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takoyaki · Apr 14, 2015

teaser: http://4infinity.co

Reveal at Anime Expo on July 3 link

Panel 1: The Aksys Games Panel of <Title TBD>! Time: Friday, July 3, 1:00PM – 2:00PM PDT Room: LP4/411

This is our traditional company panel where we’ll talk about what’s going on in our little slice of heaven. Also, will there be another proposal in the works? Let us know beforehand.

stream: http://www.twitch.tv/aksys_nation

Countdown Clock
Times Worldwide
AX2015 GAF thread

[thanks IchigoSharingan, Funyarinpa, Yasumi]

Hype-Waiting-Room

Still accepting patients as long as there's room.

SHORT RECAP

Things we know:

this is just the longest "announcement of an announcement" ever, not some intricate ARG
the numbers are a counter, counting down in real time to the end of the teaser on July 3 13:00 PDT
until now, one word or number has appeared on the site on a weekly basis (always connected to a tweet or RT by Aksys using #4infinity) [update 06-25: first break in the pattern, second word/number in a single week]
on July 3, Aksys is holding a panel at the Anime Expo 2015 (LA Convention Center) between 13:00 - 14:00 PDT
it's been well over three months and there's never been a single denial by Aksys/RSG/Uchikoshi that the teaser is related to the ZE series; but all of them have hinted at this being related to ZE.
The teaser site and Kotaro Uchikoshi are connected

Things we don’t know:

what is this site teasing? (all we know is that it's related to Aksys' 10th anniversary, the name of the panel is still "TBD")
what is the meaning of the words and numbers (only 34.0419 and -118.2687 are solved, the rest is still speculation)? Why are some static while others move? Why the capitalization of some words? Why different scrolldirecton/scrollspeed?

CHRONOLOGY

MARCH

03-18-2015 (Wed)

FB post by Aksys, first mention of the teaser site: http://4infinity.co

showing what we now know is a counter

On the same day, pictures A and B are discovered on the site via search function. They are removed by Aksys within a few days and parts of the site that could be accessed before are now locked.

(picture A, old)

(picture B, old)
03-20-2015 (Fri)

the counter changes for the 1st time (after 2+ days, we don’t know how long the site has been up)

GAF member blacksark tweets at RisingStarGames (European publisher for the last few Aksys games, including VLR):
03-27-2015 (Fri)

After one week, the counter changes for the 2nd time
03-31-2015 (Tue)

the word “ring” is scrolling from right to left above the numbers, then the word “salt” is displayed under the second Zero in the counter, then the word “salt” changes to “ring”, the scrolling word above disappears

Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity

APRIL

04-01-2015 (Wed)

Kotaro Uchikoshi (Infinity Series, 999, VLR) tweets:

solved by GAF member GSR:

Converting to alphabet and shifting one message by 17 gets you WE ARE ALL MEN OF OUR WORD, and shifting the other by 9 gets you THE LONGEST NIGHT WILL HAVE AN END.

Click to expand...
04-03-2015 (Fri)

After another week, the counter changes for the 3rd time
04-09-2015 (Thu)

new moving word: “coin”, moving left
Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction=&#8220;left">[B]coin[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
04-10-2015 (Fri)

After another week, the counter changes for the 4th time
04-13-2015 (Mon)

new static word: “ice cream”

Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
04-14-2015 (Tue)

start of this thread, I’ll try to update it whenever something happens

note: the information up to this point is gathered from previous discussion on GAF about 4infinity, thanks everyone who participated in those threads: 1, 2, 3, 4
04-15-2015 (Wed) [thanks grim-tales]

Someone on twitter asks Kotaro Uchikoshi (on his English twitter account) if he knows what the site is teasing. Uchikoshi responds with a cryptic answer:

lots of other twitter users keep bugging him about it, Uchikoshi responds again 2+ days later, praising people who made the connection

“ice cream => I scream”

(note: the Japanese word for ice cream is アイスクリーム (aisukuriimu) which sounds very similar to “I scream” when spoken out loud by someone pronouncing it in Japanese.)
04-17-2015 (Fri)

After another week, the counter changes for the 5th time
04-22-2015 (Wed) [thanks CrimsonFist, Funyarinpa]

new moving word: “firefighter”, moving right

The layout of the site was also slightly changed.
Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=&#8220;5">[B]firefighter[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
04-24-2015 (Fr)

After another week, the counter changes for the 6th time
04-30-2015 (Thu) [thanks redhood56, grim-tales]

new static word: “shotgun”

Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity

MAY

05-01-2015 (Fri)

Uchikoshi responds five times to questions from fans on Twitter regarding ZE3/4infinity

tweet 1&2

tweet 3&4

tweet 5

After another week, the counter changes for the 7th time
05-04-2015 (Mon) [thanks CrimsonFist, Nachos]

new static word: “Gab”, with a capital G

{gab idle or trivial talk, (vb) (intr) to talk excessively or idly, esp about trivial matters; gossip; chatter}

Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
05-06-2015 (Wed) [thanks grim-tales]

Uchikoshi retweets a tweet with a link to a blogpost written by a fan of the Zero Escape series in which the teaser site is explicitly mentioned (including a picture of the counter).

He also retweets a tweet with an image of a "Funyarinpa" in which ZE3 is mentioned
05-08-2015 (Fri)

After another week, the counter changes for the 8th time
05-13-2015 (Wed) [thanks CrimsonFist]

new static number: “1/216”

tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
05-15-2015 (Fri)

After another week, the counter changes for the 9th time
05-21-2015 (Thu) [thanks grim_tales]

Rising Star Games responds to a question regarding ZE3 on twitter with lyrics from the song "Boss Of Me" by "They Might Be Giants" (aka. Malcolm In The Middle Theme Song)
05-22-2015 (Fri) [thanks Prelude., kuroneko0509, DrgnAK]

For the first time since the start of the teaser, a new “word” shows up on the same day as the counter change (both happened within minutes of each other)
- new moving number: “34.0419”, moving right
  Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=&#8220;10&#8221;>[B]34.0419[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
  update: 05-23-2015
  
  solved by Gaffer DrgnAK
  
  DrgnAK said:
  
  Looks like it could be the latitude of the room it's going to be revealed in at Anime Expo. 34.0419 runs through LA Convention Center:
  
  https://www.google.com/maps/place/L...1!3m1!1s0x80c2c7c76a01ef3d:0xf629c020e23429b5
  
  Click to expand...
- RT by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
  
  note: Sanabu Washizuka works for Aksys (Localization Specialist, Project Lead) Linkedin
  
  he’s listed in the credits of Magus and VLR
- after another week, the counter changes for the 10th time
05-23-2015 (Sat)

Uchikoshi retweets another tweet in which ZE3 is mentioned
05-28-2015 (Thu) [thanks kuroneko0509, CrimsonFist]

new moving number: “-118.2687”, moving left.
Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="left" scrollamount=&#8220;2&#8221;>[B]-118.2687[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
already solved:

update: according to the AX schedule, the panel will take place in room 411 / LP4

tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
05-29-2015 (Fri) [thanks grim_tales]

After another week, the counter changes for the 11th time

JUNE

06-01-2015 (Mon)

RSG retweets an image which can be interpreted as “(Operation) Bluebird (will succeed) in 2015”
06-02-2015 (Tue)

the schedule for Anime Expo 2015 is announced

update: revised AX schedule, Aksys panel 13:00 - 14:00 PDT (the panel begins at the exact minute that the counter will end according to the source code)

there's a chance the panel will be live streamed
06-04-2015 (Thu) [thanks CrimsonFist, kuroneko0509]

new moving word: “CUT-HERE”, moving right, first word in all capital letters.
Code:
```
<h2><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=&#8220;9&#8221;>[B]CUT&#8211;HERE[/B]</marquee></h2>
```
note: all of the other moving words use header1, this is the first word to use header2

RT by Aksys mentioning #4infinity

note: Karen McOscar works for Aksys (Localization Editor) Linkedin

she’s listed in the credits of Magus and VLR
06-05-2015 (Fri) [thanks redditor MrOverreaction]

After another week, the counter changes for the 12th time

This is the third time a major change has happened on the site. The counter is now displaying three pairs of numbers. The first pair stands for months, the second pair for weeks, the third pair for days.

thanks to the source code, we now know for sure when the teaser will end
Code:
```
"expire":"2015/07/03 13:00&#8221;,&#8221;exp_days&#8221;:&#8221;27&#8221;
```
06-06-2015 (Sat) [thanks PurpleMaster, GSR, grim_tales]
- After one day, the counter changes for the 13th time (the exact time when the counter changes every day depends on your timezone)
  
  another confirmation that from now on, the counter will change on a daily basis.
- this is how the counter will probably go down until the announcement:
  
  From now on, I won't mention every single counter change in the OP. Please check 4infinity.co if you want to know what the counter displays right now in your timezone.
- Uchikoshi responds multiple times to a question on twitter about the Bootstrap Paradox and how it relates to VLR. The most interesting response is this one, where he specifically mentions his next work:
06-09-2015 (Tue)
- Uchikoshi responds multiple times to questions on Twitter.
  
  the most interesting reply is this one, in which he mentions his next work again:
- new static word: "shift"
- Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
06-11-2015 (Thu) [thanks Funyarinpa]

RSG tweets about “an exciting week ahead” (this is probably a reference to either E3 or the Steam Summer Sale). People tweet at RSG and ask them if it’s related to 4infinity. The interesting part is RSG’s response to a tweet with all the ZE/4infinity hashtags.
06-17-2015 (Wed) [thanks CrimsonFist, Irru]

new static word: "portrait"

Tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
06-22-2015 (Mon) [thanks Irru]

new moving word: “psychopath” , moving left
Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="left" scrollamount="7">[B]psychopath[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
RT by Aksys mentioning #4infinity

note: Frank deWindt II works for Aksys (Director of Production at Aksys Games) Linkedin

he’s listed in the credits of Magus and VLR
06-23-2015 (Tue)

RSG respond twice to a tweet asking about 4infinity and ZE3
06-25-2015 (Thu) [thanks CrimsonFist]

new moving number: “50 m”, moving left
Code:
```
<h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="left" scrollamount="3">[B]50 m[/B]</marquee></h1>
```
note: this is the first time that more than one word/number has been added in a single week

tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
06-26-2015 (Fri) [thanks jonjonaug]

The “final evolution” of the counter, it now shows

months - weeks - days - hours - minutes - seconds

Click to expand...

in real time.

note: the exact time shown still depends on your timezone, if you want the counter to display the exact time left until the announcement, set your timezone to PDT/ location to LA or just check the Countdown Clock right on top of the OP.
06-29-2015 (Mon) [thanks spinz]

new static, capital letter: “C”

RT by Aksys mentioning #4infinity

note: Noba Nakayama worked on Magus and is listed in the VLR credits (Localization Lead)

and this is it the first result when you google her

The next staff interview for Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward is now live on the official website! Click here to head over to the Media Page to read about the glamorous adventures of our translator, Noba Nakayama!

Click to expand...
06-30-2015 (Tue) [thanks Irru, CrimsonFist, D-Man, Nyoro SF]
- new static, capital letter: “Q”
- tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
- tweet by Uchikoshi, the capital letter “D” written in morse code "-.."
- two very cheeky tweets by Aksys

JULY

07-01-2015 (Wed) [thanks kuroneko0509, Funyarinpa]

new static, capital letter: D

note: this is the same letter from yesterday’s Uchikoshi tweet, it's the "missing link" between Uchikoshi and the teaser

tweet by Aksys mentioning #4infinity
07-02-2015 (Thu) [thanks CrimsonFist]

Uchikoshi tweet, talking about his popularity in the West
07-03-2015 (Fri)

The Aksys Games Panel of <Title TBD>!

Watch here: http://www.twitch.tv/aksys_nation

takoyaki · Apr 14, 2015

INSIDE BASEBALL STUFF

WHY ARE WE EVEN HERE? WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE THE TEASER WENT LIVE?
- starting 09-28-2012
  
  Aksys interview and post mortem Q&A with Uchikoshi
  
  [very interesting read, long and informative]
  
  Q3: Are there plans to end the series after Zero Escape 3 – or continue it? How far ahead is the series being planned?
  
  Uchikoshi: I plan on ending things with the 3rd volume. So basically it’ll be a trilogy.
  
  Click to expand...
  
  source (“Extras&#8221
- 10-28-2013 [thanks elmars369]
  
  Excerpt from an interview with Kotaro Uchikoshi, conducted by S.M.G Szczepaniak for his book "The Untold History Of Japanese Game Developers"
  
  Q: Is there anything else you'd like say?
  A: Since in overseas countries my works - 999, Virtue's Last Reward - have been much appreciated, there's just one thing I want to say: have great expectations for my next work.
  
  Q: When will it be out?
  A: It comes out after your book.
  
  Q: Oh! Is there any hint you can give?
  A: <laughs> I think it will be out on Playstation4.
  
  Q: Excellent. I look forward to it. Do you like working on Playstation 4?
  A: I haven't actually touched the Playstation 4 machine. We first write the scenario, then we develop it.
  
  Q: Do you feel that other visual novel developers should put more effort into releasing their games outside of Japan? It feels like we're missing out on a lot of titles.
  A: With visual novels I feel that there are many titles out there that are really interesting. But the big answer there would be that they should definitely be translated, to try the overseas market. But the biggest problem here is that for these visual novels, the volume of text is really huge, and it becomes a serious obstacle towards localising them for overseas.
  
  Q: Thank you very much.
  A: Thank you!
  
  Click to expand...
  
  note: quote taken from the book The Untold History Of Japanese Game Developers, written by S.M.G Szczepaniak, available on amazon (kindle/book)
- 11-08-2013 [thanks Nyoro SF, Akselziys]
  
  GAF member Akselziys (Aksys Games Dev.) posts some details on how well VLR/999 sold in the US and if they consider the games a success:
  
  Akselziys said:
  
  Just to step in real quickly... (glad everyone is enjoying the survey! Keep your comments and feedback coming! )
  
  Regarding US sales of the Zero Escape series (both 999 and VLR), we are very pleased with how both games have sold, and the Zero Escape series is one of our most successful series.
  
  Any other info out there is most likely rumor or conjecture
  
  Off topic though, I have to say I love reading everyone's comments in all the Zero Escape related threads that have been popping up so far !
  
  Click to expand...
  
  for comparison, Japanese sales numbers from 2013 [thanks BlackLagoon]
  
  3DS: Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - 7,890 / 17,913
  PSV: Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - 6,133 / 15,454
  NDS: Zero Escape: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors [Chun Selection] - ?? / 4,714
  NDS: Zero Escape: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors - 16,967 / 39,653
- 02-13-2014
  
  USgamer interview with Uchikoshi
  
  "A lot of budget is needed to make ZE series," Uchikoshi posted (amidst apologies for his imperfect English). "We have to persuade the managers in order to obtain it. The managers know that ZE series is especially valued by many users outside Japan. Some of them think that they want to make a sequel just as we wish. But, 'in Japan', 999 and VLR are in the red. They are not selling more than people think. I'm so sad, but all the companies exist for profit-making purposes. If the profits can't be expected, naturally, the project isn't approved. We were not able to present a convincing reasonable basis to the managers."
  Fans were not filled with joy at this turn of events.
  
  Despite the unhappy news, Uchikoshi still holds out hope for better tidings in the future.
  
  "BUT! please remember," he noted. "I wrote 'at this stage'. If the situation changes, ZE3 might be capable of being realized! I still haven't given up. For example, if the title which I make next bring about a good result, the wind might shift to another direction. Or, if someone with executive ability (financer, producer, publisher or millionaire!) propose the investment, everything could go well.
  
  Click to expand...
  
  source
- 12-27-2014
  
  Uchikoshi is among a long list of developers asked by the Japanese website 4gamer.net about their ambitions for 2015
  
  Kotaro Uchikoshi (Spike Chunsoft)
  Known for: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (DS), Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward (3DS, PS Vita)
  
  “It’s looking like 2015 will be the year where everything I’ve built up over the years will come together and be let out into the world in one fell swoop.”
  
  Click to expand...
  
  source
  translation
- 02-18-2015
  
  An entry on Uchikoshi’s Facebook page, later deleted:
  
  [In addition to Punchline, Uchikoshi confirms he’s working on another project which he refers to as “you-know-what”]
  
  source
- 03-22-2015
  
  Famitsu interview with Uchikoshi about the Punchline game, the interviewer also asks about the Infinity and ZE series
  
  Uchikoshi is working with Takumi Nakazawa (director of Every17, Root Double) and Tatsuya Matsuhara from Mages (producer of Steins;Gate) on the Punchline game
  
  Uchikoshi reiterates “I think I will be be able to announce several titles (games) in succession in 2015”
  
  source
POSSIBLE CONNECTION
- Aksys as a developer [thanks Hours Left]
  
  Most people know Aksys as a localization company that specializes in bringing over Japanese niche games. But did you know they’ve also worked as a developer before? Partnering with the Japanese studio “Black Tower Studios”, Aksys released a game called “Magus” in 2014 on PS3 (digital/physical)
  
  source
- The mysterious absence of GAF member Akselziys from all of this [thanks Tricky I Shadow]
  
  He works for Aksys and has been very active in previous threads about anything and everything Aksys (helpful, straightforward, a bit like a community manager). His last post was on 03-10-2015, a week before the teaser went live. This is the fourth thread about the subject and it’s been well over a month since the teaser went live, yet he’s gone completely radio silent. Still reading GAF, just no posts or responses. Seems odd for someone with 0.94 posts per day, especially during a time like this...
  
  If we’re on the completely wrong track with certain assumptions, Aksys has a quick and easy way of letting us know.
  
  update: 05-03-2015 Akselziys makes his first post in nearly 2 months, talking about another teaser
- brari.us or li.brari.us was discovered by someone on reddit. [thanks grim-tales, Court-Records Forum]
  
  The site has been displaying the phrase “nice try” for over 3 years now
  
  adding words after the / in "li.brari.us/" will link you to other pages on the official Aksys site.
  
  e.g. li.brari.us/wolfrhythm => Hakuoki Page
HOW THE SITE WORKS
- 03-18-2015 - 03-??-2015 [thanks Funyarinpa]
  
  The site only displays this counter (as an image file called 4infinity.jpg)
  
  within hours, those two pictures are discovered
  
  (picture A, old)
  
  (picture B, old)
  
  Aksys realizes the mistake and takes down those pictures. If you try to access the images via permalinks, 2 black images without words are displayed
- 03-31-2015 - 04-22-2015 [thanks Funyarinpa]
  
  Once Aksys starts adding new static words to the teaser site, they can be found on those formerly empty black images
  
  (picture A, new)
  
  (picture B, new)
- 04-22-2015 - 06-05-2015 [thanks axisofweevils, Irru on twitter/reddit]
  
  The formatting of the page is heavily criticized, this is presumably the reason for the next change.
  
  Instead of images A and B for the static words and another image called “4infinity.jpg” for the counter, the site now only shows one large image containing everything but the moving words.
  
  depending on the resolution of your screen/kind of device, the images are called:
  
  retina.jpg
  
  desktop.jpg
  
  tablet.jpg
  
  mobile-hd.jpg
  
  mobile-ld.jpg
  
  before
  
  [A]
  
  [4infinity]
  
  after (on a device with a retina display):
  
  [retina]
  
  Every time a new static word is added, they upload a new version of “retina.jpg”
  Every time the counter changes, they upload a new version of “retina.jpg”
  
  The moving words are stored in the source code, so they remain unaffected by those changes
  
  Code:
  
  <h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction=“left">[B]coin[/B]</marquee></h1> <h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=“5">[B]firefighter[/B]</marquee></h1> <h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=“10”>[B]34.0419[/B]</marquee></h1> <h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="left" scrollamount=“2”>[B]-118.2687[/B]</marquee></h1> <h2><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="right" scrollamount=“9”>[B]CUT–HERE[/B]</marquee></h2> <h1><marquee behavior="scroll" direction="left" scrollamount="7”>[B]psychopath[/B]</marquee></h1>
  
  note: header1 is being used for all words/numbers except for "CUT-HERE" which is using header2
  
  [*]06-05-2015 - ??-??-2015 [thanks axisofweevils, GSR]
  
  With the switch to a daily countdown, Aksys no longer uses images (e.g. retina.jpg) for the counter. It is now stored in the source code:
  
  Code:
  
  <div class="ujic-hold ujic_center"> <div class="ujiCountdown ujic-classic" id="ujiCountdown1"></div></div>
  
  other parts of the source code define how the counter works
  
  The counter changes depending on your timezone and you can freely manipulate it to display the changes that will occur during the last 26 days.
  But don't tell that to this guy,
  
  he might get angry
  
  While it's still possible that more changes to the site will occur (e.g. another pair of numbers for hours), this is how the counter will look on 3rd July if the rules of the counter don't change again
  
  note: we don't know yet where the static words are stored after the last change.
  
  Also, at least on iOS you can sometimes see a zombie version of the old counter image in the background

Soulflarz · Apr 14, 2015

Thanks, subbed.

edit: it's still gaming related, so I'd argue for gaming-side thread

If mods don't allow it, OT isn't going to save it.

CountAntonius · Apr 14, 2015

Interesting reasoning for it being off topic.

takoyaki · Apr 14, 2015

CountAntonius said:
Interesting reasoning for it being off topic.

Just in case it's teasing something else than a game. The thread is meant as a place to talk about the teaser itself which is a bit off-topic.

Soulflarz · Apr 15, 2015

takoyaki said:
Just in case it's teasing something else than a game. The thread is meant as a place to talk about the teaser itself which is a bit off-topic.

Ehh, its aksys games, thats basically like saying "in case square enix's new teaser isnt a game" or something

CountAntonius · Apr 15, 2015

takoyaki said:
Just in case it's teasing something else than a game. The thread is meant as a place to talk about the teaser itself which is a bit off-topic.

Nah I understand I was just confused at first lol.

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

Soulflarz said:
Ehh, its aksys games, thats basically like saying "in case square enix's new teaser isnt a game" or something

"Could" be teasing an anime adaption, collectible figures, etc. based on Aksys's IP. Hence the hedging. And like I said, my intention with this thread is to talk about the teaser itself (how it works, news, updates), which is different from talking about games.

edit1: it has been moved

edit2: born again as a Junior, I feel so young

Shizuka · Apr 15, 2015

takoyaki said:
04 -14 - 2015

end of this thread

Fixed.

Just joking, I want to be in that chair climbing the stairs!

The Hermit · Apr 15, 2015

Its definitly happening, and its cryptic as hell. Also, its kinda fitting this is in The OT

Hikami · Apr 15, 2015

3-18-2015

FB post by Aksys, first mention of the teaser site: http://4infinity.co

Oh wow, has it already been almost a month?

At the rate the counter is going it seems like we'll be waiting quite a while longer too.

Jintor · Apr 15, 2015

At first I thought the numbers were either digital roots counting down (0204 = 6, 0203 = 5, etc) but now I'm pretty sure, in simple terms, 02 is months and 04/03/02 etc is weeks.

Anything happening in 2 months and whatever weeks?

D-Man · Apr 15, 2015

I am definitely convinced that this is ZE3. Uchikoshi's tweets were what sealed the deal for me. The only downside is that we have to wait so long for the counter to reach its conclusion.

It's happening, guys.

Swamped · Apr 15, 2015

Thanks for posting the entire story, I've been looking for a summary as I haven't been able to follow all the news. Didn't know about the numbers Uchikoshi posted. The message is kinda neat though.

Hours Left · Apr 15, 2015

Well, it's been moved to gaming, but will this stay open? I hope so.

I get the uncertainty makes it a bit nebulous, but GAF is where I come to talk about stuff like this, and the fact that this particular topic keeps getting shutdown still puzzles me.

Edit: And now it's in Community... ?_?

Nyoro SF · Apr 15, 2015

Hikami said:
Oh wow, has it already been almost a month?

At the rate the counter is going it seems like we'll be waiting quite a while longer too.

At this rate I'm just glad I signed up for Anime Expo way back when. Looks like the "big reveal" is going to happen then and I definitely want to be there to see it.

That being said dragging it out this long is cruel, but I'd rather have this than nothing.

ladyluthien · Apr 15, 2015

Great OP, Takoyaki!
I believe that this is ZE3 too.

J_Ark · Apr 15, 2015

Loved this post, quite explained and backed up. Kudos for the user.

Tricky I Shadow said:
It has to be.

- They started the countdown from 0303.
- If we have to wait for nearly 4 months for the reveal, it has to be something big.
- Aksys has not denied it being Zero Escape 3 when pretty much everyone is assuming it all over the internet.
- Uchikoshi said a few months ago that he is working on "You know what" and that "Its looking like 2015 will be the year where everything Ive built up over the years will come together and be let out into the world in one fell swoop."
- Aksys tweeted "Having catered Greek" with the hashtag #4infinity. Phi and Sigma are Greek symbols.
- Uchikoshi posted a series of numbers on Twitter which was quickly cracked to form "The longest night will have an end" and "We are all men of our word." He then deleted the tweet.
- Rising Star Games, the guys who published Virtue's Last Reward in Europe have stated that they know what the game is.

So if it doesn't turn out to be Zero Escape 3, Aksys are the biggest trolls ever.

xzeldax3 · Apr 15, 2015

Great info! There were a few things I didn't know, and now I can board the hype train for ZE3!!!

MikeDip · Apr 15, 2015

So has the internet made any progress on those two pictures with all the words? I stopped trying to anagram it when the last thread was closed.

Anything on this front recently? Clearly not an anagram right? I see they are adding the words onto the timer but it really doesn't mean anything yet.

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

MikeDip said:
So has the internet made any progress on those two pictures with all the words? I stopped trying to anagram it when the last thread was closed.

Anything on this front recently? Clearly not an anagram right? I see they are adding the words onto the timer but it really doesn't mean anything yet.

Pretty much, the only connection between the pictures and the teaser itself is the word "salt" which only showed up for a short while before it changed to "ring" (which is not a word from picture A or B). Because of that, I only mentioned them briefly in the OP. My thinking is that the anagram in picture A was a pretty crazy coincidence that sent us all down the wrong path for days. It doesn't make a lot of sense that one anagram gets "solved" in hours while the other one doesn't after weeks of trying.

MikeDip · Apr 15, 2015

takoyaki said:
Pretty much, the only connection between the pictures and the teaser itself is the word "salt" which only showed up for a short while before it changed to "ring" (which is not a word from picture A or B). Because of that, I only mentioned them briefly in the OP. My thinking is that the anagram in picture A was a pretty crazy coincidence that sent us all down the wrong path for days. It doesn't make a lot of sense that one anagram gets "solved" in hours while the other one doesn't after weeks of trying.

Oh. Oh wow. Really really thought those were the words showing up on the countdown pic. I spent so much time on those anagrams you'd think I would remember haha.

And yeah, I agree it's clear they were never anagrams now.

Jintor · Apr 15, 2015

God I want to know what's up with Uchikoshi's deleted messages

TWO MILKMEN GO COMEDY indeed

Wurliwurm · Apr 15, 2015

hey a thread

lets see what will be the next word we get. i hope we can solve the mystery soon. probably before the counter reachs zero

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

Jintor said:
At first I thought the numbers were either digital roots counting down (0204 = 6, 0203 = 5, etc) but now I'm pretty sure, in simple terms, 02 is months and 04/03/02 etc is weeks.

Anything happening in 2 months and whatever weeks?

Anime Expo (AX) July 2nd - 5th, 2015

The shedule isn't up on their website yet, but they have a section focused on games

http://www.anime-expo.org

Aksys attended last year's AX and showed off some of their games (panel and booth)

http://www.aksysgames.com/others/join-aksys-games-at-anime-expo-2014/

edit: Aksys is already listed as an exhibitor for this year's AX

http://www.anime-expo.org/exhibit-hall/

grim-tales · Apr 15, 2015

Hey,
Is ring still there for some people? I cant see it at all.
Also Uchikoshi recently tweeted this "Happiest future will be waiting for them":
https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588116807652921344
We dont quite know what the context is, so thats odd. I aplogise if this is "speculation" but (theory)

He could mean happiest future for the characters in a game, or for fans of ZE3?

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

grim-tales said:
Hey,
Is ring still there for some people? I cant see it at all.
Also Uchikoshi recently tweeted this:
https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588116807652921344
We dont quite know what the context is, so thats odd.

"ring" is still there for me on desktop, but it was gone a few times when I went to the site on iOS, especially when rotating the phone. Probably a formatting thing with the website, try zooming in/ou a few times in the browser.

I suck at reading twitter, but he seems to be responding to his question:

@Uchikoshi_Eng Just finished VLR, it was awesome. In the timeline E of the AB Project, will Junpei finally get with Akane?

@Floflp Happiest future will be waiting for them.

grim-tales · Apr 15, 2015

Ah, thanks! I couldnt find what he was responding to myself

Probably doesnt mean anything significant then ZE3 wise.

grim-tales · Apr 15, 2015

takoyaki said:
"ring" is still there for me on desktop, but it was gone a few times when I went to the site on iOS, especially when rotating the phone. Probably a formatting thing with the website, try zooming in/ou a few times in the browser.

Why yes you're right! When I zoomed out a few times it was there, its like it was obscured by the counter itself.

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

grim-tales said:
Ah, thanks! I couldnt find what he was responding to myself
Probably doesnt mean anything significant then ZE3 wise.

It may no be news since he mentioned it before, but it's always nice to see Uchikoshi talking about the story of the ZE series being planned out in advance.

Tricky I Shadow · Apr 15, 2015

I eagerly await the next update....

J_Ark said:
Loved this post, quite explained and backed up. Kudos for the user.

^_^

Funyarinpa · Apr 15, 2015

Shout-out to Takoyaki for PM'ing me about this thread!

There is something weird, though. For me, "ring" appears to have gone behind the counter (1/4 of the word is behind the counter now).

Is it this way for anyone else?

Note:
On "ice cream", "coin" and "ring": The only thing I can correlate between them right now is that they are all circular things (think of a scoopful of ice cream).

You know what else is circular? ZERO

Therefore, on a hunch, I'm calling it, the next word is "sun".

/baseless speculation

Some things that might be worth noting:

- The secret image A (permalink) now includes "ice cream"

-Secret image B (permalink)now includes "ring"

-The word "coin" seems to be doing a lap in 15 seconds (I checked thrice, with negligible differences: The three times are 15.3, 15.6 and 15.7. The last two were made today but the first one was done at a time I cannot remember). This is assuming that the lap time does not change between laps for whatever reason.

-Images A and B (refer above) were first containing a bunch of words, then just two black pictures for several weeks, and only recently did they change to include "ice cream" and "ring". I cannot pin down the exact date.

grim-tales · Apr 15, 2015

For me "ring" is all the way behind the counter as my image is zoomed in quite a bit.

takoyaki · Apr 15, 2015

Lots of great stuff, thanks for posting this.

Funyarinpa said:
There is something weird, though. For me, "ring" appears to have gone behind the counter (1/4 of the word is behind the counter now).Is it this way for anyone else?

The position of the word ring seems to depend on the device you're using to access the site, sometimes it's pretty far down, sometimes it's completely gone. Probably something to do with the formatting of the site, but I've never had the word "stuck" under the counter like you

On "ice cream", "coin" and "ring": The only thing I can correlate between them right now is that they are all circular things (think of a scoopful of ice cream).

Interesting idea, but my counter argument would be the words on the first pair of pictures (A and B). There was no connection between the words as far as I can tell.

Some things that might be worth noting:

- The secret image A (permalink) now includes "ice cream"

-Secret image B (permalink)now includes "ring"

This might confirm the idea that Aksys exchanged the words on the initial pictures (which were not supposed to be found) for the ones that have been showing up on the site.

The word "coin" seems to be doing a lap in 15 seconds (I checked thrice, with negligible differences: The three times are 15.3, 15.6 and 15.7. The last two were made today but the first one was done at a time I cannot remember). This is assuming that the lap time does not change between laps for whatever reason.

At least for me, the time it took for the word "coin" to do one lap was different depending on the device as well as the level of zoom in the browser.

I'd like to check that again, but the whole site seems to be down right now.

grim-tales · Apr 15, 2015

Do you think we'll get another "change" tonight?

takoyaki · Apr 16, 2015

No news in the Famitsu interview that Kodaka (Danganronpa) conducted with Uchikoshi (ZE, Infinity).

The tone of the whole interview is very tongue-in-cheek, it reads like two guys talking about games while getting drunk. 95% is about Punchline (anime and game), other than that, Uchikoshi seems very impressed with Steins;Gate and sees it as a game that has set a very high bar for the Sci-Fi genre. He also says that he'd really like to have a breakout hit like Steins;Gate and jokes that he would be fine with a small hit like Danganronpa as well.

If someone else wants to translate the whole thing, check out the latest issue of Famitsu (it's available in the bookwalker app).

Jintor · Apr 16, 2015

It's funny given how long I've been subsisting off Famitsu news but I actually have no idea what Famitsu covers look like, so I can't even browse them in the combinis...

Funyarinpa · Apr 16, 2015

Joking about hit games when ZE3 is on hiatus.

Cheeky.

grim-tales · Apr 16, 2015

Maybe he means a breakout in Japan but I'd say 999 was a cult hit in the West, certainly. VLR only increased this.

takoyaki · Apr 16, 2015

^ A lot of the interview is just the two of them joking around and Uchikoshi clearly has a self-deprecating kind of humor:

After he calls Danganronpa a "small hit", Kodaka pretends to get angry and Uchikoshi tells a (probably completely fictional) story of how he had a hard time because of Danganronpa. He says that he felt ashamed at the company while DR was all the rage and that he felt like people passing by him where pointing fingers behind his back and saying stuff like "Oh, there goes that good-for-nothing Uchikoshi, upupu (<-Monokuma laugh)"

Kodaka completely ignores the story and says "STFU, what do you mean by "small hit"!?" Then he knocks down Uchikoshi.

Like I said, it's not a conventional interview; some info on Punchline, the rest is all just jokes. But Uchikoshi could probably use a game that becomes a hit, dude deserves it!

grim-tales · Apr 16, 2015

Thanks ^^ Sounds like a funny "interview", hopefully some kind person can translate

grim-tales · Apr 17, 2015

Hey,
I dont know if anyone saw these but I came across some interesting tweets from Uchikoshi about screaming...

https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588493479283556352

IMO this points to the fact the teaser is something Uchikoshi related...

Dandy Crocodile · Apr 17, 2015

grim-tales said:
Hey,
I dont know if anyone saw these but I came across some interesting tweets from Uchikoshi about screaming...

https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588493479283556352

IMO this points to the fact the teaser is something Uchikoshi related...

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.
But screaming also has horror connotations and the Zero Escape series has definitely had horror elements.
It's just more teasing on the pile.

grim-tales · Apr 17, 2015

Uchikoshi san is such a tease

takoyaki · Apr 17, 2015

grim-tales said:
Hey,
I dont know if anyone saw these but I came across some interesting tweets from Uchikoshi about screaming...

https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588493479283556352

IMO this points to the fact the teaser is something Uchikoshi related...

Very nice find

I'm pretty sure he wouldn't respond like that if he had no idea what the site was about, especially after all the other twitter users kept asking him following his cryptic answer.

edit: I'll add this tweet and Funyarinpa's discoveries to the OP after the next Friday update.

Hours Left · Apr 17, 2015

grim-tales said:
Hey,
I dont know if anyone saw these but I came across some interesting tweets from Uchikoshi about screaming...

https://twitter.com/Uchikoshi_Eng/status/588493479283556352

IMO this points to the fact the teaser is something Uchikoshi related...

Amazing.

Funyarinpa · Apr 17, 2015

For clarification, the permalinks I posted above were links on the teaser site and therefore, they might change.

Uploaded their current state to Imgur for future reference:

Image A

Image B

Swamped · Apr 17, 2015

Has the word 'ring' moved further down, or is it just my imagination/phone? The numbers haven't changed yet either...

grim-tales · Apr 17, 2015

I think they change later tonight dont they?

Swamped · Apr 17, 2015

Ahhh is it? Guess I'm just being over enthusiastic lol

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