“World’s Odyssey” is a virtual reality MMORPG and complete projection of consciousness developed as a traditional fantasy of dreams and adventure. It was a large-scale RPG that the game company Enigma poured all of its energy into, but cancelled development on after the disappearance of game director Shina Ninomiya.
Several years later, “World’s Odyssey,” which was supposed to have been deleted from the network, is restored in a state eroded with every possible “bug.” These bugs, which take on the form of actual insects, are infesting humans, objects, monsters, and every possible material, and collapsing the game world. Bugs have produced a number of mysterious phenomena, transforming the world into one filled with various mysteries and madness such as “bugs with their own will,” “NPCs with human hearts,” and “characters who cannot exist.”
Story
An e-mail arrived for game programmer Arata Mizunashi. The sender: Shina Ninomiya, a game director who went missing a year prior. She, together with Arata, once developed “World’s Odyssey,” a game that fully implemented virtual reality, but after she disappeared, development on the game was cancelled.
The cryptic e-mail indicated that Shina Ninomiya disappeared in World’s Odyssey, a game that does not exist. Arata tries to analyze the program, which should have been deleted from the network, but was restored. The program has been rewritten to the point that it has no trace of its original form, and in a world full of bugs, Shina was there as the only “player.”
Arata tries to get in touch with Shina and learns that she cannot logout from this game.
And so the two look for clues, and alongside NPCs that possess human hearts and their colleagues in reality, proceed with clearing the game from both the “inside” and “outside.”
However, a dreadful situation also involving reality awaits.
Tips
Virtual Reality MMORPG “World’s Odyssey” – An adventure-themed traditional fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game set in a virtual reality world. It is developed using the game engine “Alice Code,” which enables a perfect projection of consciousness.
■ Characters
Shina Ninomiya
Designed and illustrated by: Kei Nanameda
A woman who wakes up in the virtual reality MMORPG “World’s Odyssey,” the development of which was cancelled, and lost a year of memory. She was originally the director in charge of “World’s Odyssey,” but suddenly went missing. She is unable to logout of the game, and unable to return to the real world.
Arata Mizunashi
Designed and illustrated by: Kei Nanameda
A game programmer who developed “World’s Odyssey” with Shina. He discovers that Shiina is trapped inside a game, the development of which should have been cancelled. He tries to modify the program and fix its bugs from the “reality” in order to rescue her, but eventually gets caught up in a number of mysteries and events can occur in both “game” and “reality.”
Lily Hopes
Designed and illustrated by: Kei Nanameda
An NPC in the world of “World’s Odyssey” and the princess of the large country “Heartis.” As an NPC, she has emotions and consciousness that should not be possible. After seeing Shina’s power to fight bugs, she desperately requests that she save her father, the king of Heartis.
Lucil Filarete
Designed and illustrated by: Kei Nanameda
A half-elf NPC with emotions and consciousness that should not be possible. Although the popular opinion is that elves are intelligent, that is not the case for Lucil. She is a slightly mysterious girl, a bit dopey, who always has her head in the clouds.
Ripuka
Designed and illustrated by: Huke
A woman who wields a big, guillotine-like sword, and a mysterious being who suddenly appeared in “World’s Odyssey.” All of her actions are motivated by “murderous intent.”
Death end re;Quest is currently in development for PlayStation 4. A release date has yet to be announced. It is currently only confirmed for release in Japan.
