Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward for Nintendo 3DS Reviews by Gamers

(Note: review is based on the 3DS edition; game is also available on the PSVita...heck if I know why, though...)
What could have ended up being Chunsoft's swansong (before the merger with Spike) has become the small software company's Opus of Visual Novels(heretofore VN). Why is this so? This reviewer will hit on the 3 major points of this last must-have title for the 3DS of 2012.
First, as stated in the title, this game has improved in EVERY aspect over its predecessor, 999. This is especially evident when it comes to the games' endings.
Wait a Sec...

##DOUBLE SPOILER ALERT##
Sorry, but I cannot write a review on the awesome without mentioning endings. In 999, the game had 5 or 6 endings(depending on your point of view), 4 of them ending in your bloody, horrible death. Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward(heretofore VLR) has over 10 endings, and more than 3 of them don't end in your bloody, horrible death. A marked improvement.

##End SPOILER ALERT##
2nd, the story itself has legs of its own to stand on. There is such a blend of old and new elements that you miss nothing by playing VLR 1st or by itself, but your experience is enhanced by previous exposure to 999. The inclusion of one old character, Clover, is such an immediate point of intrigue that I was invested in the story almost immediately.
Lastly, this is a little broad-based, but I feel it must be said. To all who view VNs as an unprofitable niche, super-boring text-heavy wastes of time, and/or games only for die-hard Otaku or Eroge/HG fans: that stops dead with VLR. The 3D capabilities of the 3DS are a revolutionary revelation on what the VN genre can be. If anyone involved in the production industry is reading this, here me NOW: the 3DS is the platform you have be waiting for to launch your small Visual Novel project.
In Conclusion, the GF rating system doesn't allow for 9.5 ratings, but based on its improvements, story, and simple math the 10 is well-earned. VLR is a must-try game for EVERY

EVERYONE! SHUT THE "language that is problematic" UP! PLAY THIS GAME! Zero escape appeals to the thoughtful gamer on many levels. Puzzles range from deductive reasoning, lateral logic, and "seat-of-your-pants" intuition. Characters appear to fall into genre cliche early on, but through expert writing and story progression show those cliches to be more player bias than fact. Each cast member has a story, a past, and a motive players will gladly grind tooth and nail to uncover and, most importantly, play directly into the ever growing mystery of the "Nonary Game." All these carefully buried truths can only be exposed through choices, but these are not one and done decisions. In order to fully experience this remarkable tale, you'll need to play through each part of the binary (and occasionally tertiary) choice. Don't worry though; this is more than just a ploy for multiple play-throughs. Real world quantum mechanics marries with some of the best existential philosophy and a carefully applied dressing of plausible science fiction to develop a narrative that transcends and connects each alternate path where one is impossible without the other.
Only reservation: stay away if you don't enjoy a gratuitous level of reading. Shame on you, heathen. Go read Fitzgerald!