After playing Ai: The Somnium Files recently I found myself unable to resist jumping into Nirvana Initiative right after. Ai NI is a sequel that departs a little bit from the first game in some ways, but it is in fact a true sequel with the same amount of comedic heart and focus on a lot of it's characters in different timelines with specific routes for them. I found myself enjoying most of these routes with the exception of probably Komeji's route, but the game overall was a much more wild ride than the first one. Without getting into spoiler territory, I think this game was mindblowing clever, and some of the twists at first had me baffled, but when I went back to replay some parts of the game I could see a lot of the foreshadowing and clues. By the end of the game I was completely blown away and even 20 hours later I still am processing a lot of it, ESPECIALLY the secret ending chapter diverge. This game brings a lot of questioning into morals and what's truly right and wrong, similarly like a game I played this year called Lost Judgment (which is funny because Date and Yagami have the same VA and they're both detective murder mysteries). Anyway, this game is peak fiction just like the first one. It took a while to really start hooking me in but it definitely did after my least favorite route. I really loved this game and I can see myself replaying it in a few months with the twists in mind. I love Ai and I think the hate for this sequel is kind of unwarranted. Just have a fun time with these characters and you'll be good because remember, it's a comedy at heart while presenting a deep narrative. It doesn't have to be FULLY taken seriously. If you pay close attention, the game even explains some serious plot holes for the first one, which is what a sequel should absolutely accomplish.