AI: The Somnium Files is an adventure game with puzzle elements. The plot is divided into two episodes: Investigation and Piece of Somnia. The story is always non-linear, and your actions during the passage will lead to a unique ending. After a complete passage, you can go to checkpoints to follow a different path.
The story takes place in the future in Tokyo and follows Kaname Date. The main character is a top secret agent in the Tokyo police. He also works for the secret "Department of Advanced Brain Research". You will need to delve into the subconscious dreams of criminals, witnesses and other people in order to get to the right information.
During the investigation, you will take control of Detective Kaname Date, using the functions of Aiba's own artificial intelligence. Kaname is able to use x-ray vision and zoom, both of which are needed to explore the world, find clues or hidden objects. During the episode of Doomnia, you will use the Psync machine. Thanks to her, you can see the memories of suspects or key witnesses if they do not want to share information. Each dive into the NPC's head will lead to somnium dreams, where you need to find clues and extract information by solving puzzles.
During logic tasks, you will need to study objects and their purpose. You also need to overcome mental barriers, some kind of locks that stand in the way of a solution or the main event. You have 6 minutes during dreams to perform the necessary actions, otherwise the surrounding world of the subconscious will begin to collapse.