Malus Code might be the most peculiar 'game' I've ever played. And I've played a lot of weird games. Recently, after discovering (and enjoying) Danganronpa, I've been exploring the fascinating world of visual novels. I used to think that they weren't really games, or not worth my time, but I am starting to see the appeal of them.

I don't even know where to begin with Malus Code. Even after completing it I'm not sure whether I understood it.. and I'm still unsure whether it's the masterpiece of a genius, or if it's just a gigantic mess created by a crazy person and then poorly translated into English. The story begins as you arrive in Japan to begin working/studying in this university lab (the protagonist is a Westerner named Will). You are introduced to the three characters of the story: a ditsy young girl, a very friendly (and likely gay) young guy (who seems to wear women's clothing) and an older (maybe 30?) busty woman (the professor of the lab). From the very beginning I was slightly confused about the gender of the young guy (tomboy?), and even by the end I was still a bit confused.

Straight out of the gate there is some apparent sexual tension going on in the lab. Nothing is overt, it's all very subtle or simply implied but it's clear that the protagonist is slowly entering into varying levels of mutual romantic interest with each of these three characters. Although the two younger students are at university (so we may assume they are at least 18 years old) I still felt quite awkward about it, since they are depicted as very young. And yet at the same time, the romance is mostly subliminal or implied. Still though, it was awkward.

While this strange multi-age multi-gender love triangle (love square?) is bubbling under the surface, a dramatic course of events begins to unfold. I don't want to say too much because it would spoil the story. It starts off as a fairly simple slice-of-life college-based narrative, hanging out with the characters, learning their backstories, hanging out at the lab, adjusting to life in Japan. But then suddenly the shit hits the fan, and the story takes a U-turn and it seems to literally switch genres.. multiple times. I was already confused at that point, and then it expands further into strange alternate timelines/parallel dimensions? By the end of it I was deep in thought, like watching a David Lynch film, going back over the events and trying to piece it all together. It started off rather bland, but by the end I thought it was possibly ingenious, like some kind of genre-mashing surrealist masterwork, a cryptogram hidden within this innocent-seeming visual novel. The twists and turns in the story certainly keep it entertaining, especially the first shocking revelation at the conclusion of 'episode 1.'

The whole experience is even more jarring due to the occasional bits of fanservice which are thrown in haphazardly. Those felt really out-of-place and also completely out-of-character, especially this one really weird foot fetish segment. It makes me wonder whether there was an internal struggle between two developers: one who wished to create a creepy hentai VN, and another who wanted to tell this complex surreal story. Or perhaps the devs wanted to tell their story, but the romance/fanservice bits were shoehorned in to boost the marketability, to provide a selling point. Whether intentional or not, the whole experience was strange and rather compelling.

I'm not sure whether I can recommend this visual novel. If you're interested in exploring the weird zone, if you like Twin Peaks or Deadly Premonition and you're ready to submerge yourself in the visual novel equivalent then go for it.

Footnote: I should also mention that there aren't any choices or actions in this VN: it's entirely linear and you're just a spectator. Also I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has played this VN; I'm still curious about the story, perhaps you can figure out the puzzle of the Malus Code.