ChaoS;Child is a Masterpiece!

Article at a glance:

• ChaoS;Child is the fourth main entry in the Science Adventure series and a thematic sequel to ChaoS;HEAd.
• This VN leans heavily into psychological thriller territory with a dark, emotionally intense plot, so it’s not for the faint-hearted.
• The story follows Takuru Miyashiro as he investigates a series of grisly murders, echoing past events in Shibuya.
• Unique gameplay mechanics, including Delusion choices and clue-piecing segments, add an interactive layer to the VN experience.
• Stunning visuals and a haunting soundtrack by Takeshi Abo elevate the overall experience.

I had some free time this week so I decided to pick up this Visual Novel… and well, I do kinda regret it because of how much emotional damage it deals. But ChaoS;Child still managed to deliver an unforgettable experience. Even among the VNs developed by Mages, which includes the highly-acclaimed Steins;Gate, this VN manages to be unique and bring in some interesting gameplay elements that are usually not seen in the genre. You know, you are supposed to read a VN. But this one does have some gameplay as well.

So welcome back to another recommendation article. This week we are talking about the ChaoS;Child VN. And my god was it an experience. So let’s talk about it.

Introduction

ChaoS;Child is the fourth main entry in the Science Adventure series developed by Mages and it is a thematic sequel to ChaoS;HEAd/ChaoS;HEAd Noah. But don’t worry, you don’t need to have played any of the prior games to enjoy this VN. I do recommend playing through at least ChaoS;HEAd but again, it is not required by any means. Also, like ChaoS;HEAd, DO NOT watch the anime adaptation. It is garbage and it may even ruin the VN for you. PLEASE stay away from the anime adaptation.

Fair warning, if you thought Steins;Gate was dark, ChaoS;Child and ChoaS;HEAd are much worse. Robotic;Notes and Steins;Gate lean more on the sci-fi aspect while the ChaoS LNs lean more heavily into psychological thriller territory and feature a substantial amount of gore. If any of that is not for you, you will not have a good time with this VN. But again, if you can sit through it, you will be rewarded with a truly unparalleled story.

Plot

During the events of ChaoS;HEAd, Shibuya was destroyed, and this VN takes place in the rebuilt Shibuya. We play as Takuru Miyashiro. Takuru’s family died when Shibuya was destroyed 6 years ago. And just like 6 years ago, the New Generation Madness killings are back they are occurring on the same dates too. Takuru is the president of his school’s newspaper club. As you can guess, the club is very interested in the New Generation Madness killings despite the objections of Nono, Takuru’s older foster sister.

That’s all I can say without spoiling too much. It is really easy to spoil the plot of something like this. And as with all VNs, this one also does have routes. There are no dialog choices, you switch routes by selecting Negative or Positive Delusions when the moment calls for it, just like how it was in ChaoS;HEAd. You can go through the routes in any order you wish but I highly recommend saving Nono’s route for the last and then going through the True route to get the proper ending. Save those two for last and you will be good.

Again, doing Nono or the True routes before the others will spoil the other routes for you, You may need a guide to go into certain routes. But trust me, it is well worth the trouble,

Characters

I want you to understand something before we start this section. Takuru is NOT a good person. He is kind of a jerk. He considers himself to be morally superior to almost everyone else. And Takuru is obsessed with information. His parent’s death has only compounded these aspects of his personality. Despite growing up with his foster family, Takuru still often lives in a caravan trailer alone. But how much he suffers throughout the plot to get to where he is at the end, will make you feel for him. It is an amazing character journey.

As you may have guessed from the previous section, Nono plays an important role in the story. She is Takuru’s foster older sister and she is quite protective of him. Again, you will understand why as you play through the game. The rest of the newspaper club includes Serika, Hana, and Shinji. The club is overseen by Shuicihi Wakui. The cast overall is amazing. Each route goes very in-depth about that character giving almost every major character time to shine.

Art, Gameplay, and Soundtrack

Mages never disappoint with their art design. Their visual novel art is always top-tier and you can see the better production budget of ChaoS;Child being put to good use. They had some unforgettable visuals in their older works but this VN is somehow a step above all of those. The same carries over to the soundtracks, this might be Takeshi Abo’s best composition yet. You can feel how good the soundtrack the moment the game boots up with the awesome main menu theme.

As for the gameplay, as I mentioned earlier, this VN has more gameplay than what we’ve come to expect from the genre. You get to piece together clues to a case on a board. Some of the best plot moments of the game come from this mechanic. There is also the idea of using Delusions to switch routes instead of traditional dialog options.

That is all for now!

Here’s why you should check out ChaoS;Child

• AMAZING Plot
• Great characters
• Interesting gameplay mechanics
• Loads of replay value
• 10/10 Soundtracks and Visuals

That is all for now. Let me know what you guys think in the comments. This VN truly is a masterpiece. It may not have the wide appeal of Steins;Gate but damn does it deliver a unique and unforgettable experience. Let me know what you guys think in the comments and I will take my leave here. See ya!

Also, check out some Oshi no Ko manga news here!