0 Story

0 Story (or Love Story) is an adventure full motion video based game developed by General Entertainment and published by Enix, released exclusively in Japan on April 27, 2000. It was the first Enix game published on the PlayStation 2 and, in conjunction with Sony, was used extensively to promote the release of the console in Japan .

Plot Summary

Contrary to the title of the game, 0 Story does in fact have a story. The player takes the role of a recently deceased man killed in a motorcycle accident. He is sent back to Earth by the Angel of Love who tells him that he will be resurrected if he gains the love of a woman named Lina within six short days. Keep in mind that this game was created in Japan.

Gameplay

0 Story is different from most games, in that it was based around the idea that the game plays like an interactive movie, shown to the player through continuous full motion videos. The player can make various actions at specific moments which result in slightly different paths and scenes, although the direction of the story remains basically the same. It's like a Choose Your Own Adventure book, just that it's a video game...and you can't lose! Other things do occur, such as events similar to quick time events, which were considered unique at the time. In conjunction with this, the player can also shoot "love arrows" (imagine Cupid, just dead and Japanese) which nudge Lina into doing various actions which help you in your ultimate goal of her falling in love with you. Godforsaken mini-games are also present in 0 Story, including the much-adored rhythm-based games, which were also considered unique back in the day. All of these games and actions contribute, based upon the outcome of each event, positively or negatively on the "Love Meter". If the Love Meter reaches 100% by the sixth day, the player wins the game...and Lina's heart! How adorable!

Development

In late August of 1999, Kouichi Hasegawa announced publicly that a number of titles were in development for the, at the time, unreleased Playstation 2. 0 Story was showcased in February 2000 at the PlayStation Festival in Tokyo, as part of Sony's campaign to promote the soon-to-be-released PlayStation 2. As this was Enix's second attempt at making a decent FMV-based game, the cast recruited for 0 Story includes Japanese actresses, television personalities, and models.

A game demo was given to video game journalists a month before the game was to be released. The game was also showcased a second time at the Tokyo Game Show, where it was one of the most visited Enix attraction's after Dragon Quest VII.