Room No.9

Room No.9 is part boys love visual novel and part psychological thriller! This is a game that deals with some pretty dark themes, but the images are not as graphic as you may think in terms of the violence. Do not get me wrong, this is most certainly not for those who are not into violence, psychological trauma, and abuse. However, I found this to be a truly engaging and gripping visual novel that kept me on the edge of my seat and truly wondering how these two guys were going to get out of this situation!

A Perfect Trip For Two

We have two main characters in Room No.9. They are Daichi and Seiji. They are best buddies and they are about to take a dream vacation. They have a very deep connection and you do wonder at first if there is more to these two than just being best friends. However, they are on the bus from the airport and then they suddenly awaken in a very strange room. They have no idea where they are or how they got there, but they know that something is not right in this room.

Here For A Purpose

Turns out that Room No.9 is a place where a behavioral analysis experiment is going to be taking place over the next ten days! If Daichi and Seiji want to get out of this situation, they are going to have to do some things that they never thought possible. The twist here is that the choices tend to be either sexual or violent. Disfigure them or give them an enema! That is a prime example of some of the extreme situations that these two find themselves in. There is a real sadistic tone here, but with these two characters being on the surface such good guys, it really gets to you. There is also the underlying subtext of these two wanting to be more than just good friends, but never willing to take that step. Well, that step is going to be taken here, actually forget “step” it is more like a giant leap.

No Way Out

From what I understand, Room No.9 offers you six ways for the story to end and the thing is, none of these endings can be classed as “good”. You have to make some pretty brutal choices in this game and this is very interesting as you are putting these characters through some uncomfortable and downright dangerous situations that are clearly going to have an even lasting effect on them, even if they manage to get out! However, it also can make you question your own morals as you are the one who is making them do this. This is some hard-hitting stuff so while there are multiple ways it can end, I am sure some people will play it once and not be able to handle it a second time!

The Element Of Choice

I think the fact that Seiji and Daichi are such good looking guys is quite clever. Room No.9 is a great looking game with some amazing art and a great use of lighting too. The thing is, this game has some pretty extreme stuff in it, although to be fair, I have seen more extreme assault and abuse in other games. One thing that I did think was neat was the way the game lets you choose stuff some of it is simple like glasses or no glasses, others are more tailored to what you can handle such as the enema scene. However, even if you tell it you do not want the “scat” scene, you may not see it, but the text is still there. In all, this is a fantastic looking game and the artist truly did an amazing job bringing this brutal story to life.

Pros:

• I found both characters to be likable
• The art is great…. All be it pretty dark in some places
• I legit had to think about the choices I was making
• This is a great psychological thriller visual novel

Cons:

• Some of the content may be a tad too rough for some people
• I am not sure if a second playing of this will have that same wow factor