Okay, so let me just dive straight into this. There’s this game – “No Sleep For Kaname Date – From AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES” – and it just hit the scene on the Nintendo Switch 2. First game of its kind on this platform, actually. Anyway, so Kaname Date, our main dude, is back after wrapping up some mystery that’s not super clear. Now, there’s a UFO involved. Yeah, you read that right. Totally wild. Internet idol Iris Sagan (nicknamed “A-set”), gets snatched up by it and is shoved into this bizarre escape thing called The Third Eye Game. Honestly, it’s like something out of No More Heroes (anyone remember that?).
Kaname, who was already in hot water with these shady men in black – no, not like the movie, but sort of? – has gotta solve all this with his AI buddy Aiba. So yeah, your typical night out in a cyberpunk world, I guess? The vibe feels twisted enough to keep a gamer hooked, almost teasing you, like, “Can you actually handle this madness?”
Anywho, voice acting makes it so much better. Greg Chun’s killing it as Date, and there’s Jackie Lastra voicing Iris. Erika Harlacher does Aiba. Jenny Yokobori pops in too. I think she voices the game host or something? Anyway, they all nail it.
The game splits into 3 types of bits: Investigation, Escape, Somnium. Investigations are you poking around, clicking on stuff, finding clues with your cyber-eye. The whole thing feels sorta like you’re being a futuristic Sherlock Holmes. Makes you feel smart, or at least that’s what I told myself while clicking aimlessly.
Then the Escape sections – yeah, no brainer. You try to get out, solve puzzles, and pretend you’re MacGyver. There’s a mechanic where you can highlight stuff to examine more closely, neat trick but, meh, gets tricky in Hard mode, which I barely survived (not bragging, just saying).
So, Somnium… that’s where the game asks you to play mind-reader. You dive into people’s dreams. What? Six minutes only though, so stress much? Gotta undo “Mental Locks” – feels kinda like untangling headphones but in someone’s head. So, real fun… most of the time.
Difficulty settings? There’s a few, and they change how the game plays. Story mode basically holds your hand. Hard mode? You’re on your own. I swear the game gives zero hints and expects you to be Einstein.
Graphics? On-point. Everything’s sharp, colorful. Could be watching a sci-fi anime, honestly. Can’t complain because it just looks… alive. And hey, you unlock some bonus stuff as you go. Spend in-game points called Eyes or something. I keep getting them, not too sure how, but whatever, free stuff is good.
Release date, I think, is July 25th. Runs you about $39.99? Not breaking the bank but also, you know, not free. Anyway, game’s whacky, detailed, and maybe a little chaotic, but that’s the charm. Well, if you’re into that vibe.
I mean, the Switch 2 needed something to spice things up, and this might just do it. But seriously, who would’ve thought? UFOs? Can’t make this stuff up.
