AI: The Somnium Files is a game that was developed by the company Spike Chunsoft. It was released in North America on September 17, 2019. The game takes place in 2027 in Tokyo, Japan. The main character, Kaname Date, works for a special police department called ABIS, Advanced Brain Investigation Squad. He has no memory of his life beyond 5 years ago. He now must investigate a mystery that involves his friends and some serious critical thinking!
Throughout the game, we meet characters that will hugely impact Date’s life. A-set is an idol that you meet in the game and is very interested in the case you will be investigating. Mizuki Okiura is the daughter of Shoko Nadami, Date’s friend. Mizuki lives with Date throughout the story because her parents don't want to deal with her, so Date takes care of her instead.
Throughout the story, you will have to go to locations that are important to the mystery, such as Lemniscate Talent Agency, Sunfish Pocket, The Sejima Residence, The Sagan Residence, The Shrine, Okiura Warehouse District, Bloom Park, and Abis Headquarters. Throughout the game, you will need to figure out what’s the truth and what’s a lie. If people don’t want to tell you the answers, you will need to sync with them. At ABIS Headquarters, they have people who are called Syncers. These people can dive into a person’s mind and figure out the truth through the Sync machine. This is where the name “Somnium Files” comes from. You can dive into a person’s mind while they’re asleep. Essentially, you’re diving into their dreams. Just like dreams we have, they don’t make any sense. While you’re in the person's Somnium, you will have to solve a series of puzzles called “Mental Locks” to figure out the truth. Usually, the answers to these puzzles make no sense, just like in our dreams. This is why Date has a special partner to help him solve this mystery. He has his eyeball, Aiba. Aiba is a robotic eye that hangs out in Date’s eye socket and helps him solve mysteries and Somniums.
This game has at least 25 hours worth of playtime and 5 endings to get through. Each end helps you get closer to the answer to the mystery, so make sure to keep track of what happens in each route. After finishing the previous routes, there is a final ending that will unlock.
I loved this game, and I’ve played it so many times. The plot twists are really interesting and unexpected. You can tell a lot of thought was put into it. The character design was lovely, and the characters were very lovable and even annoying sometimes. I would rate this game a 10/10. You can find this game on pc, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation for $60.