If you haven’t heard of Steins;Gate at this point, then you’ve probably been living under a rock. The popular visual novel, wihch became a fan-favorite anime series in 2011, has been on the “must see” lists for countless fans since it started airing. Its memorable cast, brilliant writing, and intelligent take on time travel have been the subject of high praise among fans and onlookers alike.
Today, fans can get one more chance to visit Okabe Rintaro’s Future Gadget Laboratory… well, kind of.
A short, produced with the cooperation of IBM, sees the crew interacting with a Cognitive Computer named Oopa as they try to tackle the seemingly black art of cooking.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyovwDCzcFY
Translation of dialogue (via Anime News Network):
Text on sign: Future Gadget Laboratory
Mayuri: Tutturu! Hey hey, listen! Right now, Mayushi and Kurisu…
Kurisu: Are going to make fried chicken.
Okabe & Daru: Huh!? Wh… What did you say…!?
Okabe: Don’t! If you do that, this lab will fall into the depths of Hell!
Daru: I’m in firm agreement!
Kurisu: You’re acting way over the top.
Mayuri: It’s OK. Today, we have a super special secret tool to use.
Okabe: A secret tool? Could it be…!?
Kurisu: It’s not the anime-like tool you’re imagining. It’s this!
Oopa: Hello! I’m Oopa! To be more specific, I’m a cognitive computer within this terminal!
Okabe: Cogni…? Wait, so you’re saying that you’ll get help from this thing?
Oopa: Yes! I’ll support them. I’ll intricately give instructions on ingredients, cooking method, and other things.
Daru: They’ll be oK this way, right?
Okabe: Fine. I’ll believe. Oopa! No, cognitive doll! Show me you can help Mayuri and Kurisu make a perfect dish!
Kurisu: Why are you acting so high and mighty?
Mayuri: Well… That’s just Okarin.
Oopa: First, I will show the recipe for the fried chicken.
Kurisu: Chicken thighs, flour, and potato starch.
Mayuri: Then for flavor, sake and soy sauce.
Okabe: So… What is this?
Oopa: Beef, chocolate, apricot puree, flour, eggs, banana, and others.
Okabe: This is completely different from fried chicken!
Daru: This is just sad…
Mayuri: We didn’t have the correct ingredients in the lab…
Okabe: Then why didn’t you go buy them!?
Kurisu: But it sure is weird… There’s no potato starch, but there’s a rare ingredient like apricot puree… Who was it who- Huh!? Hashida!?
Daru: I figured that I might get a girlfriend and we’d cook at the lab.
Kurisu: Leaving Hashida’s delusions aside, no matter what kind of logic you use, it’s probably impossible to make fried chicken with these ingredients…
Okabe: Just go buy ingredients.
Oopa: Well then, let’s think about what we can make with these ingredients.
Mayuri: Wow! You can do that!?
Oopa: Leave it to me!
Mayuri: It’s done!
Kurisu: It’s complete!
Okabe: Wh… What is this…?
Oopa: Chocolate buritos!
Daru: It doesn’t look bad.
Mayuri: Right? Okarin, Daru, take a taste test.
Okabe: Hmph… Fine. You all worked so hard. I’ll resolve myself. Daru, please go ahead first.
Daru: Wha-!? You said all that, and you’re just going to push it on me!?
Okabe: You just said it didn’t look bad!!
Mayuri: Okarin… If you act like you hate it so much, Mayushi gets sad…
Okabe: …Fine! It’ll be OK if I eat it, right!? …It’s good.
Kurisu: Well that was obvious. You got too freaked out.
Okabe: It appears I’m seeing- No, tasting an illusion. Yes, this is the possibility of technology…
Kurisu: You aren’t honest with your feelings.
Mayuri: And it’s all thanks to Oopa.
Okabe: This is so good.
The video, which was first hosted at IBM’s Mugendai (Infinity) website, is apparently the first of four, though release dates on the rest of the series aren’t listed. Hopefully, the wait isn’t too long, since more Steins;Gate is always a good thing.
