Adventure-mystery series Zero Escape is known for confusing fans with its plethora of plot twists, frequent references to obscure scientific phenomena, and tricky escape-the-room themed puzzles. However, on January 18, it was Zero Escape creator Kotaro Uchikoshi himself who was in for some confusion, as a fan asked him for permission to showcase their love for his games in a very unusual way.
The Zero Escape trilogy began with Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, initially released for the Nintendo DS in 2009. The game told the story of the titular nine people, who were trapped aboard a mysterious ship and forced to solve puzzles in order to find the door numbered "9" and escape. It was followed by Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward in 2012; the trilogy then concluded with Zero Time Dilemma in 2017. A bundle of the first two games, entitled Zero Escape: The Nonary Games, saw release in 2017. It featured added voice acting as well as higher resolution graphics, and is currently one of the most popular visual novels available on Steam.
On Twitter, Zero Escape fan Grace Garbin, aka @CandiedRose, formally asked Uchikoshi for permission to marry a copy of Zero Escape: The Nonary Games. She offered to pay a dowry and encouraged Uchikoshi to walk his creation down the aisle at this hypothetical wedding. A polite but confused Uchikoshi initially did not understand the query, and had to have the situation explained to him by other Twitter users. Following this, he then questioned whether The Nonary Games was old enough to be legally married and whether it held a stable job and was capable of supporting a spouse.
Uchikoshi, whose English Twitter account chronicles everything from upcoming game releases to his ongoing attempts to find Gorilla Glue in Japan, then questioned himself regarding his use of he/him pronouns for The Nonary Games. Fans pointed out that, as the creator, Uchikoshi himself could clarify what gender the game identified as and what pronouns to use, although many suggested "nonbinary" as a pun on "nonary." Unfortunately, Uchikoshi ceased responding to the thread, so the question of The Nonary Games' gender and pronouns remained officially unanswered.
The Zero Escape creator may never officially answer the question fans are now eagerly discussing on Twitter. His social media accounts are primarily used to promote nirvanA Initiative, the upcoming sequel to his 2019 mystery/adventure game AI: The Somnium Files. However, many fans expressed a renewed interest in purchasing and playing AI and its sequel due to Uchikoshi's friendly attitude and willingness to discuss such a unique topic with his fans.
With the renewed popularity of "killing game" media thanks to the Netflix hit Squid Game, it is possible that Zero Escape and Uchikoshi's other words might see an increase in popularity in the coming months. Hopefully, Garbin will not have to fight other eager fans - or solve a long series of number-based puzzles - for the honor of earning The Nonary Games' hand in marriage.