Isekaing: From Zero to Zero Review.

Genres: Role-playing game, Indie game, Adventure

Developer: ElvenNeko

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux

Publisher: ElvenNeko

Have you ever played a game and immediately thought, “What the hell was that?””That’s my experience with Isekaing: From Zero to Zero.” It’s one of those odd experiences that I can’t quite express, but I’ll try. Just so you know, the images in this review may be objectionable, so continue at your own risk. As soon as you start the game, you are given to a theme tune that explains a little about the tale. I am not used to videogames having their own theme with lyrics!

Isekaing is similar to a retro-style RPG, but most of the time you’re just reading a lot of text, so it feels more like a visual novel that I was scrolling through. The tale centered around Zoe Powell. The narrator says that this is her final day in this world and asks whether she would make different decisions if she knew this. The introduction mentions humans being dumb enough to believe that the entire universe revolves around them, which appropriately depicts our main character. You quickly see that she is a rude and extremely entitled person who loves to swear whenever she gets the chance, so I wasn’t too surprised to learn of her poor luck. Even though this is merely the beginning of her story, we will be stuck as Zoe for the duration of her quest.

We see Zoe barging into the men’s restroom, and a guy there asks why she’s there. She promptly instructs him to fuck off. The stock photo guy responds, “If you are rude to strangers, one day God will punish you.” Following this pleasant exchange, we see her walk outside and notice a semi-truck with blades that resemble fangs for a bumper and an Isekai Express sticker. It also has a skull logo with red swirls on the truck’s grill. After saying, “What the fuck is this?”” The truck (known as Truck-kun) continues to speak to her, stating that it had been reported that she was being a very wicked girl. He informs her that it is her time to leave and that her judgment is pending. Her main complaint is that she has only recently created her onlyfans page and is only beginning to get popularity. The vehicle declares that no one can halt the wheels of destiny; we hear the truck start and the screen goes black.

God is now judging Zoe because she is no longer alive. She is judged guilty of being cruel to strangers, and her sentence is to live in a pixel world. Before entering this new pixelated universe, a placeholder image displays with stick figure drawings. She complains, urging God not to place her in an incomplete title because it is most likely early access and will remain there indefinitely. Following that, we see Zoe in a pixel world as a newborn. After criticizing the woman who appears to be her mother, we observe a time jump of 20 years.

She comes out of bed (in a church?) naked, declaring that she had a wonderful sleep that was worth dying for. It appears that we will be able to pick various choices, such as the class Zoe will play: farmer, forester, shepherd, slaver, beggar, drunkard, housewife, or squire. However, Zoe is unimpressed until she meets Rage Mage, therefore you are unable to make this selection. This is a class in which you unleash your rage on everyone around you, and the spell you cast becomes more powerful. Now we can choose a personality trait from three options. Weaponised Words persuade others to believe anything you say, no matter how ludicrous it is; Creative Mind allows you to devise novel solutions to your issues; and ultimately, Brute Force delivers exactly what you want. That’s the one I chose; I figured it’s how she handles everything regardless.

At times, it feels like the text is never-ending, and there is no player interaction for extended periods of chat. It made me worry if I would ever get to do anything in this game. Eventually, you’ll be able to choose between keyboard, Steam Deck, and Xbox controller. There is a menu where you can adjust your settings and save your game.

Isekaing: From Zero to Zero offers decent graphics, with pixelated characters reminiscent of an RPG Maker game. However, it is remarkable for its use of unique AI-generated artwork throughout the game. All of the posters and photos on the walls of the venues you visit are weird pieces of art that add nothing to the plot and are simply there. In terms of storyline, the entire story consists of poor jokes that are not just unfunny but also offensive. The use of terminology like “retard,” rape-related jokes, and overtly misogynistic lines, along with the continual use of profanity and poor grammar, is never appealing.

Almost every character you see has a song to sing for you; these, like the interaction with the characters, are riddled with syntax errors and are simply odd AI-generated songs. The game does allow you to skip the songs, which is useful because some of them are quite long and cover irrelevant topics. There isn’t much music in the game aside from the one “party” you have to attend. Aside from that, the entire airtime is filled with characters talking nonstop (AI produced yet again). I found Zoe’s voice to be really irritating; perhaps I’m just not a fan of the stuck-up valley girl sound.

I have to say that my experience with Isekaing: From Zero to Zero has been strange and not something I would want to spend another three hours doing. I guess I don’t have the correct sense of humor to fully appreciate a title like this. However, my favorite part of the game was when I had to go into the options menu to turn down the background music because a character told me it was too loud to hold a discussion over; this was a great touch. Isekaing: From Zero to Zero delivers on its promise of being unlike anything I’ve ever played before, but it’s not the most delightful experience.

Review Overview

Gameplay: 78%

Controls: 81%

Aesthetics: 83%

Content: 75%

Accessibility: 80%

Value: 77%

Overall: 79%

FAIR!

Summary:

“Isekaing: From Zero to Zero” adds a funny twist to the isekai genre, although the gameplay doesn’t always live up to the premise. With a whimsical tale and stylized visuals, the game’s aesthetic appeal and humor are appealing, particularly to genre enthusiasts. The controls are simple and intuitive, however the gameplay can become tedious after a while. Content-wise, it may leave gamers wanting more diversity, but it’s a fun, easygoing experience for anyone willing to dive into an isekai-inspired adventure without taking themselves too seriously.