Who ever it was who sacrificed their save file so I can reach the final ending..my sincerest gratitude. I wish I had written down your name and so I can properly thank you here. But unfortunately I did not..so instead let me do something different:
I raise my beer to your honour, unnamed hero. And to the honour of everyone else.

This title is a game that became very popular for something really silly: 2B's appearance. Though it probably has to be expected, the design is very appealing, and so that's what people encounter first. But one shouldn't forget that this game has some substance to it. To be completely frank, this title was my first in the setting, and the first game from Yoko Taro. So both my knowledge regarding the lore and history of previous games is non-existent.

I actually had to upgrade my rig in order to play this game, and visually it was worth it. Perhaps not the best looking game out there, sometimes the texture fading makes certain locations look not too impressive, but there also are moments where the mere visuals are captivating (enough). Overall I myself am not too critical when it comes to graphics, I more follow a "good enough works just fine" route, so take my opinion on this with a piece of grain.
But with that being said, it's important to mention that (at the time I played this game) there was a huge problem with the screen turning white. Changing to an older driver solved the problem, but it still has to be kept in mind!

Note: I don't own a controller, so this section mostly will mention how it is to play the game with a keyboard and mouse!
The combat itself is based a lot around dodging, especially during bullet hell sections. Having to double-tap a movement key to dodge is rather unhandy, but the true problem lies within the default keybinding: I have died several times because a simple action like using a heal item takes a (comparably) complex key combination that most likely will require you to use both hands unless you re-bind some of the keys. It gets even worse when you want to use an item you didn't previously used, for example switching from a small recovery item to a medium one; at times you even accidentally switch to another item, which can lead to possibly infuriating results.
Another problem is that during certain bullet hell sections of the game (during hacking for example) aiming with the mouse is next to impossible which drastically restricts the angles you can shoot at targets and through that increases the difficulty of these sections.
Nevertheless and despite it possibly being infuriating at times, I personally find the combat and port sufficing, again perhaps not the best or most innovative, but it remains fun for the most part.

I won't spoil anything. There is just a single thing I want to point out here:
Many come for 2B's behind, but stay because of the story. And once you reach the final end after having played through it several times..you will not regret it.

Let me actually try something different here, namely try to figure out to whom I would not recommend this game. You need some endurance for this game, both physical and mental. You need to be open. Sometimes a mere NPC can toss up a question that can very well stick to you for a while, something that's not just rather random, but that has a deeper philosophical meaning to it. Such questions often don't actually have an answer, and the game rarely (perhaps not at all even) tries to give you one. So I believe that to truly enjoy the game to the fullest, you need to be open to think about what is going on. Like mentioned above, the combat mostly is alright, but nothing ground breaking. Most should be able to enjoy it alright for a bit, but if that's what has to keep you fully entertained in this game, this maybe isn't the right title for you.

I decided to write this review directly after I received ending E. I have tried multiple times to beat the final section completely on my own, my screen was almost completely filled messages from other players. I refused to give up until I have wasted something between 1 to 2 hours. Then I accepted the help from a stranger, and realized..it was never meant to be beaten alone. It perhaps wasn't virtually impossible, but all odds were stacked against you a million to one. That means I literally only could do this because of someone else. This ending basically has reached a meta level that goes beyond the game itself, and going through that experience rendered me with a hollow feeling, the kind of state you're in when you just have finished something amazing, something you genuinely enjoyed; may it be a book, a series, a VN..or a game.
I want other people to see and enjoy for themselves, too.