World End Syndrome

 Switch
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 30 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 30
  3. Negative: 3 out of 30

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  1. JolleyGood
    Jun 27, 2019
    9
    Lovely game, beautiful story and great characters. It won't be for everyone but a great experience for those who feel they may enjoy it
  2. bthaxton1990
    May 10, 2019
    10
    World End Syndrome is a visual novel that tells a story about the supernatural, murder, mystery, and romance. Playing as a character who has faced a recent tragedy in his life, so you relocate to a new town and stay in your uncles mansion. During you time at this new location you will attend school and meet a slew of interesting characters. Each character has a different personality andWorld End Syndrome is a visual novel that tells a story about the supernatural, murder, mystery, and romance. Playing as a character who has faced a recent tragedy in his life, so you relocate to a new town and stay in your uncles mansion. During you time at this new location you will attend school and meet a slew of interesting characters. Each character has a different personality and they stayed interesting the whole play through. About 3 hours into the game, you will be given a choice, but there is only one option. Picking this one option leads to the bad ending of the game, which is nuts! and a perfect way to get players excited. Reloading your save, there is now a second option, which allows you to move forward regularly. From that point on, you will decided where you want to go each day, who you want to see, what errands you want to complete, and much more. Giving you a sense of choice that is lacking in some other visual novels. Ultimately the goal is to reach the end of the calender's and get the good ending, which will require trial and error, but the game cross saves data so if you complete a mission and then load an old save, that mission will still be completed. The visuals are perfect, as well as the sound effects. The dialogue is on point and the translators did an excellent job. The character models are unique and the ladies look great. The romance segments are interesting, and mature. Overall this is a great VN and I would highly recommend it.… Expand
  3. hh3k0
    Jul 10, 2019
    10
    World End Syndrome is perhaps the visual novel with the most gorgeous character and background art that I've ever read/played. The protagonist of this captivating story has just moved to a seaside town for a fresh start. He joins the mystery club of the local high school, a club that is mainly devoted to the research of an old legend of the town, and realizes soon that all is not what itWorld End Syndrome is perhaps the visual novel with the most gorgeous character and background art that I've ever read/played. The protagonist of this captivating story has just moved to a seaside town for a fresh start. He joins the mystery club of the local high school, a club that is mainly devoted to the research of an old legend of the town, and realizes soon that all is not what it seems in the peaceful town that is his new home. The visual novel has several interesting routes, surprising plot-twists and a diverse range of endings. Definitely my new all-time favorite vn.… Expand
  4. Kevandre
    Apr 6, 2020
    9
    First the Pro's- This is the most gorgeous visual novel I've ever seen. The character art is amazing and the backgrounds show more than cursory effort, which isn't SUPER important but I thought it was notable for sure.

    The plot is incredible. I love telling a complete story via different routes with different characters, it's the best way to show you the full picture and this game is a    First the Pro's- This is the most gorgeous visual novel I've ever seen. The character art is amazing and the backgrounds show more than cursory effort, which isn't SUPER important but I thought it was notable for sure.

    The plot is incredible. I love telling a complete story via different routes with different characters, it's the best way to show you the full picture and this game is a master at that kind of storytelling. It had twists and turns I was certainly not expecting and there were multiple times where I shouted out during playing at certain surprises.Due to these, it's the kind of game you think about a lot afterward, connecting some dots together.

    The cons, and they're barely cons. The first, less important one- there's only a Japanese dub. That in itself isn't really a big deal, I'll just turn the voices off completely (Hearing a language I don't know just distracts me and takes me out of the experience).

    The slightly bigger con is the "gameplay." Now, when you talk about a visual novel, gameplay is almost a complete non-issue, but in this particular case I think it's worth noting in a review. Post-prologue, you go into an almost Monster Prom-esque gameplay style where you have to choose where to go and just hope that the girl whose route you're on is there. Oftentimes these interactions are meaningful and great, other times they don't mean anything. Due to this particular style of gameplay, I would not recommend playing this game without a guide to anyone, you'll just be wasting a lot of time if you don't know where to go. It's not a big deal, but I thought it was enough to remove a point. All the same..

    Overall the game was amazing. I loved the story and characters very very much and am really excited that there's a sequel coming eventually. I will be there day one for it, for sure!

    EDIT: What most reviews and things don't tell you going in is that there are some spooky parts and a couple jumpscares. It DOES happen but mostly in the prologue. If it turns you off in the prologue I'd recommend sticking with it, the game lightens up after that on subsequent playthroughs.    … Expand
  5. d4rknezz
    Oct 28, 2019
    0
    There are games that allows you to replay part of the game, or the full game for a new game + experience with new endings or whatnot. Its kind of optional. if you love the game, go for the complete ending.

    This game took it to the extreme. They package it as new game +, or something, but really, to actually play this game properly, you have to play this game 5 times. There are love    There are games that allows you to replay part of the game, or the full game for a new game + experience with new endings or whatnot. Its kind of optional. if you love the game, go for the complete ending.

    This game took it to the extreme. They package it as new game +, or something, but really, to actually play this game properly, you have to play this game 5 times.
    There are love interest - these aren't optional. There is no best girl. No, they are part of the story that you have to replay 5 times to get the true ending.

    Well how about the story? Well, there isn't one, at least not until the 4th play through. The other 3 you are basically just having a slice of life thing. NO story. No bad guy, no good guy, nothing.
    Then suddenly the story is revealed on the 5th play through. Just like that.

    There are a couple likeable character, and more than a few very annoying character that you just wish to smack upside down. The other characters in the game seems to agree.

    Now is the game at least enjoyable? Well, The game consist of you exploring 7 locations in a city, at different times of day (3 different times). Depending on the time of day and the location, you get a different cutscene. or not. And you do this for 30 days to end the game. Then you redo this, 5 more times.
    Are there any quest? yes. There are very few quests. You can do them in the first run.
    What other variation is there to the game? NONE. You press A button a million times to go next...next...next...next...

    Graphic : Gorgeous.

    I have never hated a game more for making me read through it. And it wasn't worth it. It was so upsetting, i made an account on metacritic for my first review ever of this game.    … Expand
  6. Tortor
    Jun 13, 2023
    4
    I am so confused what people see in this. Ive played a lot of visual novels and this has won last place for me and is one of the worst experiences Ive ever had.

    It was low-stakes, shallow characters that just are so difficult to enjoy, terrible pacing issues of several hours going by of just not a lot happening, plagued with poor/cheap writing tricks that are either very predictable or    I am so confused what people see in this. Ive played a lot of visual novels and this has won last place for me and is one of the worst experiences Ive ever had.

    It was low-stakes, shallow characters that just are so difficult to enjoy, terrible pacing issues of several hours going by of just not a lot happening, plagued with poor/cheap writing tricks that are either very predictable or come out of nowhere that all emotions toward it just didn't have a build up to care about.

    This dragged in a way I've never seen a visual novel do before. It just is fascinating that no one thought to the self before releasing this that 'hey maybe we should cut out these several 3-4 hour long gaps of meaningless fluff because no reasonable person would enjoy that'.

    Some of the characters were alright albeit maybe a bit cliche and tropey but the vast majority of the cast just felt very underdeveloped.

    The traveling around concept was sorta neat. That was new for me and I really liked the trying to figure out where to go, too bad if you stumble on a place where nothing is going on you waste your time though which happens often. This structure unfortunately though leads to a big issue of trying to replay it. I just got frustrated with how much time I felt I was wasting on nonsense by trying to move around this structure that is cool at first but then quickly becomes an annoyance.

    The plot was just hard to care about, sometimes too vague and situations with the characters were not interesting enough for me. Reveals were also not really well written and would come off as cheesy too which just added to this mess. The MC you play as has a pre-built backstory too that just was hard to relate to, it felt like it came and went on a whim so often that id sometimes forget these details about the MC until it pops up again and it made it feel so disjointed.

    Overall, terrible game. One of the worst in my experiences. Art style is nice, menus are cool, I liked the traversal at first until I didn't but the main point of visual novels is plot/characters that this just didn't land for me.    … Expand
  7. Emrys89
    Jan 4, 2022
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is such a wonderful game. While i did find myself lagging when it came to certain routes the end result was worth it.

    The story is mysterious a d intriguing. I highly recommend it for those who like a good mystery and funny characters    … Expand
  8. SSGOHAN
    Nov 26, 2020
    8
    Its definitely not revolutionary in terms of a Visual Novel but what it did with its original story and how they wrapped it up, I dont think it could have been done better. This is definitely a Visual Novel you want to do every Route for the true ending
  9. doghairdontcare
    Mar 28, 2021
    9
    It's a visual novel that leaves you wanting more. There are multiple endings that are required before you reach the "truth."

    Pros: - aesthetically pleasing artwork - character development is welcomed with likeable cast - decent plot. this game isn't just for eye candy / fan service. Cons: - some of the art might be a bit overly saucy for what it is. it's not really a hentai game    It's a visual novel that leaves you wanting more. There are multiple endings that are required before you reach the "truth."

    Pros:
    - aesthetically pleasing artwork
    - character development is welcomed with likeable cast
    - decent plot. this game isn't just for eye candy / fan service.

    Cons:
    - some of the art might be a bit overly saucy for what it is. it's not really a hentai game or anything like that, but hey. to each their own.
    - some continuity issues. ex: you visit a specific spot that triggers a cutscene that ends up taking you to another spot. after the cutscene is over, you're back at the original spot. That doesn't make much sense, but it doesn't happen too often and it's not really game breaking.
    - It's hard to recommend playing this game without following a spoiler-free guide for each pursued character route.

    That being said, I really enjoyed this game. There wasn't any English voice acting, but I'm okay with that as the Japanese voice acting was good. I got about 30 hours of gameplay following a guide, but I am also a slow reader / like to take things in. I am definitely looking forward to a sequel.    … Expand
  10. Nintendopost24
    Jun 2, 2019
    8
    En tant que grand fan de Muv Luv, la série des Grisaia et d’autres Visuals Novels où la drague fait partie de l’aventure, je ne m’attendais vraiment pas à grand chose de World End Syndrome. Et pourtant, le jeu m’a perturbé, bousculé, dérouté. L’histoire est passionnante à suivre, et la narration est servie par une mise en scène visuelle et sonore supérieure à la moyenne des autres jeux duEn tant que grand fan de Muv Luv, la série des Grisaia et d’autres Visuals Novels où la drague fait partie de l’aventure, je ne m’attendais vraiment pas à grand chose de World End Syndrome. Et pourtant, le jeu m’a perturbé, bousculé, dérouté. L’histoire est passionnante à suivre, et la narration est servie par une mise en scène visuelle et sonore supérieure à la moyenne des autres jeux du genre. Le côté séduction du jeu est parfaitement bien mené et vos cinq prétendantes sont toutes réussites et bien écrites. Certaines scènes vous bousculeront vraiment émotionnellement. C’est la force des Visuals Novels, associé le meilleur d’un bon roman avec la qualité visuelle, sonore, et de mise en scène d’un bon manga ou Anime. Attention cependant, le jeu est uniquement en anglais, et vu la quantité de textes, une bonne maîtrise de la langue est requise.… Expand
  11. xcJetx
    Jun 26, 2020
    9
    This visual novel starts off slow. You have to sit through many of what seem stale hours of reading with no apparent purpose and, not gonna lie, it kinda demotivated me to continue playing. Thank God I didn't stop. Those seemingly boring hours were included to build the world around you. You end up "living" the Mihate Town experience. Then, all of a sudden, the storytellers decide to turnThis visual novel starts off slow. You have to sit through many of what seem stale hours of reading with no apparent purpose and, not gonna lie, it kinda demotivated me to continue playing. Thank God I didn't stop. Those seemingly boring hours were included to build the world around you. You end up "living" the Mihate Town experience. Then, all of a sudden, the storytellers decide to turn up the intensity dial. It hits you like truck and you can't wait to discover more of the many mysteries that haunt you. The characters that you meet along the way are all beautifully designed, masterfully voice acted and wonderfully written. It's rare to find a visual novel where you can't decide who you prefer right off the bat, and this is one of those notable exceptions. The more hours you invest in this game, the better it rewards you, culminating in one of the biggest mindf....mindblowns I have ever experienced in any form of entertainment. You have give to this game a chance to charm, awe, and scare you.… Expand
  12. Richie13
    Aug 6, 2020
    10
    Excellent visual novel! Amazing characters and thrilling story. One of the best visual novels I've ever played.
  13. King_zlata
    Dec 27, 2020
    10
    I really engaging vn that I believe many people will enjoy. Every route was well written and got you closer to the truth. I definitely reccomend!
  14. Blzbub08
    Apr 18, 2021
    8
    A very enjoyable VN experience, beautiful animated backgrounds, good character designs, fun dialogue, 5 different girl/routes plus the Truth route to wrap everything up. One thing I would change would be having the ability to skip the prologue, but overall, it's a very engaging game.

Awards & Rankings

96
#96 Best Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Cubed3
    Feb 11, 2021
    80
    There is almost nothing to dislike about World End Syndrome. It looks and plays beautifully with a variety of shocking plot twists added among some well-known anime tropes which are comforting to read in a visual novel whose plot is definitely not cute and fluffy. It doesn't matter that, like all visual novels, scenes are reused over and over. The plot is so engaging that the repetitive nature isn't an issue, nor is having to load an earlier save when a wrong choice is made and the main character is brutally murdered. For those more easily scared it is advisable not to play this game in the dark, as ordinary night noise morphs into a death seeking being whose badness is not as clear cut as it seems. To get one hundred percent completion, several playthroughs will be necessary, yet each character is likeable enough that replaying it isn't a chore, not when more truths will be revealed by doing so.
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  2. FNintendo
    Feb 4, 2020
    80
    Thanks to a mystery-laden plot that drip-feeds the main elements to the player on a pace that's just enough to keep the senses sharp, World End Syndrome's high quality writing and beautiful visual environment only help making this a recommended experience to everyone who likes a good mystery.
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  3. Nintenderos
    Jul 8, 2019
    80
    WorldEnd Syndrome is a gift from Arc System Works for all fans of horror visual novels. With great illustrations, a deep story with multiple options, lots of collectibles and despite taking some risky decisions in terms of gameplay, we can say that it is one of the best titles of the genre available on Nintendo Switch.
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