{"id":63515,"date":"2026-03-20T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=63515"},"modified":"2026-03-19T15:42:02","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T06:42:02","slug":"return-to-shironagasu-island-developer-announces-ambitious-two-sided-sequel-set-in-japan-and-new-york-with-a-time-leap-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/indie-games\/return-to-shironagasu-island-developer-announces-ambitious-two-sided-sequel-set-in-japan-and-new-york-with-a-time-leap-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Return to\u00a0Shironagasu\u00a0Island developer announces\u00a0ambitious two-sided sequel, set in Japan and New York with a time-leap system\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

While the\u00a0fan\u00a0comparisons between Japanese solo game developer Hyogo\u00a0Onimushi\u2019s\u00a0previous\u00a0work, Return to\u00a0Shironagasu\u00a0Island,\u00a0and Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s private island<\/a>\u00a0are unfortunate, their next visual novel,\u00a0The Distant Circular World\u00a0<\/strong>(working title),\u00a0will\u00a0hopefully not\u00a0accidentally\u00a0predict\u00a0any real-life scandals. Set after the\u00a0events of the\u00a0previous\u00a0title,\u00a0you\u00a0control returning protagonist Sen Ikeda and his assistant,\u00a0Neneko\u00a0Izumozaki, as they\u00a0find themselves living separate lives that are\u00a0intertwined through\u00a0an\u00a0unusual\u00a0time\u00a0rewind\u00a0mechanic.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSide A\u201d of the upcoming\u00a0sci-fi suspense mystery\u00a0is set in New York and follows private detective Sen\u00a0Ikeda.\u00a0When\u00a0a mysterious\u00a0girl\u00a0named Lila\u00a0visits\u00a0his office,\u00a0Sen\u00a0learns that an illegal\u00a0organization known as Babylon is after her. Eager to\u00a0learn\u00a0more about them,\u00a0he\u00a0conducts an investigation\u00a0alongside his assistant, Koi\u00a0Inui\u00a0(since\u00a0the\u00a0game involves time\u00a0travel,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0likely\u00a0that\u00a0Sen\u00a0hasn\u2019t\u00a0met\u00a0Neneko\u00a0at this point). NYPD detective Tio Fiorentina\u00a0and billionaire\u00a0child\u00a0heiress\u00a0Akira Edgeworth also join the case, with foes such as Babylon operative Callander standing in their way.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around the same time that Lila enters Ikeda\u2019s life, a Babylon Chief Researcher by the name of John Walton hands the detective a time leap device. This explains why you can switch between Sen and Neneko, and why they can rewind time (more on that later). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSide B\u201d has you controlling Neneko Izumozaki as she lives as a high school student in provincial Japan. Her photographic memory returns from the previous game, and just like before, she tries to hide it to maintain a peaceful life. Things take a dark turn, however, when she discovers a body in the local river on her way to school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With her knack for detective work, Neneko finds herself searching for the identity of the deceased person. As it turns out, the mysterious traces beside the body are linked to the disappearance of her mother, who vanished months ago. Alongside her older sister, Kisaragi, and friends Kazuki and Torako, Neneko aims to get to the bottom of this disturbing case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Distant Circular World\u00a0centers on two gameplay systems.\u00a0The first system is called \u201cZapping,\u201d which allows\u00a0you\u00a0to switch between\u00a0Sen and\u00a0Neneko. Using the clues\u00a0found throughout their respective stories,\u00a0you\u00a0must piece together\u00a0the mystery that\u00a0connects\u00a0their two cases.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second system is the aforementioned time leap mechanic. When certain conditions are met, you can rewind time to undo specific events. While this may seem overpowered, the points where you can rewind time become fewer as you progress through the stories. Rewinding time also has its cons, as strict rules determine what a person remembers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though\u00a0Hyogo\u00a0Onimushi\u00a0initially peddled\u00a0physical demo copies<\/a>\u00a0of The Distant Circular World for people to try, they have since sold out. The release platforms are TBA. You can find the official website here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: Return to Shironagasu Island quietly sells over 210k copies<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Japanese indie developer Hyogo Onimushi has announced The Distant Circular World (working title), as sequel to Return to Shironagasu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":63517,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-63515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-indie-games","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nReturn to\u00a0Shironagasu\u00a0Island developer announces\u00a0ambitious two-sided sequel, set in Japan and New York with a time-leap system\u00a0 - AUTOMATON WEST<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Japanese indie developer Hyogo Onimushi has announced The Distant Circular World (working title), as sequel to Return to Shironagasu.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/indie-games\/return-to-shironagasu-island-developer-announces-ambitious-two-sided-sequel-set-in-japan-and-new-york-with-a-time-leap-system\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Return to\u00a0Shironagasu\u00a0Island developer announces\u00a0ambitious two-sided sequel, set in Japan and New York with a time-leap system\u00a0 - 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