I’ve been a fan of Kotaro Uchikoshi for a significant portion of my life. Very few other creatives can measure up to his distinctive style, and that’s quite the feat given that his most famous work is text-based games. 999: Nine Persons, Nine Hours, Nine Doors is one of my favorite games of all time, so the opportunity to review some of his earlier work is invaluable to me. What I got from the experience was at once familiar yet refreshingly different from my expectations.
Never 7: The End of Infinity is very different from Uchikoshi’s later work. Those familiar with his usual trappings can still find them, but they’re sharing much more space with a fairly traditional gal game that presents sets of rigid choices leading to endings where the protagonist gets together with a member of the female cast. This structure on its own isn’t a problem, Never 7 still presents interesting mysteries culminating in a finale that, despite odd pacing, touches upon fascinating thematic ground. But there are enough problems beyond these elements to keep it from being a true masterpiece.
The game centers around a seminar retreat attended in early April by slacker Makoto Ishihara, hard-drinking Yuka Kawashima, quiet fishing aficionado Haruka Higuchi, and rich kid Okuhiko Iida. Even though the retreat is technically for academic purposes, they’re given such free rein that it becomes more of a vacation than a seminar. The group quickly makes the acquaintance of fellow visitor Saki Asakura, a wealthy heiress, and sisters Kurumi and Izumi Morino, who manage a local cafe. But despite the peaceful getaway, Makoto finds himself plagued by strange premonitions of events to come and the sinking feeling that a strange nightmare in which someone died may not be only a dream.
From there, the player makes choices that guide Makoto through his week-long vacation toward the ultimate goal of romancing one of these five girls. Even though it may take some trial and error, it’s usually clear which choices endear Makoto to which girl, and the game usually gives cues after the choice if it was suboptimal. Though, hinging some routes’ resolutions on single choices with unclear immediate impact is a bit irritating. Each girl has distinct and personal plotlines that show a new perspective on a gradually unfolding mystery, with the slight exception of Saki’s route. Most guides recommend an order of Yuka, Haruka, Saki, and Kurumi’s routes, and having played this way, it definitely feels like the ideal order.
However, that’s only a small part of Never 7‘s story and the rest is difficult to discuss without spoilers. If you’re even remotely familiar with Uchikoshi’s name, you may easily guess what’s happening to Makoto well before it’s obvious. Even if this is your first Uchikoshi game, it’s still unsubtle in its foreshadowing. But for those either familiar or savvy enough to figure it out, there are some interesting reveals. All that being said, discussing Never 7 and its strengths is extremely difficult without revealing the first major twist, so here’s the spoiler warning.
Once the plot has progressed far enough to settle into a route focused on a specific romanceable girl, Makoto discovers that his premonitions are the result of time travel. His mind has repeatedly been sent back in time to the first day of the retreat, usually after a great tragedy. This revelation leads him to dedicate all his efforts to avoiding said tragedy, which revolves around whatever girl the player has decided to romance. This isn’t the only bombshell, by any means. Each route offers new reveals and, in some cases, pieces of a larger picture that slowly comes into focus. One particularly fun reveal seems like a big deal but instead uses the casual reaction of the characters to add intrigue to the setting.
Despite the interesting concept, there are flaws in Never 7‘s execution. This primarily manifests in a normal playthrough’s structure. A first-time player trudges through an uninteresting common route where the characters alternatively relax or bicker on their vacation with only the slightest hints of meaningful drama. When the route gets established, the aforementioned tragedy follows with subsequent time travel, then Makoto relives the same week with very minor deviations. Afterward, the player does it all over again with a different girl, with the added benefit of being able to automatically fast forward through the dialogue they’ve seen before. Even with this in mind, one is still likely to see the exact same events repeatedly, and while it isn’t a deal-breaker, this remains a problem for the whole experience.
This is mitigated slightly by the characters themselves. While none of the romanceable girls are the most well-rounded characters even in this genre, they all at least have arcs to go through. Granted, most of these arcs are very simple, but the overall cast is charming, and it’s fun to watch how they play off each other. Kurumi and Izumi end up being by far the most interesting, though in Izumi’s case, a lot of that is down to the fact that her route, only playable after the other four, contains the biggest rug pull in the game.
I won’t go into specifics, though this particular rug pull does actually bring up interesting ideas that elevate some of the more uneventful parts of Never 7. Themes of moving beyond one’s past arise throughout every route, and Izumi’s route brings a metatextual angle to this plot. The line between fantasy and reality becomes blurred, and one could even interpret the game as commenting on its own repetitious nature, suggesting that it’s okay to live out a fantasy so long as one remains aware of its boundaries, limitations, and the fact that it will almost certainly end. It could still be paced out better—there’s a lot of exposition to scroll through—but it does ultimately make for satisfying plot.
While there are great depths to be found in Never 7, some technical issues need addressing. One of the most apparent flaws is the abundance of typos. There are so many spelling and punctuation errors that I could scarcely keep track of them. The best I can say is that they’re constant enough to be annoying but not distracting. Even without these errors, the script itself also needs another look, with several awkward or stiff sentences.
The game’s presentation fares slightly better, despite some inconsistencies. Some individual elements, like the character designs and their accompanying sprites, are attractive. The environments, event art, and music come out with mixed results. The environmental art has a soft, sketchlike quality, but the environments themselves are all fairly generic. The event art is similar quality to the character art, but the resolution makes them appear blurry on large screens. The music is mostly generic, save for the few tracks that imply a more foreboding or ethereal atmosphere. Vocal performances are one of the stronger elements, even if I can’t call any of them transcendently good. The understated acting may contribute to this, yet it does work with the casual atmosphere most of the game has. The best performance is easily Kikuko Inoue as Izumi, partly because she has the most interesting material to work with in Izumi’s route.
As for side content, there are two extra routes that are best kept for after the main ones. The first is an extra Izumi route, which is much more comedic and does away with the more mysterious elements of the plot, and the other is a portion of Yuka’s route told from her perspective instead of Makoto’s. They don’t add much to the main story, but are probably worth your time if the game won you over.
Never 7, in spite of its many differences from his later titles, is still distinctly a Kotaro Uchikoshi title. Rest assured, there is a scene where someone rambles about Schrodinger’s Cat. The game’s heavier focus on romance is not an indication that it isn’t worth your time, whether you’re a fan of his or not. While I may have preferred more variety in route structure and a cleaner script, Never 7 is still a worthwhile, albeit slow, read.
