[VN] Wonderful Everyday ~Discontinuous Existence~

You can kiss your old unenlightened self goodbye because reading Subarashiki Hibi, or Wonderful Everyday, will change your life.

Release: 2010 (KeroQ)
Writers: Sca-Di (Sakura no Uta)
Japanese difficulty: Medium
English: FrontWing
Ratings: VNDB (8.96); EGS (8.60)

Subahibi is basically a giant multi-layered puzzle which makes any sort of concrete discussion of it impossible without spoilers. And to be honest, it’s probably best to go into it completely blind.

Nothing in Subahibi is what it seems at first glance as it mixes suspense and horror with complex philosophical truths to deliver one of the most profound works of fiction ever written. And it somehow also manages to be continuously fun regardless if it’s discussing Wittgenstein, solving murder mysteries, or having a dog rape a girl.

Don’t be scared away by the brief first chapter as it was intentionally written to be bad to prove a point later. The real story only starts from Chapter II, though it’s only in Chapter III (It’s My Own Invention) where the plot finally goes all out.

Subahibi follows a bunch of protagonists who are trying to make sense of the weird world around them which seems to be kind of off… though it’s hard to pinpoint how exactly. The funny thing is, the details that offset each of their surroundings are different despite all of them living at the same place and interacting with each other. It’s as though the entire world changes every time you switch the protagonist.

Subahibi is a detective where answers to the mysteries lie not as much in the physical clues as philosophical ideas you discover as you go through its plot. …Some of which might actually help you understand a few mysteries in your own actual life.

It’s pretty insane how Sca-Di managed to adapt Tractatus Logico Philosophicus, one of the most complex works of modern philosophy, into a work of fiction with loads of porn, but as silly as it sounds, Subahibi is the real deal. It digests the ideas that would normally require special education to even begin to penetrate, and conveys them in a manner understandable to anyone with barely any experience with philosophy.

I’ve received many questions whether you had to read on something to understand Subahibi, but it’s the other way around — you should read Subahibi first, and then you might find yourself compelled to pick up one of those intimidating-looking books.

Sca-Di is easily the most erudite writer in visual novel realm, if not contemporary fiction in general. Reading his works you’ll be introduced to a plethora of other literary fiction, philosophy, science, and his own original ideas.

The only other writer that gave me a similar vibe was Umberto Eco, and even he wasn’t as good at teaching difficult concepts to his readers.

Subarashiki Hibi, or Wonderful Everyday, will have you go through lives of multiple disturbed individuals, and while it’s probably not something you want to read if you’re faint of heart (or suicidal), it’ll deliver one of the most entertaining, fucked-up, and eye-opening stories you’ll ever experience.

I personally separate my life to pre-Subahibi and post-Subahibi periods, as reading it has completely changed how I view the world. It taught me to appreciate life much more (or rather in a different way) than I used to and also be more honest with myself. It may have a similar effect on you, or it may do nothing if it’s not your kind of thing, but one thing is clear — you’ve got to read it even if it’s the last thing you do.

My life has been an ongoing quest to discover life-changing works of fiction, and despite having gone through thousands of books, movies, games and the like, I have yet to find anything to even rival Subahibi. I’m honestly getting goosebumps just remembering it.

Anyway, I realize my review is super vague, but I seriously can’t touch on any of the subject matter without potentially ruining your experience with the game, so check it out for yourself… especially if you enjoy shows like Neon Genesis Evangelion or Serial Experiments Lain.

All I can say is that it’s like nothing you’ve ever experienced.

Positive:	Negative:
Attractive female character designs	Male character designs look pretty lame
A couple of absolutely amazing OST tracks	The first chapter is intentionally bad, so it can be a bit hard to get through
Immersing, disturbing atmosphere	Might make you to want to kill yourself
Genuine existential horror that seeps into your very bones
Amazing, profound, interesting, likable, memorable characters
Engrossing plot full of mysteries and mind-blowing twists
Perfect pacing, never too slow or too fast
Fantastic, profound story that’ll stick in your mind for life
Probably the most profound / intelligent work of fiction ever written
Thought-provoking on life and existence in general
Enlightening on a plethora of philosophical concepts and classical literature