The battle against the Kobar Empire was utterly lost and I lay dying, when a strange blue screen appeared.
[ You have been identified as having the aptitude needed to be a Player. Would you like to reset the game and try again? ]
"A game?"
I laughed. Blood spilled out of my mouth and ran down my neck.
"I don't know if this is some weird near-death hallucination… but if I have a chance to reset everything and save everyone I cared about… of course, I damn well accept."
[ Reset in progress. ]
[ Beginning Round 2. ]
[ … ]
[ Error. Partial Player. ]
[ … ]
[ Active Players: 0.4 ]
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** If you're looking for a story with a MC who starts out very strong or very clever, this ain't it. Luca is neither. Luca is weak AF and... an idiot.
** Luca will also die. A lot. It's a time-loop story. But with enough game resets (ahem, deaths), Luca will learn and grow, so there's hope for him yet.
** This is a slow-burning and character-driven novel. It's also going to be long.
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Arc 1: Ch 1-77
Arc 2: Ch 78-164
Arc 3: Coming May 25th, 2024
\(• ◡ •)/
|| FYI I'm taking a break till May 25th, 2024 ||
The MC is contradictory. He is a hardened mercenary in his first life. Yet when he resets to his past he is too casual about trying to save his brother's life. The story spends so much time on the MC getting dressed, baths, food, and other indulgences which he enjoyed when he was younger. The MC should know if an attempt at someone's life is thwarted, there will be additional attempts unless the person who is behind it is stopped.
Ch18 after two attempts on his brother's life in the same day, what does the MC do after thwarting the second attempt. He goes home and takes a bath.
The MC doesn't seem to dig for information/knowledge that much as well, which is his most powerful thing with resetting (Knowing things). Why are he and is brother not talking? What is the relationship between his brother and the princess? What is the status of his families business? What does his brother keep hinting at? A key point of this is the "Bobs" and when he has a chance to know more about them... nothing.
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TL;DR: Surprisingly good. You should read it.
Player 0.4 begins like many "second chance" stories. A man dies in battle as he watches his nation and comrades fall to the enemy's hand. Full of regrets, he is somehow brought back in time by accepting an omnipresent system's offer to "restart the game" and become a "player" instead of an NPC.
Although the novel is yet in its infancy, I think these details are quite promising and original. Another thing to note is that Player 0.4 (as of now) is fairly lighthearted. Internal conflict or psychological distress is not something you will see despite Luca's multiple deaths.
As for our protagonist, he is a standard guy who is rather rash and stupid but not excessively so. He has empathy and interest in things outside of himself with his overarching goal being to save his empire/family/friends. He isn't good at plotting or playing mind games, so those who are expecting a cold-hearted genius will likely be disappointed. As of now, he is a good protagonist.
Since there are only 14 chapters currently, it is difficult to say much about the side cast, but so far every character introduced has been unique and interesting (in particular Luca's older brother). No character seems to fawn over or hate the protagonist needlessly, and antagonists appear to have a mind of their own (ex. Chapter 13). I'm looking forward to more character interactions.
The writing style resembles that of Korean web novels: streamlined, entertaining, and efficient. The grammar is on point, and transitions between scenes/dialogue are well done. Descriptions are sufficient, just enough to allow the reader to imagine the world and follow the plot but not so much as to drag the story's pace. I prefer this style, but some readers may miss more flowery descriptions or detailed internal monologues.
A firm 4.6. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys an entertaining and original fantasy novel (especially if you like time loops). Five-stars as the author must continue to write with vigor because I am itching with excitement for another chapter :)
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I've been following this novel for a long time now, and I have to say, I love this one.I've always been a big fan of time travel and resets stories, and player 0.4 can easily scratch this itch of mine. Different from most novels that involve this theme, here each death reset feels impactful to the plot and characters. It's a story with a slow development, but that doesn't mean that's shallow. It's obvious to see how much preparation and worldbuilding the author made, but they do not show everything to us. Readers must fight and earn each new piece of a clue to understand everything it's happening in the background. However, after each answer, there are 2 more new questions begging for attention.I love all characters, every single one is different from the other, having a story for themselves that it's not always told to us, but shown with each of their actions on their days. The novel is primarily on our MC perspective, but author does not shy on making pov chapters to expand the story. MC is a bit of a dufus at first, but seeing his growth is marvelous. I have nothing to complain about Player 0.4, I just hope more people can learn about this gem and read it.
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I would like to say I'm enjoying this but I just can't. The overall writing style is good and I have no issues with any grammar, spelling, or syntax issues. The story follows a deviation on the standard regression/time loop style story. Where this story falls apart for me is its pacing. Its just so god awfully slow that even if I'm enjoying the story it feels like it will take decades of writing to get through a year let alone the 2 days that have passed as I stopped reading. The writing in that scope is good but I just can't get behind the pacing. The other big pet peeve I have is with the use of the System or lack there of. I understand the System in this story is unique as described in the title itself but so far the system has no use and I have a really hard time when litrpg's just have a system and not use it. Overall if the pacing issue and the system issue weren't present I would probably give this a 5/5 but pacing is a huge deal for me and as I said so is system usage.
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This is a great story I suggest you not hesitate to read this novel. The world building and storyline is unique, the only problem is this is a regression type novel so you have to be patient at times. 5/5 would recommend.
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Summary: a man, in the prime of his life, has just died protecting his city as a humble soldier from an invading army of demons. A mysterious voice talks to him in his dying moments promising a do-over. The man accepts and find himself in his 19 year old self again, the voice explains that he has been made into a player (but with only 40% of the features unlocked) of the dead game with no more players due to the game’s insane difficulty. Our MC doesn’t really understand whats going on but hes gonna try his best even if it means dying multiple times to get the perfect ending.
Honestly I really like the story. Its definitely an original concept, and is written well. Kinda has a re-zero vibe with the whole dying and rezing thing. Unfortunately we aren’t really far enough into the story to have really stockpiled information, but thats fine by me! I definitely prefer a slower pace.
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