Eliza
Zachtronics · 2019 · Female Protagonist, Visual Novel, Emotional, Psychological, Indie
PC
Very Positive93% · 1,00384Metacritic
Compare prices in Official Stores
Compare prices in Keyshops
Keyshops are third-party marketplaces — keys are resold and can be region-locked or a different edition. Check the listing's region & edition before buying.
Screenshots
About Eliza
✦ AI summary
Play as a proxy counselor reading AI-generated scripts for a virtual therapy app, reconnecting with your past while questioning whether technology can truly help people heal. This thought-provoking visual novel explores the ethics of AI-driven mental health care through beautiful hand-painted Seattle environments, compelling fully-voiced characters, and philosophical questions about tech's role in our lives.
Eliza is a visual novel about an AI counseling program, the people who develop it, and the people who use it. Follow Evelyn Ishino-Aubrey as she reconnects with people from her past, gets to know the people of Seattle who use Eliza for counseling, and decides the course of her future.
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?
As she reconnects with people from her past and gets to know the ordinary people of Seattle who use Eliza for counseling, Evelyn finds herself caught in the middle between differing sides of the argument— and as she begins to question everything about her past life and future purpose in the world, it becomes clear she must confront the turmoil and darkness inside.
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?
As she reconnects with people from her past and gets to know the ordinary people of Seattle who use Eliza for counseling, Evelyn finds herself caught in the middle between differing sides of the argument— and as she begins to question everything about her past life and future purpose in the world, it becomes clear she must confront the turmoil and darkness inside.
- A thought-provoking story told in the form of a visual novel from an award-winning indie team.
- Follow Evelyn’s journey through a present-day Seattle brought to life with beautiful hand-painted art.
- Get to know Eliza’s clients and the employees of Skandha, the technology giant behind it, with over a dozen fully-voiced characters and powerful performances from a highly regarded cast.
- An evocative, ambient original score by the composer for Infinifactory, SHENZHEN I/O, Opus Magnum, and EXAPUNKS.
- Is AI-driven counseling better than nothing? Is it worse than nothing? What responsibilities come with technical skills? Consider your own answers to these questions and more.
- Counseling sessions getting a little too real? Relax with Kabufuda Solitaire, a new take on solitaire using Japanese kabufuda cards.
What Steam players say
Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.
Eliza is not a game for everybody. If you are looking for innovative gameplay, deep progression, challenges to master - this is not the game for that. Eliza is a visual novel, with the tiniest amounts of choice afforded to justify its existence over being a comic or tv show. But as a visual novel, wow, what an absolutely amazing story it tells. I had to check multiple times that it was actually released in 2019 because its themes are astonishingly timely and gut-wrenchingly poignant. What does it mean to be human in a world where algorithms simulate intelligence? What responsibilities does a maker have over a tool they made but now utilized in ways unimagined? Does choice even matter in a world where all options seem to lead to the same outcomes? At what cost does the pursuit of personal happiness stop making sense? Why are we so unable to stop ourselves from manifesting a future that's clearly bad for us? If you've ever asked yourself questions like those, Eliza is well worth your time. The art is great, the performances by the voice actors are on point and afford it the gravitas it deserves, and the writing is so sharp that I had to physically stop myself from playing sever…1 found this helpful
gem1 found this helpful
Couldn't have played in a better period in my personal life and delves into a lot of topics I have been pondering about for a long time so the game resonated deeply with me. Shockingly relevant for a something that came out in 2019 and is pretty down to earth for a VN like itself. Recommended.1 found this helpful
I remembered this game and had to check the release date. It's a visual novel set "in the near future", supposed to be somewhat dystopic. Funnily enough, real life proved to be way more depressing and precarious. It's a visual novel. Barely any gameplay there. With a good story and good art. From a time we thought things would only get slightly worse - our current boring dystopia make its critique seem somewhat naïve.
Thought provoking with interesting characters and incredible voice acting. I only wish the counselling aspect could be made into a game itself! I would be totally hooked!
Eliza is short and quiet but everything it doesn't, it does right. It's been sitting in the back of my mind for years now. It is one of those rare visual novels that has a more "mature" approach to offer. It has a dark, yet gentle sort of ambiance. Also the art is neat, while the game is to the point and invites to reflexion without forcing jugement. Last but not least, it also has great voice acting.
Community reviews
—
0 reviews
Sign in to write a review.
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this game.
