Thank you Aksys Games for sending us a review code!

Paradigm Paradox is a rather unique visual novel.  You play as a high schooler whose default name is Yuuki (you can assign her a different name if desired).  Her best friend, Lize, is boy crazy and has nicknames and details on the best-looking and eligible bachelors in the school.   Yuuki is indifferent when it comes to romance.  She was orphaned at a young age and has an e-mail relationship with her uncle who she has never met.  Yuukki has a charm necklace that was given to her by her family and she treasures it.

Yuuki and Lize live in a futuristic colony that has a breathable environment and a projected sky to imitate how the planet used to be before the environment was turned into a deadly barren wasteland.  Leaving the colony is not possible without protective gear.  There’s a strict curfew enforced in the evenings and there are rumors of superheroes who fight monsters while everyone is safe indoors.

One night, Yuuki realizes that she has dropped her charm necklace and backtracks to find it.  Not only does she locate her necklace, but comes face to face with a monster called a vector.  She is injured, but before the monster attacks again, a group of girls with superpowers neutralize the threat.   Upon waking up in their secret headquarters, Yuuki discovers that she too has powers and is recruited to join the super hero group called “The Blooms”.  Each member has a different ability and Yuuki’s power is to amplify the abilities of others.  When their powers are activated, The Blooms are able to leave the colony and can survive in the hazardous environment.  

Vectors typically attack at night, but The Blooms are often summoned during the school day as the attacks are becoming less predictable.  While some of The Blooms' members socialize outside of working hours, the identity of most of them is secret.  There are a couple of rules for being in this group.  The Blooms have to be careful not to overuse their powers and they must keep their superhero identity a secret.  Not that they have much free time, but The Blooms are forbidden from dating.  Yuuki isn’t immediately impacted by that rule, but as an otome visual novel, that’s about to change.  

Otome visual novels feature a female with several eligible bachelors available to date.  What makes Paradigm Paradox unique is that most of the datable candidates spend a lot of their time as a female super hero.  For some inexplicable reason, their gender swaps when their powers are activated.  Other than that, they’re heterosexual.  

There are a lot of spoilers so I don’t want to dive too deep into the story.   With that said there are eight story routes with only a few of them being available from the start.  After all eight routes are complete, you will unlock the grand finale.  To speed up the playthroughs, you can skip previously read text and proceed to the next dialogue option.  You can also navigate and jump to different sections from the flowchart which is accessible from the main menu.  There are many unlockable art scenes and some extra content will become available if you experience all of the possible endings and routes.  According to my Nintendo stats, I’ve put more than twenty hours into this title.

Throughout the game you’ll come across a few moral concerns.  We’ve already covered the gender swapping.  When it comes to romance it’s pretty tame, there is some handholding and an occasional kiss.  One of the guys mentions that he could fully take advantage of her, but does not.  The battles are pretty descriptive and some characters get badly wounded and even die in some of the routes.  One of the characters gets badly beaten up and some blood is shown.  Language including *ss and d*mn appear multiple times.

If you enjoy otome visual novels, Paradigm Paradox is worth looking into.   It has an intriguing story and an entertaining cast of characters.  The visuals and Japanese voice acting are well done too.  For the asking price of $49.99, you’ll be entertained for a while.