiscent of another visual novel called Steins;Gate and I very much recommend Ever17 to anyone who enjoyed that one (or its anime adaptation).

The Takeshi-POV bad end and Tsugumi's story route are what ultimately got me completely hooked. Also notable is Ever17's good use of foreshadowing to make the plot twists in Coco's route not seem out of left field, but rather satisfying. And with its unique structure and overall design, I find it hard to imagine Ever17 in any other form than as a visual novel. Again, a good representative of what the medium is capable of that other media just cannot imitate.

And with that, I give Ever17 an overall score of

9 / 10

A thoroughly enjoyable read I won't forget anytime soon.