Mature Visual Novel Eliza is puzzler artisan Zachtronics’ newest game

Zachtronics has announced their new upcoming game. In a very surprising twist, this new game is not a sophisticated puzzler but a mature visual novel. Eliza will come out next week on August 12th for PC via Steam. Watch the teaser trailer here!

Now here’s something fans of indie developer Zachtronics were surely not expecting. The indie studio managed to amass a cult fan following by creating smarty designed puzzle games which sometimes border on actual software engineering. You’ll most likely remember their breakout hit SpaceChem, automation-simulator Infinifactory or Opus Magnum. One thing almost all of the developer’s games have in common, is asking players to create the most efficient solution to a given problem. As such, getting to the goal isn’t really that difficult, but improving and perfecting an automated process to achieve it is.

After abandoning her high-powered tech career and a mysterious three-year absence, Evelyn Ishino-Aubrey resurfaces working as a proxy for a virtual counseling app called Eliza. Her job consists solely of reading a script provided to her in real-time by an AI, leaving her no autonomy over what she says. Is Eliza a technological marvel that brings therapy to those who otherwise couldn’t access it? Or is it an ineffective replacement and another vector for technology companies to gain control over our lives and humanity?

Their newest game Eliza is going in a wildly different direction. Developers are human after all and repetition can be killer to creativity. Maybe it was this thought which led to Zachtronics work on a visual novel that asks important questions of self-discovery, AI and empathy. It puts players behind the curtains of a virtual counseling service and learn first-hand whether technology is really always the right solution.

For now, Eliza will be available only on PC via Steam. Mark your calendars for August 12th when the game releases.