REVIEW: The Blind of the New World


Title	The Blind of the New World
Developer	TALESSHOP
Publisher	TALESSHOP
Release Date	May 28th, 2021
Genre	Visual Novel, Sci-Fi, Romance
Platform	PC
Age Rating	All-Ages
Official Website

It’s time for me to cover something different, welcome to The Blind of the New World. If you recall, last month I reviewed my very first Chinese visual novel. To clarify, that was Melancholy Love, and you should check it out. Ever since I wrapped that one up, I got curious about stories from other parts of the world and booted up The Blind of the New World. This would be my first Korean visual novel, courtesy of TALESSHOP. Prior to the review, I had no knowledge whatsoever about the title. At least last time I had comparisons to work on, but this time it is just the sci-fi vibes I get from the Steam page. For a publisher looking to make leeway towards the Western market, I only really have one question: How does it hold up?

More often than not, the title of a game will be very indicative of what you’re going to get. It can be metaphorical or philosophical depending on the story. In the case of The Blind of the New World, it’s literal. You play as a young man named Seejay in a society many years into the future. A society which has progressed to the point where people live in a technological utopia. However, that’s not the case for Seejay. Seejay is an exception, thanks to an illness aptly called The Blind. Do you see where I’m going with this? While everyone partakes of a near perfect utopia from birth, Seejay sees all that’s wrong with it. The bland design of the city, and intense security measures to keep folks at bay. The more you look, the more horrible the contrast ends up being.

Seejay ends up talking up a storm about the harsh reality he faces. How his dilemma keeps him away from society, not just at a primitive level, but the world at large. Furthermore, even his doctor, Yoojin, is getting annoyed at the circumstances. All seems lost until he sees something particularly unusual. A young woman dressed differently than others. As he tries to figure out why he sees this person differently from others, the story begins. The story of Seejay and Chohyun is in motion, and it’s up to you to see where it goes. You are handed several choices that will put you down specific paths, where will you end up? With four endings to go through, you might surprise yourself.

It honestly seems so interesting how The Blind of the New World presents itself. It’s all so unique. Its approach to the story in particular is quite fascinating, where any one choice could lead you to an ending. However, more than that, the carefully put together setting and how it puts both Seejay and Chohyun in some difficult situations is even more fascinating. How two people living completely different lives within the same “utopia” is special, and to bring those two even closer the way they did is astonishing. The addition of an in-game encyclopedia giving you tidbits of the world without deterring your progress is also incredibly insightful. It felt as though I was playing an intricate jigsaw puzzle. Furthermore, by the time I completed it, I felt so complete.

My favorite thing about The Blind of the New World is the witty interactions between Seejay and Chohyun. These are two carefully crafted characters with their own paths to follow, but it doesn’t mean they go about it in boring ways. Eventually the two paths will intersect, and when they do, it’s amazing what TALESSHOP does here. Other titles would gloss over the smaller details whereas this title just gives me everything. All the context I could ever need in the palm of my hand. Thus, I fell in love with their dynamic and its proper execution. Their writing, as well as the art for their specific CGs, are mesmerizing. The sci-fi themed soundtrack really hits the nail on the head for the story and creates an absurd amount of proper atmosphere. It makes getting into the rhythm of the story a lot easier.

Alongside the qualities, The Blind of the New World also presents itself in such a unique manner when it comes to the UI. It all felt like I was watching the world with a proper lens into the dystopian reality. As previously mentioned, they went above and beyond with accessibility with the in-game encyclopedia. However, also adding options like booting straight to your last save is something that a lot of games should do. It’s a small gesture, but for readers like me it goes a long way. So lots of positives galore, and this also includes the voice acting for the two main ladies of the story. Our doctor, Yoojin, exhibited an exuberant amount of emotion which was fun to watch. Furthermore, Chohyun kept surprising me the longer the story went on. It’s amazing.

Now, this is the part where I bring us back down to reality. This game isn’t perfect. Some will get particularly bothered by the fact that the art for the game is mostly on a small window. With a ton of empty space, you’d figure they’d let the art do its thing, but I guess not. Another thing people will be quick to note is certain things within the story itself, seem a bit rushed for the sake at arriving at any kind of conclusion. While it’s not damning to the complete experience, it feels like a very rare and gaping hole in an otherwise wonderful release.

The Blind of the New World is a phenomenal and unique sci-fi story for the ages. The characters really bring a story about living in a “utopia” to life. I love Seejay and Chohyun’s story, and that doesn’t happen without the exceptional writing, localization, and a nice soundtrack to boot among other things. I spent 9 hours on this game, and those are 9 hours I’d happily spend again in the future. I’ll be more likely to do so knowing that it costs $9.99. It’s a great release and you should definitely check it out. Congratulations to TALESSHOP and may you bless us with more releases in the future.