Class of '09

Class of '09 throws you right into the messy life of Nicole, a sixteen year old who's basically the human version of a Do Not Disturb sign. She's been dragged through a bunch of messy family stuff and constant moving, which has left her pretty much over everything and everyone. The game isn't about fixing her, it's just about watching her survive, or spectacularly fail to survive, her last two years of highschool. The whole point is to see her mock, manipulate and just generally coast through the absolute circus of highschool until she either graduates, gets kicked out, or ends up in a seriously dark situation.

There isn't one big story the game is trying to tell. Instead, it's more like a collection of scenes that put Nicole and a cast of very specific character types into different situations just to see what happens. All these little moments eventually lead you down one of a few main paths landing you at one of like… fifteen different endings. Each scene is its own little comedy bit and the game is more about making you laugh in the moment than building up to some grand finale.

The writing is the real star here. It got this aggressive snarky vibe that doesn't hold back at all, packed with the kind of cynical angst that feels right for a character like Nicole. The jokes come at you fast, and they land more often than not. A huge part of why it works so well is that every single line in the game is fully voiced. You almost never see that in English visual novels, and when you do, it usually doesn't sound great, but this… the voice work is next level. The characters sound genuinely alive and it feels similar to listening to a HQ audio drama.

On the visual side of things, it's basic. The character sprites don't have a ton of expressions and they mostly just slide across the screen. The backgrounds are these real life photos, the outfits fit the era perfectly, and there are some moments like the scenes on the rooftop where the presentation steps up. You can tell most of the love and budget went into the audio, which is a fair trade.

Also, this 3DS port is just wild. The dev built his own engine from the ground up just to make it happen, and the plan is apparently to get this thing running on literally any console. The UI is completely redesigned to fit the dual screens perfectly, using the bottom screen for dialogue and controls. And yeah, it's the full game I think. My only real complaint is that the cutscenes get so blurry on the top screen, but that's a minor thing when you're holding the entire unhinged experience in your hands.

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For real tho, this game holds absolutely nothing back. It's not just edgy for the sake of it, but it casually references or directly involves sexual themes, drug solicitation, substance abuse, homicide, physical assault, sexual assault, fraud and self harm. It's a lot, and it's definitely not for everyone. The humor is pitch black sometimes, so if you're not cool with that, you might find the whole thing more upsetting than funny. It uses this stuff as the foundation for its jokes, so you gotta know what you're getting into.