Dead End Aegis

The sex scenes are overly gratuitous even though the game clearly wants to use them to further bolster its themes about normalisation of abuse, sacrificing the few for the benefit of the many and how sex can be used to control individuals. It´s disappointing the VN squanders its potential to appeal to its presumably male audience by compromising on its own artistic integrity. The perspective is always placed in a way to present the girls in the most sexually desirable way possible in spite of the horrific acts of sexual abuse, undermining their message. As a result, the poignancy of the story was lost on me. I would not recommend reading this as it ends up resulting in a tale with fetishistic levels of pornography that does not contribute to the story the VN so clearly wants to tell. Also thank you to steam for wiping out my full 7 paragraph review when I had to leave for like a few minutes and steam is just like "You won´t be needing that review anymore". Pro tip: Write your steam reviews on another program or you will lose them XD

This is going to live rent free in my head for months, perhaps years on down the line. The primary emotion I felt during this experience was Anger, followed by Sadness, followed by Disgust. If someone put a gun to my head an asked me to summarize the plot, I could do so by simply saying "and then things got worse". At times, it felt like Dead End Aegis was looking me in the eye and saying "Isn't this what you wanted? This is why you bought the game, right?" As some of the most heinous and gruesome things I've ever seen play out on screen. And make no mistake, this game is a dark, harrowing, soul crushing one that had me hoping against hope that our main girls would make it through the hell they found themselves in with at least *some* shred of dignity, and failing that at least their sanity. I won't spoil anything beyond the obvious fact that this is a game where very, very, VERY awful things happen to people that don't deserve them... and both despite and because of that, I can comfortably say Dead End Aegis is one of my favorite media experiences ever. I don't know if I should recommend this game, if only because I genuinely don't think it's the kind of game many people could sit through and actually get something out of. But I could. And at the end of the day all I have to go off of is my own experiences. If you are squeamish, react poorly to tragedy, or have a bad history with mental and physical abuse, I can honestly say that it shouldn't be played. But if you think you can handle that, then you should, and witness one of the most bleak, but emotionally compelling stories I have ever seen. And if you somehow managed to play this game and NOT find yourself feeling empathy for the Main girls, I recommend you seek mental help.

When a hentai VN does better critique on capitalism than most non-hentai media out there

This game is full of pain and suffering. I was prepared for the depraved sex scenes, I was not prepared for the DEPRESSION. Madoka Magica DID NOT prepare me for this. 10/10 would recommend.

This is like when your dad finds out you like smoking and forces you to smoke multiple cartons until you die of lung damage. This is exceptionally brutal beyond description. The VN constantly bombards you with sex scenes, most of which are either rape, torture, humiliation or something degrading. However, it is not without purpose. It serves as the VN's main vehicle to show the never ending downward spiral that the main heroine descends. It is merciless and by the end of it everything you know and love are reduced to ashes. It's certainly a ride worth riding as it is nicely written and, while horrifying, incredibly captivating.

A few years ago I discovered the free prequel for this VN and have been craving to play the full game ever since, and am happy that I did now! To me this feels like it was written by someone who wanted to share their extreme fetishes but just happened to be an excellent writer as well and turned it into a masterpiece (^u^). I adore the concept and premise; any dark fiction including magical girls already grabs my interest, plus paired with sci-fi and a space setting, it immediately invested me. I was pleasantly surprised at how profound and mature various themes and relationships are handled without feeling pretentious or overly edgy, despite the game being packed with shocking ero-content. In particular the way this story plays with the concepts of hope and trust honestly impacted me even as a reader, I was actually sad whenever another ray of hope got crushed lol. The atmosphere truly mastered at being constantly depressing, tense and hopeless. I also thoroughly enjoyed the main cast and found the characters with their thoughts and motives well-written and memorable. Moreover, the lore is overall very creative and twisted, supported by a strong world-building, causing me to feel captivated all along. Lastly, the music and art are incredible, and one of the main reasons this game intrigued me so much in the past.

i wasnt ready.

I need seven hundred cigarettes after this and I'm not even close to finishing it

(I have never written a review as long as this, ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ but here we go.) Are you a sci-fi fan or magical girl fanatic, or maybe you're really into the nitty gritty? (Don't hide it, I see your search history.) Well... I have a game for you. It really depends if you'll be sold by this review or not, and personal tastes of course. Pardon the refund as I initially refunded it due to a bug regarding the OP but its nothing major. I'm planning to re-play what I'd done previously again tonight. ("A fig" is peak eroge music.) Dead End Aegis tests your will, your endurance. It make you feel the same pain as these girls do, breathe a sigh of relief when it seems to be over- but actuality their suffering never ends in both their minds and our own. The VN features excellent writing, character development, visuals and especially music. There is a mysterious gravitational pull despite the extreme gore and sexual content being thrown at you. You want to know what happens next, why these things are happening in the first place and why the main protagonist Minori keeps fighting on despite what's being happened to her. If you can swallow these content warnings and cherish the writing as much as I have you'll find yourself an amazing visual novel. If you wish to see the fandisk just like I do and are stoked by the game already, *please* buy the game as we'll get a translation that way! Please note that the Gaiden chapter provided free is the censored version, by buying it on JAST you'll get the main game thats still uncensored and has the gaiden chapter uncensored as well. In conclusion, true ending or not, these memories shared by you and the girls will be there to forever stay, in both a good, horrifying and terrible way. edit: I've got this on GOG and I'm still playing it <3 10/10

Its like watching a never-ending train wreck