GNOSIA is a visual novel / social deduction role-playing game developed by Petit Depotto and published by PLAYISM.

Story

The Gnosia lie. Pretending to be human, they’ll get in close, trick and deceive, and then eradicate each person in the vicinity from the universe, one victim at a time.

The crew of a drifting spaceship, facing off against a mysterious and deadly threat known as the “Gnosia” and having no idea who among them is really the enemy, formulate a desperate plan for survival. The most suspicious among them will be put into “cold sleep” one by one, in an effort to completely rid the ship of Gnosia.

However, it is almost impossible to tell whether each person put into cold sleep was really Gnosia—or simply a poor, unfortunate scapegoat, sacrificed by the Gnosia for their own survival. Can the humans emerge victorious? Or is mankind doomed…?

What exactly are Gnosia? Why do they attack humans? Discover the truth behind this mysterious lifeform and the intertwined narratives of your crewmates as you struggle for survival.

Gameplay

The story takes place on a spaceship. Among the crew are several mysterious life forms known as “Gnosia.” Apparently bent on the complete eradication of humankind, the Gnosia—having “brainwashed” their host infectees—quietly eliminate one crew member each night.

The player can select whether to play the game as a human or Gnosia. When playing on the human side, you must find all of the Gnosia and put them into a state of suspended animation (“Cold Sleep”) to win each round. When playing as Gnosia, your goal is to attack and eliminate each crew member until the Gnosia outnumber the remaining humans.

This is a “Werewolf-style” indie game in which you progress through the story by playing through approximately 15-minute rounds (“Loops”), and it has already garnered overwhelmingly positive feedback here in Japan.

Apart from the story and gameplay, the characters’ personalities and interpersonal relationship dynamics are also an extremely appealing and important part of what makes this game unique and special. Themes of friendship and camaraderie, love, trust, life and death, and personal identity are explored surprisingly deeply, and the game’s seamless and natural inclusion of non-binary characters fosters a sense of inclusion and understanding often found lacking in many mainstream titles.

Key Features

GNOSIA is not simply just a “single-player Werewolf-style game.” As you continue playing through the game in short rounds, the following elements gradually develop and evolve.

• Repeatedly play through “loops,” triggering special events to unravel mysteries in a uniquely original narrative. GNOSIA is an all-new style of text-based adventure combined with visual novel, RPG, and mystery elements. The game begins with the discovery that the crew has been infiltrated by the Gnosia. As you play through the game it becomes apparent that the characters are re-experiencing the same few days over and over again. Each “loop” ends once win or loss conditions have been met. More info on the nature of the Gnosia and this time loop is also gradually revealed.
• Role-play a variety of roles to develop different character builds. You start out with low skill levels, unable to meaningfully influence crew discussions. However, playing through the loops and gradually leveling up allows you to selectively increase various parameters—such as Charisma, Charm, Intuition, etc.—which eventually makes you able to greatly affect the flow of conversation. Level up your Charisma stat so people are more likely to listen to you, or your Performance stat so people are less likely to see through your lies.
• Engage with engrossing and eclectic characters and experience randomly triggered events unique to each one. Each character has a certain level of “fondness” for the main character. Various events occur throughout the game in accordance with how well-liked you are by the others, bringing a sort of “humanity” to the characters. As you repeat the loops and discover more character-specific events, each crew member becomes more richly fleshed out.

Characters

• Setsu – A non-binary identifying soldier in the galactic military who leads the efforts to eradicate the Gnosia invaders onboard the ship. Kindly helps the main character, who starts out confused, with no idea what’s going on.
• SQ – Somewhat stubborn and strange girl, she tends to lighten the atmosphere with her silly attitude. Her behavior makes it extremely difficult to figure out just what is genuine and what is false.
• Raqio – A non-binary identifying crew member characterized by a sharp tongue and flamboyant outfits. This highly logical thinker often manages to expose the Gnosia the moment enough information has been gathered.
• Gina – Somewhat stubborn and strange girl, she tends to lighten the atmosphere with her silly attitude. Her behavior makes it extremely difficult to figure out just what is genuine and what is false.
• Stella – A kind young woman who treats everyone gently and politely. Apparently entrusted with administration and management of the ship, she strives to ensure that everyone is as comfortable as possible.
• Jonas – A strange middle-aged man who wears outdated clothing from a bygone era. Often spouting aphorisms of varying levels of coherence, his often-nonsensical comments and behavior tend to vex the rest of the crew.
• Comet – A somewhat wild girl hailing from a planet that advocates “return to nature.” Straightforward and energetic, her almost animalistic instincts make her extremely proficient at spotting lies.
• Chipie – A young man who loves – and is pretty much constantly thinking about – cats. Apart from the weird cat thing, he is a good young man whose sense of decency and fair judgment are second to none.
• Remnan – A shy and introverted young man. Apparently has trouble looking people in the eye when speaking. It seems as though some certain event from his past has caused him to develop this reclusive and easily frightened personality…
• Kukrushka – A beautiful blonde young girl. She never speaks but employs expressive and rich gestures and body language to communicate flawlessly. As for where she is originally from, etc., nothing about her is known.
• Yuriko – A mysterious woman with a strange, indescribable power. Possessing extremely high skill and ability levels, she can be quite a dangerous enemy to have.
• Otome – An intellectualized beluga whale with the ability to speak human language. Wearing a water-filled bodysuit, she utilizes a motorized cart to get around. An extremely kindhearted young girl, she loves humans.
• Sha-Ming – A young man whose sole priority is ensuring his own survival. Hates standing out. Faithful only to his own selfish desires, he is generally disliked and avoided by the female members of the crew.
• Shigemichi – A… person… with a bright, silver body. Due to his friendly and sincere personality, people usually tend to listen to him. Apparently, he has encountered his first love aboard the spaceship.