Rain98, a visual novel set in Tokyo during 1998, draws aesthetic and thematic inspiration from Serial Experiments Lain with its heavy use of blue hues and pre-Y2K atmosphere. The game follows a protagonist referred to as the Angolmois, a reference to Nostradamian predictions about world endings. The narrative involves time travel to the past connected to ending the world.
The demo features stylized sequences, including a scene where the player lights a cigarette. The game incorporates self-insert mechanics where players input their character's name. Interestingly, according to Rock Paper Shotgun, entering a name triggers a game over state and awards a Steam achievement, subverting player expectations of typical visual novel conventions.
The visual presentation emphasizes a rainy, digitally-influenced aesthetic consistent with late-1990s computer culture imagery. The game's setting and themes align with the cyberpunk and apocalyptic sensibilities of Serial Experiments Lain, the influential anime series known for its exploration of consciousness, digital networks, and existential dread.
Rain98 appears designed to toy with visual novel genre conventions and player assumptions about narrative agency and self-insertion mechanics. The achievement-based gotcha moment suggests the developers built intentional misdirection into the player experience.
The demo provides a sample of the full game's approach to blending visual novel storytelling with experimental gameplay moments and atmospheric world-building rooted in 1990s Japanese media aesthetics.