Spike Chunsoft released a trailer about two weeks ago for the Steins;Gate Elite visual novel. As mentioned in previous posts, Spike Chunsoft intends to release many more MAGES. games in the west, and Steins;Gate Elite looks to be one of their first steps in this process.
Steins;Gate Elite seems to be a weird mix of the original visual novel and anime adaptation from 2011. I call it a “weird mix,” because the game will be fully animated, with scenes from the anime adaptation in place of the traditional visual format of a visual novel.
I’m not quite sure what to think of this game. If I wanted to re-experience the story of Steins;Gate, I could watch the anime again. If I wanted to read it again, I could start up the original visual novel, which has its own unique graphical style and advantages over the anime. In my opinion, Steins;Gate Elite seems to be an unnecessary convergence of the two pieces of media. Despite all this, there are some intriguing positives to this new title.
Steins;Gate Elite will be receiving newly animated scenes not seen in the anime, to cover the various routes and scenes that were not adapted in the original anime. 5pb./MAGES. executive director Shikura Chiyomaru has stated that this is thanks to the assistance of White Fox, the studio that animated the Steins;Gate anime and is currently animating Steins;Gate 0.
Additionally, those who pre-order Steins;Gate Elite will receive one of two additional games, Steins;Gate Linear Bounded Phenogram (PS4/PC), or a new Steins;Gate game in 8-bit style (Nintendo Switch). Linear Bounded Phenogram is a previously untranslated Steins;Gate spinoff, which features many additional side stories.
I’m happy to say that Elite will be releasing on the Nintendo Switch, which is probably where I will buy it. The ability to read a visual novel on the go is a game changer, and this concept was originally popularized by the PlayStation Vita. Additionally, this will be the first SciADV title to be released on the Nintendo Switch, which is very promising for the series’ future.
Steins;Gate Elite will be released in 2018, though an exact date is not known yet.
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