The Steam store page for the English version of Dies irae ~Amantes amentes~ is now active, announcing a June 2 release date. This follows the conclusion of the crowdfunding of the game on Kickstarter and BackerKit, which ended at just over $290,000 between the two. The release date is a slight delay from the originally planned May 31 release date. For the sake of disclosure, I backed the project.
The Steam page has a synopsis of the game:
May 1, 1945- Germany. On the eve of Berlin’s collapse, a group of men and women carried out a certain ritual. To them, suffering defeat in the war meant nothing. If anything, the countless lives lost in the battle served as a catalyst to their sacrificial ceremony. Whether or not their attempt bore fruit ― not a soul knows. Following the war, they faded from sight, mind, and eventually into the realm of myth.
・・・・・・・・・・・・
61 years later ― Japan, 2006.
Ren Fujii, a young man attending high school in Suwahara City, finds his friendship with his old buddy Shirou Yusa shatter to pieces following a certain incident, ending in a vicious fight that sees Ren hospitalized for two months.
The season shifts from autumn to winter ― to the dawning weeks of December, with Christmas on the horizon. Having lost his best friend, Ren leaves the hospital with the intention to rebuild his new life without Shirou.
But even that plan soon falls apart. Irrationality that defies the realm of common sense begins to assault and devour the city. Abnormalities soon seek to destroy everything Ren holds dear before his eyes with overwhelming violence.
He must change, even if it means crossing the boundary between the ordinary and the extraordinary. His desires are hardly anything grand. All he wants is to return to those days of old. Back to those days filled with simple, everyday joy.
The battle with the Longinus Dreizehn Orden. A continuation of that war full of madness, carnage, and maledictions. What future awaits Ren at the end of his road…?
The game’s release on Steam will come in parts, with the common route being available for free with Marie, Kasumi, Rea and Kei’s routes available in pairs as paid DLC that will release alongside the common route.
The Steam release of Dies irae also comes just ahead of an anime series, which was also crowdfunded, and will be airing starting in October 2017. An 18+ version of the game, as well as a restoration patch for the Steam version, will be available through MangaGamer’s website later this year.
