Remember when bunnies were simply cute and fluffy? Me neither. Let's Play Virtue's Last Reward!

Alice ;_; I... I feel so betrayed I THOUGHT WE COULD TRUST EACH OTHER BESIDES NOT KNOWING EACH OTHER AT ALL.

I would die in real life in this game so fast... I'd be all ALLY EVERYONE I BELIEVE IN YOU and the bastards would know it 3:<

Anyway I wouldn't mind the jumping around and would like to see more endings pesonally.

Thanks for your input, guys. c:

Darn those spoilers are so tempting!

Right now, I'm mostly suspicious of Quark and Clover. I don't exactly know why, though.

I love you. I am becoming the forum whore.

That's how I played the game. ALLY EVERYONE. It... uh... went as well as you'd expect.

I also love Ashurei~ Is there a form to apply for your harem or do I automatically gain membership?

I think I might always choose Betray, if I don't know the other person. I'm probably a bad person for saying that.

Ashurei, if you would show us different endings, I'd be eternally grateful.

Aww, I love you guys too.

...

Harems have application forms?

I'm sorry for all the spoilers, Yelim. I'll make it worth the temptation, I promise!

Alright, I'll hold you to that promise then :)

Right. With a resume and everything....can I sign up?

I'd be thrilled if you did. Please include in your resume your harem member history and... relevant... skills... actually, forget the resume. Welcome to the spontaneous harem!

Awesome! At the rate I'm going, I'll be in ten harems by the end of the year! :D

Yay! Random Harem-joinage.

Just so you know how much I love you guys, if we're ever in a situation like in VLR, I'll trust you guys enough to choose ally.

If we ever did end up in such a situation, I'd take you all on a date. We can take a long romantic stroll by the blood-splattered walls, dine on the finest cat food and finish off the night on the back of the Zero III kiddie ride.

That's beautiful. That sounds like the most romantic thing on Earth to me.
*wipes a tear*
Can you please teach the men in my classroom a lesson?

You mean lock them all up and force them to play a nonary game by romantic candlelight? That can be arranged.

While we have stationed security camaras all around the area?
I'll provide the popcorn and icecream, and we can have a Harem Sleepover!

Awww yis. I'm taking residence in the bar.

If anyone needs me I'll be in the garden.

You know, for some... alone time.

Playing this on my own, and...this game is blowing my freakin' mind.

Apologies for my short absence. I've been distracted by Persona 4 (the original, since Golden still won't be released here for another month asdfjaskaklf) so here's chibi Phi while I work on the next update.



Time well spent.

As in this post, there are 42 minutes left to burn before the Chromatic Doors open so everyone decides to split up to search for hidden exits while Sigme wallows in self-pity. Once he's done, it's off to the lounge!



Fancy that. It's the original Team Magenta Door.



Plus one. Calm yo tits, Clover, I can see enough of them as it is.

Since it is a lounge with a (half-stocked) bar and all, Clover suggests that they all get shitfaced because the whole death game thing is pretty damn depressing. Sigme asks if she is legal. Out of concern for underaged drinking, of course. Why else?



If Clover is anything to go by, I'll be dressing like a stripper in mere weeks.

Sigme declines the alcohol as his head is still signalling that Voldemort is nearby. Phi and Luna comment that they've been having headaches too, while Clover is happily headache-free. What they all experience, however, is a numb and foreign feeling, as if their bodies aren't really theirs. Sigme likens it to how your arm feels once you wake up after falling asleep on top of it, while Phi describes a floating kind of sensation. Who knows, maybe Zero thought it'd be funny to make everyone play a nonary game while high.



Or that. Either way, drugs. I caught Phi mid-blink here but decided to keep it since we're on the topic of being drugged anyway. Might as well look the part.

With no clues and no booze, it's time to move on. To the crew quarters!



Just when I thought I figured out Tenmyouji's reason for being in here (the poster), he proves me wrong by not being in here.

Acting exactly like Alice and Dio during our first run, Quark and K ask Sigme whether he found a secret exit or something while solving the room's puzzle. Seriously guys, what the heck were you doing while Sigme was moping? Stare at the poster and pretend to look busy in a wholesome manner as soon as we swing by?



Oh Quark. Quark, no.



Now you've done it.



And that's all Sigme knows about the subject. Thankfully, K the amnesic dictionary slash encyclopedia is around to save him from admitting it. I totally didn't include this screenie because of K's expression what are you talking about.





I only just noticed I caught Quark mid-blink as well. I give up. Keep giving us bedroom eyes for all I care.

They dismiss the book as irrelevant to their current predicament, and Sigme asks the other two whether they found anything useful in their respective rooms. K mentions that the puzzles in the lounge were all lunar eclipse-themed, but there was nothing of particular importance. Quark takes out the same newspaper article Alice showed us when she was part of the group who went through the yellow door.



Sigme thinks to himself that there hadn't been any mention of such an infection on the news or any other media, but he can't shake the feeling that he's heard the term 'Radical-6' before. With the cheerful thought that there might be a pandemic raging outside, Sigme leaves Quark and K to continue their 'searching'. Maybe I should've let Sigme take the poster that time after all.

Oh, stupid jerkface.



Naaah. You merely tied a noose around our neck. It's cool.

Alice claims that she didn't have a choice, and that she would've allied if she had known for sure that Sigme and Phi would choose to ally. Dio scoffs and says that that's easy for her to say now, which causes Alice to become defensive. Is she such a horrible person for wanting to get out? There are still so many things she wants to do, like wear lots of... lots of... PUAHAHAHA. I can't even write it.



I'd sooner believe Dio willingly choosing 'ally' over Alice wearing lots of clothes. Because c'mon.

Fortunately, Alice is saved from sounding completely shallow by a tragic backstory. She desperately wants to be free so that she can...



Sigme asks whether her father's murder has anything to do with them being trapped here, but Alice doesn't know. She admits that she may have been abducted because she had become too close on her father's murderers' trail, which leads Sigme to suspect that she might be a detective.



Suspect, but not actually believe.



Because c'mon.



It amuses me that she looks offended. Like eww, how could you think she's a detective? They're too sensibly dressed.

The conversation moves on to Alice's connection with Clover, and Alice quickly denies that Clover has anything to do with her work. They're simply friends who met in a desert, and as far as she knew, Clover works as a waitress. Alice refuses to share any more, and instead demands that the others share a bit about themselves too.



Tenmyouji is a little more open to a heart-to-heart since there's no dead random old lady to brood over, but he continues to avoid talking about his relationship with Quark. And by 'a little more open' I mean that the above is all we find out from him. Stingy old man.



We don't think, we know.



That explains the attire but Dio? Leading?



I bet they're all dead. That's the only logical explanation I can think of.

And then it's Sigme's turn! Blah blah blah, he was on his way home from school in his not-hovercar when he was gassed, taking full advantage of his not-hovercar's generous leg room while he was at it.



HAHAHAHAHA oh you were serious.



HAHAHAHAHA oh you were serious too.



Hey, only I can insult Sigme. When you have Sigme as a persona, then you can insult him.

Ringleaders should be fat, short guys who smile alot and talk dramatically. Or at least be ridiculously charismatic. Dio's only good point is the hat, which just isn't enough to cut it...

And Tenmyouji's a garbage collector? That's alot less interesting than I suspected o.o

Hey, Dio's pretty and dramatic. Charismatic...not so much. But for all we know, he moonlights in the curiosity show as the Man With Head Up Own Ass.

If I had Sigme as my persona.... I'd fuse it away as soon as I got the chance.

I'm suspecting Alice now. I don't know if I'm misunderstanding something, but how does an explanation about how he got gassed in a hovercar on the way from school lead Alice into believing Sigme is a doctor?
Of course, I might have missed an earlier explanation that Sigme gave to Alice.

The last time someone ran into a room and told us to come, we found two dead people.



Allow me to amend my earlier statement. The last time someone ran into a room and told us to come to the crew quarters, we found two dead people.



Allow me to further amend my earlier statement. The last time someone ran into a room, told us to come to the crew quarters and refused to tell us what was going on, we found two dead people. Do we really have to go?

Unfortunately, we're not given much of a choice. Alice, Dio, Tenmyouji and Sigme all run after Quark into room 02 of the crew quarters, where he silently points under the bed. Everyone crouches down to look.



The good news is, no dead bodies. The bad news is, no dead bodies yet.

Having been fetched by K — who presumably also ran into a room, told them to come to the crew quarters and refused to tell them what was going on — the rest of the gang burst into the room to see the bomb for themselves. For several long moments, they all simply stare at it in silence before slowly eying each other in suspicion. Just when we thought everyone would start getting along because there are no murders, along comes a bomb because screw camaraderie.









And suddenly, we have a pair of bomb experts. How did K know it was a bomb, anyway?



Wow, K and Sigme have so much in common. They're both dudes and they both have seen this bomb before. Match made in heaven, am I right? I'm joking please don't pair K with Sigme.



He does have a point. Alice confirms that it's a bomb, but doesn't divulge how she knows. She vaguely says that it's an occupational hazard. As to what the occupation is, she cannot tell them but trust her anyway. Hmm, trusting her in the AB game put a noose around our neck, so I'd hate to find out what trusting her here would do to us. I'm watching you, fake detective lady.







It's cute when a ten year old kid does it. Grown men, not so much. Sigme, take note. Leave it to Quark to ask whenever you're clueless about something.

Okay kids (and Sigme), it's time for Phi's Science Corner!

Phi: For example, an electron is a particle with a negative charge. It has a sort of opposite which is the antiparticle called the "positron." It has a positive charge instead of a negative one like the electron.

Phi: So protons have antiprotons, and neutrons have antineutrons. "Antimatter" is a general term that covers all the antiparticles.

Phi: The thing that's interesting about antimatter is that because it's the opposite of normal matter, when they collide they both sort of cancel each other out.

Phi: When they cancel each other out, though, it releases a whole bunch of energy. That process is called "annihilation."

And thus Phi's Science Corner was axed after one episode.

Hey, on the bright side, there will never be dead bodies! If that thing goes off, especially with everyone standing right there, it'll probably atomize them.

Okay kids (and Sigme), it's time for Phi's Sex Ed Corner!





Um, I don't think this is going where we think this is g— okay the producer is telling us to keep the camera rolling.



Quark is clearly remembering the 'grandpa videos' right about now.





Are you telling me that psychotic rabbit was the result of a union between a plus and a minus?



I can see Zero Jr. being annihilation. Let's refer to him as 'Annie' from now on.



Terrible rabbit puns?



Quark why do you look so happy.



You mean there are Zero Jr. juniors running around?



Like threaten people with death!

So wait, why does Quark know how babies are made?
God he's adorable. I much prefer this to the little dead-eyed one we saw last run.

And man, Phi. If someone doesn't know what the word "annihilation" means, what makes you think he'd understand protons and neutrons and antiparticles? I could explain it better than that!
"See, matter is everything around us. Your helmet thing's made out of matter. Antimatter on the other hand is nothingness. So when antimatter and matter collide it pretty much implodes and kills every one of us, and this bomb will release antimatter when it goes off."

Considering the conversion with Tenyomji before the AB Game, I would not be surprised if he broke open "grandpa's locked cabinet" and saw some "grandpa movies"

Y'see, there comes a time in every boy's life when he discovers his grandpa's porn stash and applies it to scientific theory.

Important life lessons from Phi, what else could anyone want in life? Especially when she's comparing an antimatter bomb to sex.

Too bad that it's pretty useless that they found the it, as you really can't dismantle an antimatter bomb. If that blue dot in the middle is supposed to be antimatter... Ahahahaha they're dead~

Alice, who would never host a kids' show ever because of reasons (two of them, to be exact), shows off her amazing mental math skills to give everyone an idea of just how dead they actually are. Using Einstein's formula, the amount of energy annihilation would produce would be the total mass of matter and antimatter multipled by the speed of light squared. As an example, if the bomb contained 350 mg of antimatter, annihilation would produce roughly sixty-three trillion joules of energy, which is equivalent to the Hiroshima bomb. On the bright side, this particular bomb...





You guys really need to rethink your definition of 'only'. Especially when that means annihilation would produce...





Relax, Dio. It'd only wipe you off the face of the earth.



Valid point. So... why are we still standing right next to the bomb?







BECAUSE WE'RE ALWAYS GOING TO BE RIGHT NEXT TO A BOMB.



Thanks for volunteering, Dio! I'm sure you and the bomb will get along swimmingly.



Oh. Bummer.

Hope is not all lost, though. It is possible to turn off the bomb via an emergency deactivation password. Only they kind of need a password input device to do that. As well as, y'know, the password itself.



Welp, no point in worrying about deactivating the bomb when we can continue standing right next to it and accuse each other of planting it instead!

As there had been no bomb there when Team Cyan Door were doing the puzzles in the crew quarters, it could only have been planted after the AB game. Unbeknownst to Sigme, who had stayed behind in the warehouse to mope, the rest of the captives had gathered to search the hallways before splitting up into the three rooms he found them in.



As a result, Sigme's moment of self-pity is coming back to bite him in the ass.



He was... busy... saving puppies... from a burning building. True story.



YOU DON'T LIKE PUPPIES?



Aaaaand now we're the primary suspect. Thanks a bunch, Phi. If you survive this, Sigme, you better learn to keep your damn mouth shut.

And now there might be a chance that some guy will come and slit our throats because we are suspected.

Nice going Sigme.

Phew, saved by.... more imminent death. This sucks.

Everyone dashes for the Chromatic Doors, where Phi quickly lays out our options.







Phi suggests that the group let the people who are at the most disadvantage (i.e. at 1 BP) decide the teams. Alice refuses, and declares that everyone will vote so that it'll be 'fair'.



Because screwing us over only once wouldn't be fair.



Attaboy.

K also votes for option C as he and Clover were a pair in the last round, so he feels that he can trust her. Dude, you both betrayed in the last round. I'll just sit here with my popcorn and watch you betray each other in this round, 'kay? Quark, being K's partner, doesn't mind either way so it's three votes for option C. Phi and Sigme want to pair up, and Luna, being a bro, is fine with whatever Sigme chooses, making it three votes for option B. Dio opts for option A, causing Sigme to call him a strange duck for wanting to pair up with Alice (...a 'strange duck' of all things...). Tenmyouji, playing the role of obligatory passive partner, goes along with it, so option A has two votes. Finally, it's all down to Clover to make the final decision.



And so, we're going through the blue door. With Alice. Again. What, you thought the game was actually going to let us decide?



As expected, we're faced with the same three doors.



The same lever.







But a different Sigme! That's right, continue to be pissed off. Thinking like an otome protagonist will only kill you.





Besides, you'll never be able to out-otome Luna.

The door on the left opens and beyond it we find the B. Garden.



After all the dull colours, this brightness almost hurts my eyes. And I think that's the second tree we've seen in the entire game.



Even the music here is pretty relaxing. Check it out.



No interesting dialogue, so I'm skipping right to the safe. But before I do, have a look at this mysterious tombstone that surely has no relevance whatsoever to the plot.



Aaanywho, let's check out the safe.



Looks like it contains more stuff than the other safes we've come across so far. What wonderful, helpful items shall we find?



Obligatory map.



Obligatory key cards.



Obligatory what the hell is this.



A random note.



And the key to get out of here. Although, I kind of don't want to leave. Can't we just stay here? We'll lie on the grass, listen to the water falling and... die via injection/explosion/robot attack/all of the above.

As soon as Sigme and co. step out, they run into some familiar faces.



Dio, do you have to look that horrified to see us? Unless it's directed at Alice. I'll pretend it's directed at Alice.



As it is impossible to screenshot a moving dot, I had to utilise my impressive picture-editing skills. It turns out that Team Blue Door and Team Green Door's rooms were right next to each other, while Team Red Door is probably forever alone somewhere to the left of the map. With nothing better to do, the group move back to Team Green Door's room so that Team Blue Door can check out the sweet pods.



Welcome to the future, where we have magical healing pod things but are still too low-tech for hovercars.





Burn.



...freezer burn?





We have no idea who the three are, because that would've been too easy. So now, in addition to suspecting each other of being Zero Sr. and the bomb planter, everyone's gotta watch out for the pod people. Brilliant.





Actually we've already determined that Alice isn't a ro—







Oh. Because she's actually a mummy.