The Science Adventures series is one of the most iconic visual novel franchises in the west, but it wasn’t until recently that the last missing entry, Chaos; Head Noah, was revealed to finally be making its way outside of Japan. With that in mind, the playing order of the Science Adventure series isn’t easy to figure out, because of obtuse naming conventions and several spin-off titles that exist alongside the mainline.
However, each game is loosely linked to one another existing in the same universe. While you don’t particularly need to play the series in order to understand each individual game, players will get rewarded for it. There are also several different endings that players can get after achieving certain objectives for each title.
Here is a list explaining the series order and what spin-off titles might interest you as you play through for your first time.
Chaos;Head / Chaos;Head Noah “Delusional Science Adventure”
Chaos;Head is the first entry of the Science Adventure series which was originally released in 2008 in Japan. The enhanced version of the game Chaos;Head Noah was released the following year exclusively in Japan. According to the Stein;Gate Wiki, the story revolves around “a delusional high school student who accidentally gets involved in a serial murder case taking place across Shibuya.” Chaos;Head Noah is finally releasing out west for the very first time on October 7 later this year so if you’re looking at playing through the series for the first time I recommend waiting until then.
Chaos;Head Noah will be available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.
Steins;Gate / Steins;Gate Elite “Hypothetical Science Adventure”
Steins;Gate is the second entry of the Science Adventure series which released in 2009 in Japan. The story follows a mad scientist who discovers the ability to send messages to the past. A fully-animated remake of Steins;Gate known as Steins;Gate Elite released in 2018.
Steins;Gate Elite is available on the PlayStation 4 and the Nintendo Switch.
Robotics;Notes “Augmented Science Adventure”
Robotics;Notes is the third entry of the Science Adventure series, originally released in Japan back in 2012. It wasn’t until 2020 that it was localized and ported out west as Robotics;Notes Elite which added “improved visuals and script improvements.” The story follows high school students trying to build a giant robot.
Robotics;Notes Elite is available on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.
Chaos;Child “Delusional Science Adventure”
Chaos;Child is the fourth entry of the Science Adventure series and sequel to Chaos;Head Noah. The game originally released in 2014 in Japan. It was released in the west in 2017. The story follows a high school journalism student trying to solve a murder mystery case similar to one that happened in the past.
Chaos;Child is currently available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and PC via Steam but will be available on Nintendo Switch later this year on October 7.
Steins;Gate 0
Steins;Gate 0 is a direct sequel to Steins;Gate. You still play as the same main character Rintaro Okabe but this entry isn’t considered a main entry of the Science Adventure series. That being said if you play Steins;Gate and enjoy it, there is no reason not to play 0. It was originally released back in 2015 with a localized release in 2016.
Steins;Gate 0 is available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.
Robotics;Notes DaSH
Robotics;Notes DaSH is the direct sequel to Robotic;Notes taking place six months after the events of the first game. After releasing in Japan in 2019, it quickly saw a western launch in 2020.
Robotics;Notets DaSH is available on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam. You can also get it alongside Robotics;Notes in a bundle.
