With any form of visual entertainment, one of the most important and riveting moments of a show is the moment of “payoff”. When we see how the plot all comes together and just clicks, the moment of enlightenment creates a massive surge of euphoria which cannot be competed with. A great example of a show with excellent payoff is Death Note when we see how Light’s plan works and all the pieces are finally pieced together. No Game No Life seems to have perfected the formula of delivering a near-perfect payoff after every set-up in the show.
No Game No Life Plot
The plot revolves around Sora and Shiro, shut-in genius NEET siblings and the online gamer duo behind the legendary username “(blank)”. To them, the reality is nothing but a second-rate game. All these changes when they defeat a young boy named Tet at chess, who then claims to be the God of Games from another reality. From there, they plummet into an unearthly world where all forms of strife are settled not physically, but rather with high-stake gambles and games. This premise, while is not the most sophisticated thing out there, has been executed to perfection and has nicely milked the “video-game” like nature of the world. The “magical” element of the realm also offers limitless possibilities to twist regular games and situations into those which leave one at the edge of their seat in sheer excitement.
Another wonderful thing is that this series does not follow the standard Isekai fare and has Sora and Shiro get about the business of conquering the new realm they have been dropped in instantly. They stay true to their characters as unbeatable prodigy gamers and quickly set to gain control of their newly acquired gaming board. There is also excellent comedy and it is visible that the series while taking itself seriously, knows how to have a good laugh. Perfectly playing on the “otaku” nature of the siblings, they have hilariously placed references and parody, humor that will get you rolling on the floor.
All the characters play off each other and balance everyone’s polarised personalities. And speaking of the otaku nature of the anime, the fan service in the anime has been splendidly implemented. The nature of the series is that of light-ecchi, mainly through the “butt of everyone’s jokes” Stephanie Dola. A character with little to no substance such as her is usually a very hard sell, but No Game No Life has perfectly balanced her fan service with her few but impactful plot moments in the show.
And we cannot discuss the fan service without talking about the plethora of “Waifus” this show has to offer. The character design is beautiful and with their respective personalities. All the females, while initially seeming cliché and stale, soon show how that is not the case. From Shiro, a seemingly “Imouto” typecast, to Izuna a clear loli bait, it is such a breath of fresh air to have them not just be these basic tropes and have character development throughout the show. The art and stylistic choices of the series are vibrant, intensely saturated, and positively immaculate. While nowadays beautiful animation is nothing unheard of, rarely does a show have such a distinctive look as this anime.
Add that to the adrenaline-fuelled rollercoaster ride each episode seemed, No Game No Life is nothing short of an amusement park packed in twelve episodes, one which will leave you craving a lot more.
Music
The soundtrack of the show was pretty solid, and nicely complemented the overarching tone of the show consistently. The opening, “This game” by Konomi Suzuki, conveyed the general intensity of the anime pretty well. The ending, though, was a whole new ballpark. “Oracion” by Ai Kayano, the voice actress of Shiro, keeps switching between Shiro’s whisper-like tone and the actress’s natural voice throughout the song and is absolutely goosebump-inducing every single time one hears it. Emotional and ballad-like, it is perfect as the ending and is paired with just as impactful visuals of young Shiro and Sora.
