The Byouin

Released in 1987 by Personal Computer Shop Kochi (PSK), this unique text adventure game blends a serious medical mystery with surprisingly comic choices. Players take on the role of a newspaper reporter searching for his missing lover within the halls of the "Mokyo Hospital." Highly regarded for its ambition, the game pushed the limits of the era's hardware by packing in high-resolution graphics and an extensive script. Known for its daunting difficulty and the need for manual mapping, it remains a monumental piece of retro gaming history available today via Project EGG.

Katsuyoshi Yamazaki, a social affairs reporter for the Kochi Daily News, grows suspicious after a series of gastric cancer patients die mysteriously at the hospital where his girlfriend, Ikuko Matsuda, works as a nurse. After discovering a dark conspiracy within the hospital, Ikuko is struck by a car in a hit-and-run and rushed to the facility in critical condition. Armed only with a blood-stained card she left behind, Yamazaki infiltrates the fortified hospital to uncover the truth. This is a medical suspense adventure that follows his desperate mission to expose the secrets hidden deep within the treacherous walls of the hospital.