Rewrite

Rewrite for PSP is a Japanese visual novel released by Prototype on April 17, 2014. Developed by Key, the game brings the studio's 2011 PC story to Sony's handheld as a single-player, choice-driven adventure. Its setting is Kazamatsuri, a city where extensive tree planting has woven greenery through familiar streets and schools. High school student Kotarou Tennouji is drawn into the town's strange rumors, and what begins as an investigation of occult happenings gradually reveals a much larger conflict.

Most of Rewrite unfolds through reading narration and dialogue, with character portraits, background scenes, music, and full voice performances for the supporting cast conveying each moment. At decision points, players choose Kotarou's responses and actions; those selections direct the story into different routes and endings. Replaying is central to the design, because the complete narrative is distributed across separate scenarios rather than delivered in a single straight path. A gallery records viewed illustrations and heard music after completion, providing an in-game record of discoveries.

Kotarou's investigations connect him with the school's Occult Research Society and the girls at the center of its mysteries: childhood friend Kotori Kanbe, transfer student Chihaya Ohtori, public-morals committee member Sizuru Nakatsu, class representative Lucia Konohana, and club president Akane Senri. Their everyday school life, the city's seasonal events, and reports of unfamiliar creatures establish a lighter opening before supernatural forces become more prominent. Kazamatsuri itself remains important throughout, combining an ordinary modern town with forests, hidden locations, and a persistent sense that something beyond normal life is at work.

The title refers to Kotarou's unusual ability to alter his own body, letting him enhance his physical capabilities at a cost. That power is represented on screen by a gauge whose progress can affect certain scenes. Rewrite also includes the Mappie GPS-style map: players can visit locations through a point-and-click interface, meet characters, and take on optional quests. Some map events are required to move forward, while others reward exploration and build out the game's collection of encounters. Completing its available quests unlocks an extra comedic scenario.

The PSP edition is a port, not a separate sequel or the later expanded Rewrite+ release. It followed the Windows original and preceded Prototype's PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4 versions. Prototype promoted the PSP release as the first consumer-console version with a large voice cast, while Kotarou remains unvoiced in the main game. Japanese pre-orders included a drama CD, but the core release is the full branching visual novel, with its character routes ultimately opening additional Moon and Terra scenarios that provide the story's broader conclusion.

Within Key's catalogue, Rewrite stands apart for pairing the studio's relationship-focused route structure with a supernatural mystery and a more elaborate system of route progression. The original game was Key's ninth title and its first visual novel presented in a 16:9 format. For PSP players, this 2014 release offers the same essential journey through Kazamatsuri: follow leads, make choices for Kotarou, explore the map when it appears, and return to earlier paths to see how different decisions reshape the fate of its characters and city.