i never intended to play Zero Time Dilemma. i'd heard a lot of negative things about ZTD online, watched a 45-minute recap of the game's plot that only left me more confused, and decided i was satisfied.

fast-forward 6 months and i'm living with my best friend, a journalist for our university's student magazine who interviewed me as a part of an article on 'pandemic gaming', as i'd spent the 2020 lockdown playing Virtue's Last Reward. shortly afterwards we wound up downloading and playing Zero Time Dilemma together -- she'd sit on a beanbag in my room, and we'd work on the puzzles together and decide which options to choose during the Decision segments. it. was. a. TRIP.

i unironically love ZTD. Mr Uchikoshi's Wild Ride. a game that has to be experienced to be believed. Betty still haunts my nightmares :')