Break Chance Memento Demo

It’s a general rule of thumb that stories involving time travel are going to have plot holes and inconsistencies, mainly because it is almost impossible to avoid paradoxes. However, there are many examples that turned out pretty well as long as the subject is approached with care and consideration. In the end, people can forgive a few errors as long as the story as a whole is interesting enough.

Break Chance Memento is a visual novel that touches on the same subject, although it does so in a much more delicate way. Given the nature of the genre, you don’t get to interact with the characters or the game world very much, but you can take a few crucial decisions along the way to alter the course of the story. It’s more like reading a good book than playing a video game, except that you have a certain degree of control over the plot.

Speaking of which, the game puts you in the role of a boy by the name of Shuuki, whose past is riddled with misfortune and tragedy. His sister died in an accident a few years back, and now his brother is found dead as well. However, a mysterious character appears and offers Shuuki the possibility to change all that, by traveling back in time and altering the past.

In regards to the explanation given for the time travel gimmick, the key lies with mementos, which are objects that have the power to link the past with the future and the present. Hence, these can be used to alter events, which grants Shuuki the ability to save innocent lives and make the world a better place. Obviously, things get more complicated than this later on.

As far as the visual quality is concerned, the artwork is sublime, especially when it comes to character design and background art. You need to be comfortable with anime stereotypes, on the other hand, although it’s not as obvious as in other visual novel games. The music goes nicely with the events unfolding on the screen, which helps a lot with the atmosphere.

In the end, Break Chance Memento is quite clearly a very refined product, even if it was designed by an indie team. Everything is in its right place, and the artwork is about as great as it can get under the circumstances. Hence, if you are a fan of the genre, this should definitely be on your list.