Zero Escape series director Kotaro Uchikoshi’s March 2017-announced Project: Psync is officially titled AI: The Somnium Files and will be released for PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC via Steam.
Here is an overview of the game, via Spike Chunsoft:
■ Press Release
Specs
- Release Date: TBD
- Platforms: PlayStation 4, Switch, PC
- Players: One player
- Genre: Adventure
- Languages: English text, Japanese audio / English audio
About the Game
At the Spike Chunsoft Anime Expo panel, Zero Escape series director / scenario writer Kotaro Uchikoshi unveiled AI: The Somnium Files, set for a worldwide release on the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam! The game will take place in a more technologically-advanced Tokyo, Japan. The first teaser trailer introduced detective Kaname Date. Yusuke Kozaki (Fire Emblem Awakening, No More Heroes) is the lead character designer for the title.
About the Director
A director and scenario writer, his skills shine in his adventure titles, such as the Zero Escape series (including the award-winning Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors), Punch Line, and Ever17: The Out of Infinity. He is well-known for his unconventional plot twists and offbeat humor and has been actively working on many genres, many games, and many stories.
■ From the Panel
AI: The Somnium Files is a detective adventure game in which you investigate the mystery behind a series of murders in a technologically-advanced modern day Tokyo, Japan.
The game starts out with a bizarre murder case where a body is found with the eye gouged out of the skull. Players take on the role of a detective named Kaname Date on the trail of the serial killer behind this murder. Date’s left eye is an artificial eye with an AI unit within it that he uses to solve crimes.
If Date is investigating a case and finds a key witness or suspect, people will not always give up information freely, so Date can enter their memories and extract information. These memories are kind of like dreamscapes. The latin word for “dream” is “somnium,” so in the game the dreamscapes you enter are called somnium.
Since this is a detective game, there will be a wide cast of characters involved in the mystery. Iris, an 18 year-old high school student, is one of those characters. In the story, she is essentially a YouTuber who makes viral videos where she records herself dancing and singing, as well as Let’s Plays.
The game’s title can be broken down like so:
- AI: Artificial Intelligence
- Eye: The pronounciation of “AI” and main theme of the game
- Love: “Ai” also means “love” in Japanese
- Somnium: “Somnium” means “dream” in Latin
Watch the announcement trailer and a message from one of the game’s character’s below. View a piece of artwork at the gallery. Visit the official website here.
Announcement Trailer
Iris Character Message
Watch a message from Iris below (from 52:57 to 53:15).
