PSYCHO-PASS: Mandatory Happiness Reviews
Visual novels have rallied hard over the last few years, not only showing up in North America but also having moved from PC exclusives to showing up on consoles more readily. Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness is the latest such visual novel from NIS America and 5pb and it delivers exactly what you would hope for from the genre: stylish visuals, excellent voice acting and most importantly an engaging story.
If you’re a fan of the Psycho-Pass anime, you’ll get an enormous amount of enjoyment out of the expertly crafted story presented in Mandatory Happiness. If you’re like me and anime isn’t something you go out of your way to view, that may change after watching the first few episodes of Psycho-Pass and playing Mandatory Happiness.
All together I thought PSYCHO-PASS: Mandatory Happiness was very good. Every choice you make changes the outcome in the end so be very careful with what choices you make. And this goes without saying for veterans of visual novels, but save often! It makes multiple playthroughs a lot easier. At the end of the day, I felt like I could also start bringing justice to the world. I just have to start managing my own Hue first!
Overall, if you’re happy to sit down and have a good read, Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness is an extremely well-told story with an incredibly well-written antagonist. The lack of animation and interactivity will be off-putting for some, but if you can look past that you’re in for an engrossing experience that moulds itself around your choices.
PSYCHO-PASS: Mandatory Happiness is a visual novel based on the anime series. I liked seeing the characters, learning more about the world, and I liked the ability to make choices that impact the story to fit how I thought the character might respond - even if it resulted in death and the end of the game. The few times the game let you see the stitching on the story was a little annoying, but it never dampened the entire experience. If you hate anime or visual novels, this game will not change your mind, but it is a well-crafted one. Fans of the show or genre should not miss it.
To conclude, PSYCHO-PASS Mandatory Happiness offers a really great story and amazing representation of the PSYCHO-PASS universe, letting us dive once again into this crazy world. It shows new aspects of this world, asks new questions and expands the universe, story-wise it´s pretty much what I expected. On the other hand, it suffers from a weak 2nd protagonist, a lackluster and boring presentation and some little problems within the story. It just never feels like the presentation PSYCHO-PASS needed to convey its world and their problems, resulting in a worse experience than necessary.
All-in-all, Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness is a well-crafted, dark, gritty and edgy, detailed visual novel that I would happily play through a couple of times whenever I get bored of other visual novels such as Phoenix Wright or Danganronpa. The visuals are crisp and clean, voice acting (Whilst only in Japanese) is still top-notch, and the plot is tense and thrilling. My only concern is that I fear it will stumble near the end.
Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness does a great job and bringing the world that fans have come to love to a visual novel and while it could have been better in areas it’s definitely an enjoyable experience. I reviewed the game on PlayStation 4 but it would feel more at home on the PlayStation Vita which, thankfully; it is also available on. I actually spent a good deal of my time with it using remote play as it’s just a much more comfortable experience when you’re having to spend a lot of your time reading. Ultimately, I feel the enjoyability of this game really comes down to how much you like reading, though there is a minigame to mix things up a little but that’s only necessary to unlock gallery items.
The game is only subtitled and it takes place during the beginning of the first season of the anime. As stated above, it is a visual novel, so you’re really just along for the ride. Still, the story is pretty good, and if you are a fan of Psycho-Pass and want a little bit more from that series, you should give it a go.
Did I like Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness on PlayStation 4? Certainly! Playing the game to let you know what I think of it in this Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness review made me very happy during my time with this release, and I highly recommend that you buy it today! I loved every minute of it, and couldn’t find a single thing to complain about. If you love visual novels, you need to add this one to your collection!
If you’re a fan of the anime then Mandatory Happiness is a must-buy, especially if you want to see more of the cast and have another well-written story with twists and turns that’ll keep you guessing.
Poignant and dense, Mandatory Happiness is a game that will require additional runs to absorb but only one to be endlessly captivated.
Anyone who doesn't enjoy Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness clearly needs to get their Hue checked. The story is enthralling and compelling, with enough routes and flags to warrant replays. It manages to add more depth to the characters and universe, which were already well developed, and is a better accompaniment to the superb first season of the anime than the movie or second season. There have been some phenomenal Visual Novels over the years, games like Steins;Gate, Danganronpa and the Zero Escape series, so there's no higher praise than to say this is easily on par with those gems.
Commonly speaking, Visual novels are not really adored by everyone and only a few people enjoy playing them but all these aside, Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness is a proper recommendation for those who want to enter the world of Visual novels and also for the fans. A mysterious mixture, trying to provide the player with an enjoyable time which makes it a “good” game and that’s all and it will also be a memorable experience for the fans of the series.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Despite the fluidity and adrenaline associated with the anime, 5pb’s release is pretty much a series of static images with characters slapped in the front. Movement is a luxury
Psycho Pass: Mandatory Happiness will definitely appeal to fans of the anime. However with the little amount of player action and lines and lines of text, it might drive some away. However it does compensate with its replayability and engaging story line.
All in all I would recommend at least one playthrough whether or not you are a fan of the anime. It is filled many thought-provoking themes and moments and I cannot wait to dive back in!
Psycho-Pass seems like a re-run of the first anime season, but that was enjoyable so it works out okay.
Visual novels rarely come as deep and thought provoking as this one.
In conclusion (of the conclusion), the game is an amazing adventure, and regardless of the few minor storytelling choices that personal opinion finds didn't hit the mark quite like everything else, offers an intense and immersive experience full of replay value due to its focus on choices and consequences.