EVE Burst Error

EVE Burst Error is a 1995 visual novel adventure game developed by C's Ware, originally released as an erotic game. It was written and produced by Hiroyuki Kanno, with chiptune video game music composed by Ryu Umemoto. It is the first game in the EVE series of visual novels. The game follows a government agent and a private investigator investigating a series of bizarre cases which are later connected to one another.

Upon release, the game was positively received by critics, and gained such widespread popularity that EVE became the signature franchise of C’s Ware.

A remake, titled EVE Burst Error R, was released for the PlayStation Vita in 2016 and later ported to the Nintendo Switch in 2018.

Gameplay
The game features a branching narrative where two different protagonists, one male and one female, provide different perspectives on the story. The game introduced a unique twist to the system by allowing the player to switch between both protagonists at any time during the game, instead of finishing one protagonist's scenario before playing the other. EVE Burst Error often requires the player to have both protagonists co-operate with each other at various points during the game.

Plot
The game follows two protagonists: Marina and Kojiroh. Marina is an incredibly skilled intelligence agent tasked with protecting a girl named Mayako Mido, who is the daughter of a Japanese diplomat to a fictional Middle Eastern country called Eldia. However, as the attacks on Mayako ramp up in severity, a dangerous government dispute seems to be at the center of these threats. Kojiroh is a private investigator that can't seem to get a case, until a stroke of good luck lands him with a case looking for a school principal's missing painting. But, a string of murders pulls Kojiroh into a larger case concerning both the Japanese and Eldian government, and the two cases are coincidentally connected to one another.

Franchise
The game spawned multiple sequels, among them EVE: The Lost One (written by Kazuki Sakuraba), EVE: New Generation (written by Kotaro Uchikoshi) and EVE Rebirth Terror (written by Kasa Sakaki, scenario writer for Tsuyokiss). A remake titled EVE Burst Error R with upgraded graphics was released in Japan by Red Flagship's label El-Dia on April 28, 2016 for Microsoft Windows and the PlayStation Vita and on October 25, 2018 for the Nintendo Switch.

Additionally, the late Hiroyuki Kanno, the producer of the original game, left C's Ware after its production and was not involved in subsequent titles. Kanno passed away in 2011 at the age of 43 due to a cerebral infarction and brain hemorrhage.

Reception
In Japan, EVE Burst Error gained massive popularity, enough to gain a console port and an overseas release, which were unusual for eroge. It came in first place in the 2000 results of Sega Saturn Magazine reader poll, garnering an average score of 9.5014. In 2017, Famitsu readers voted EVE Burst Error the 17th best adventure game of all time.

Sega Saturn Magazine three reviewers gave the game 8/10, 8/10 and 9/10. RPGFan has given the game three reviews, scoring it 92/100 in 2000, 91/100 in 2001, and 83/100 in 2012.