Steins;Gate is an anime adaptation of a visual novel game by 5pb. and Nitroplus. It follows a self-proclaimed mad scientist named Rintarō Okabe who, along with his friends, manage to invent a microwave that can send text messages into the past, allowing him to travel between alternate worlds.
The series is produced by White Fox and aired in Japan from April 6, 2011 to September 13, 2011, also being simulcast on Crunchyroll. An original video animation episode will be released with the final BD/DVD volume on February 22, 2012.[1]
The series has been licensed in North America by Funimation Entertainment.[2] The anime features two pieces of theme music; the opening theme is "Hacking to the Gate" by Kanako Itō while the ending theme is "The Twelve Time-Governing Covenants" (刻司ル十二ノ盟約 Toki Tsukasadoru Jūni no Meiyaku) by Yui Sakakibara. The ending theme for episode 23 is "The Skyclad Observer" (スカイクラッドの観測者 Sukaikuraddo no Kansokusha) by Kanako Itō, which is the opening theme to the Xbox 360 version of the visual novel.
| No. | Title[3] | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Turning Point" "Hajimari to Owari no Purorōgu" (始まりと終わりのプロローグ) |
April 6, 2011[4] |
| In the summer of 2010, self-proclaimed mad scientist, Rintarō Okabe, goes to Doctor Nakabachi's seminar on time travel with his friend, Mayuri Shiina. While there, he meets a girl named Kurisu Makise who explicitly states that he had met her 15 minutes ago, despite having never seen her before. Later on, Rintarō hears a scream and sees Kurisu lying in a pool of blood. As he sends a text about it to another one of his research buddies, Itaru Hashida, Rintarō has a strange experience, finding the street he is on has suddenly become deserted and a strange satellite has crashed into the building he was just in. Later on, while fiddling with their strange remote-controlled microwave oven, which turns bananas into a gel-like substance, Itaru tells Rintarō that the seminar he supposedly attended was cancelled, much to his surprise. Rintarō later discovers that the text he sent to Itaru had been sent a week ago, just before encountering Kurisu, who is alive and well. | ||
| 02 | "Time Travel Paranoia" "Jikan Chōyaku no Paranoia" (時間跳躍のパラノイア) |
April 13, 2011[5] |
| Rintarō is surprised that Kurisu is alive, before being humiliated by her during a lecture concerning time travel. After getting some provisions from cross-dresser Ruka Urushibara, Rintarō meets Suzuha Amane, who is hired by his landlord, Yūgo Tennōji, as a part time assistant in his electronics shop below Rintarō's apartment. Later, Rintarō investigates the supposedly altered events and learns that a man calling himself John Titor, who claimed in 2000 that he was a time traveler, has surfaced once more in 2010. However, all evidence of Titor's 2000 visit have vanished and, with the exception of Rintarō, no one remembers it. The next day, Rintarō encounters a strange woman named Moeka Kiryū who asks for information on a retro PC model called IBN 5100, which Rintarō gathers from Itaru. Later, Rintarō and Itaru conduct an experiment where a banana placed in their microwave vanishes, only to end up reattached to the bunch it came from in a gelled state. Kurisu visits the lab. | ||
| 03 | "Parallel World Paranoia" "Heiretsu Katei no Paranoia" (並列過程のパラノイア) |
April 20, 2011[5] |
| Rintarō agrees to let Kurisu look at the mobile microwave on the condition she become a lab member. They discover that Itaru was using the microwave at the time Rintarō sent his text about Kurisu's stabbing. Rintarō concludes that the mobile microwave is, in fact, a time machine which sent his message into the past. After hearing about the Large Hadron Collider and micro black holes, Rintarō asks Itaru to hack into SERN's network. There, they discover SERN had already been performing top secret micro black hole experiments, during which humans had died. | ||
| 04 | "Interpreter Rendezvous" "Kūri Hōkō no Randevū" (空理彷徨のランデヴー) |
April 27, 2011[5] |
| With further information about SERN's time travel experiments encrypted in a code that Itaru can't decipher, Rintarō learns from John Titor that he needs the IBN 5100 computer Moeka was looking for to decode it. Whilst doing his laundry, Rintarō runs into Kurisu, who is still in denial about a time machine existing. After Mayuri hears from her maid cafe co-worker, Rumiho "Feiris Nyan Nyan" Akiha, that she knows about the IBN 5100, Rintarō finds out that the computer is at the shrine where Ruka works. Rintarō and Kurisu borrow it from Ruka's father and carry it back to the lab. | ||
| 05 | "Starmine Rendezvous" "Denka Shōtotsu no Randevū" (電荷衝突のランデヴー) |
May 4, 2011[5] |
| As Rintarō and Kurisu arrive home with the IBN 5100, Suzuha seems to be shocked when she sees Kurisu. While Rintarō gathers some needed parts for the computer, he runs into Suzuha again, who warns him to be cautious of Kurisu. After Itaru gets the IBN 5100 working, he, Rintarō and Kurisu begin deciphering SERN's reports. They discover that SERN had indeed been conducting human experiments on time travel, succeeding in transporting people to the past but also causing them the jellification Rintarō had observed on the bananas. With this knowledge, Rintarō becomes determined to perfect his Mobile Microwave. | ||
| 06 | "Butterfly Effect's Divergence" "Chōyoku no Daibājensu" (蝶翼のダイバージェンス) |
May 11, 2011[6] |
| The lab members discuss how to perfect the Mobile Microwave, dubbing messages sent to the past as 'D-Mails'. Further experimenting reveals the various rules concerning D-Mails, being that they can only be sent during a certain time of the day, long messages are split into several smaller mails, and the timer on the microwave determines how far back the message is sent. The next day, Moeka comes round to see the IBN 5100 and, after hearing about the time experiments, is made a lab member. | ||
| 07 | "Divergence Singularity" "Dansō no Daibājensu" (断層のダイバージェンス) |
May 18, 2011[6] |
| After some improvements are made to the Mobile Microwave, Rintarō decides to try changing history by sending winning lottery numbers to the past. After sending the text, the world is changed to one where Ruka has bought a lottery ticket on Rintarō's advice, but Rintarō never performed the experiment. Confused as to why only he can remember the previous timeline, Rintarō contacts John Titor, who tells him he may have the power to become a messiah and change the future. | ||
| 08 | "Chaos Theory Homeostasis I" "Mugen no Homeosutashisu" (夢幻のホメオスタシス) |
May 25, 2011[6] |
| As Rintarō decides to resume his experiments, Moeka requests to send a D-Mail, causing Rintarō to shift to a new timeline where Moeka never came to the lab. The next day, Ruka comes to the lab, asking to send a D-Mail so that he would be born as a girl. They send a D-Mail to Ruka's mother's pager at a time before he was born, letting her know of an urban legend about how mothers-to-be can affect their baby's gender by eating certain foods. Rintarō moves to a new world line, though he doesn't notice anything particularly different at first. | ||
| 09 | "Chaos Theory Homeostasis II" "Gensō no Homeosutashisu" (幻相のホメオスタシス) |
June 1, 2011[6] |
| Rumiho learns about the Mobile Microwave as Rintarō discusses it with Itaru, becoming very interested in it. Later, Rintarō discovers that the IBN 5100 has gone missing, as if they never found it in the first place, most likely as a result of Moeka's D-Mail. After learning that the IBN 5100 had been previously taken from Ruka's shrine, Rintarō finds Moeka in town, but she doesn't know where the IBN 5100 is either. Rintarō, Itaru and Mayuri go to see Rumiho, whose family owns Akihabara and originally donated the IBN 5100 to the shrine. She offers them a replacement in exchange for being allowed to send a D-Mail ten years into the past. As history is altered again, the IBN 5100 was never donated to the shrine and, more disturbingly, the face of Akihabara has completely changed, no longer being a mecca for anime. | ||
| 10 | "Chaos Theory Homeostasis III" "Sōsei no Homeosutashisu" (相生のホメオスタシス) |
June 8, 2011[6] |
| Rintarō realises the D-Mail Rumiho sent prevented moe culture from being introduced into Akihabara. As Rintarō wonders why the relationships between his friends haven't been affected, he comes to realize that Ruka's gender had in fact been changed. Afterwards, Rintarō talks with Suzuha, who reveals she came to Tokyo to try and find her estranged father, mentioning she will leave if she is unable to find him the next day. As Rintarō contemplates holding a party for her, offering her the chance to send a D-Mail if she fails, he receives a text message letting him know that someone is watching him. That night, Suzuha doesn't show up and simply sends a farewell text to Rintarō. The satellite that crashed in the Akihabara radio building also mysteriously disappears. Rintarō decides to send a D-Mail to himself telling him to follow Suzuha, changing history so she ended up attending the party and staying in Tokyo. | ||
| 11 | "Dogma in Event Horizon" "Jikū Kyōkai no Doguma" (時空境界のドグマ) |
June 15, 2011[7] |
| Rintarō discovers that a television in the electronics shop below the lab is the key to the time slot in which D-Mails can be sent. Kurisu then theorizes that it might be possible to send memories back in time in the same manner as D-Mails, allowing the consciousness of a person to 'leap' to the past. As Rintarō goes into town with Mayuri to look for parts Kurisu needs, running into Moeka along the way, Suzuha tells Rintarō that Kurisu works for SERN, though Kurisu denies this when asked. Kurisu tells Rintarō about the troubles she has with her father, who grew to hate her when she surpassed him in scientific prowess. Rintarō receives another sinister text message warning him that he knows too much, later learning that the lab is connected to the SERN network without the lab members' knowing. | ||
| 12 | "Dogma in Ergosphere" "Seishi Genkai no Doguma" (静止限界のドグマ) |
June 22, 2011[7] |
| With the ability to utilize SERN's LHC to compress memories into D-mail size, Kurisu completes her 'time leap machine', capable of traveling up to two days into the past. However, Rintarō, still tortured by the threatening texts he has received, decides against performing an experiment, instead suggesting they announce their discoveries to the public. As the lab members decide to have a party, Kurisu comes into conflict with Suzuha, who claims she is destined to become a SERN spy, but Mayuri manages to calm things down. While a bomb threat is televised, Suzuha, after hearing about the lab's connection to SERN, suspects something is terribly wrong and leaves. Just then, the lab is attacked by a group of armed men, led by Moeka who reveals herself to be a SERN spy. Demanding Rintarō, Kurisu and Itaru hand over the time machine and come with her, she decides Mayuri isn't needed and kills her. | ||
| 13 | "Metaphysics Necrosis" "Keijijō no Nekurōshisu" (形而上のネクローシス) |
June 29, 2011[7] |
| Right after Moeka kills Mayuri, Suzuha rushes in the lab and creates a distraction, allowing Kurisu to use the time leap machine to send Rintarō back in time to 5 p.m. in the same day. Rintarō drives everyone away from the lab, but wastes most of his time searching for Mayuri. By the time they try to escape the area, the bomb threat has stopped the trains and Mayuri is killed when Moeka runs her over with a car. Rintarō manages to escape the clutches of SERN and leaps to the past again. Using his knowledge of Mayuri's movements from his previous leap, he manages to find her sooner and they visit the subway station. However, Mayuri dies again when Tennōji's daughter, Nae, is tripped up and accidentally pushes her in the way of an oncoming train. Devastated, Rintarō vows to keep leaping to the past until he manages to save Mayuri. | ||
| 14 | "Physically Necrosis" "Keijika no Nekurōshisu" (形而下のネクローシス) |
July 6, 2011[7] |
| Rintarō makes several time leaps, but no matter what, Mayuri always ends up dying in some way. In one of his leaps, Rintarō calls out Moeka and holds her at gunpoint, making her reveal that SERN have targeted the lab due to the creation of the time machine and their plan to publicly announce it. As Rintarō falls further into despair, Kurisu gets him to reveal what he knows and offers to help him try to save Mayuri. She sends Rintarō to just before she completed the time leap machine, where he tells her past self what he knows. As they discuss what the cause of Mayuri's death could be, they are greeted by Suzuha, who tells them that in order to save Mayuri, they need to reach a 'Beta world line'. She takes them to the crashed satellite, which turns out to be her time machine, and reveals she is "John Titor" and has come from the year 2036. | ||
| 15 | "Missing Link Necrosis" "Bōkanjō no Nekurōshisu" (亡環上のネクローシス) |
July 13, 2011[8] |
| Suzuha explains how SERN was able to build a time machine and use it to rule the world in 2036. She explains she plans to travel to 1975 to acquire an IBN 5100, but soon discovers her time machine has broken down as a result of the storm on the night Rintarō stopped her from leaving. Rintarō leaps two days before the completion of the time leap machine in order to get Itaru to fix Suzuha's time machine, whilst Mayuri suggests they also help find Suzuha's father, using his badge as a clue. Suzuha gives Rintarō her Divergence Meter, which keeps track of the magnitude of differences between timelines, and tells him about how he founded the resistance against SERN in the future. After spending the day searching for Suzuha's father, Suzuha gives her thanks to Rintarō before he receives a lead on Suzuha's father from a badge maker. | ||
| 16 | "Sacrificial Necrosis" "Fukagyaku no Nekurōshisu" (不可逆のネクローシス) |
July 20, 2011[8] |
| Unable to get much information about the badge maker's client, Rintarō decides to leap back in time to confront the client in question, only to find it was Itaru, who wanted to make a fake badge to cheer Suzuha up. Itaru then mentions that Suzuha's time machine is only able to travel backwards in time. As the repairs to the time machine are completed, Mayuri deduces from the time machine's naming convention that Suzuha's father is actually Itaru. After a short reunion, Suzuha travels back to 1975, though Rintarō notices the Divergence Meter's reading hasn't changed. Later, Tennōji delivers a letter from Suzuha from the year 2000, mentioning that she commited suicide a year later. In the letter, Suzuha laments that she failed her mission, as the damaged time machine caused her to lose her memories for 24 years. Rintarō blames himself for stopping her on the night of the party and, despite Mayuri's pleas, sends a D-Mail that stops him from following Suzuha, letting her use the time machine before it was damaged. Speaking with Tennōji again, Rintarō learns that Suzuha has died of illness instead, leaving behind her Divergence Meter. Noticing a small change in divergence, Rintarō returns home and finds Mayuri has not been killed by Moeka. | ||
| 17 | "Made in Complex" "Kyozō Waikyoku no Konpurekkusu" (虚像歪曲のコンプレックス) |
July 27, 2011[8] |
| Despite the change in divergence, Mayuri's death still takes place, albeit a day later than in previous timelines. Rintarō asks for Kurisu's help, who theorizes that, since negating Rintarō's D-Mail about Suzuha delayed the attack, undoing the effects of the other D-Mails could bring them back to a world line where they have an IBN 5100, letting them hack into SERN and delete the records that set them on Rintarō's trail. Rintarō starts by trying to figure out how to reverse Rumiho's D-Mail, while helping her evade a rival gaming gang. Rintarō takes Rumiho to the place where her maid cafe used to be and tells her about the way Akihabara was. Rumiho comes to remember the previous timeline and the D-Mail she sent: a fake ransom note, which prevented her father from boarding a plane fated to crash. The rival gang catches up to them but they are rescued by the arrival of Rumiho's father. Speaking to him, Rintarō learns that Suzuha gave him the IBN 5100, but he was forced to sell it in order to pay for the fake kidnapping's ransom. After accepting the reality of her father's death, Rumiho agrees to send a D-Mail cancelling out her previous one, turning Akihabara back into a moe hub. The IBN 5100, however, still remains out of reach. | ||
| 18 | "Fractal Androgynous" "Jiko Sōji no Andorogyunosu" (自己相似のアンドロギュノス) |
August 3, 2011[8] |
| Rintarō tells Ruka about how she used to be a man and urges her to reverse the D-Mail responsible in order to change Mayuri's fate. While she initially disbelieves him, ultimately she agrees, on the condition that Rintarō takes her on a date. Despite Kurisu and Itaru's advice on dating, Ruka and Rintarō spend the evening in awkward conversation. Like Rumiho, Ruka eventually recalls the previous timeline, which makes her even more depressed at the impending return to it, since she feels she will be unable to pursue her feelings about Rintarō as a guy. Before sending the D-Mail that will cancel out Ruka's first one, Rintarō realises that the reason she didn't enjoy their date was that he was trying to be someone he's not. He visits the shrine and tells her that, no matter what, she'll always be his "student". With their relationship repaired, the world line shifts, turning Ruka back into a guy and leaving only one more D-Mail to be reversed: Moeka's. | ||
| 19 | "Endless Apoptosis" "Mugen Rensa no Apotōshisu" (無限連鎖のアポトーシス) |
August 10, 2011[8] |
| As Kurisu offers to look after Mayuri at a doujin convention, Rintarō heads to Moeka's address, only to learn that she committed suicide. Rintarō time leaps to before Moeka killed herself, finding her a nervous wreck due to not having been contacted by a person she calls 'FB'. Rintarō steals Moeka's phone and sends a D-Mail from it, but the timeline doesn't shift, leading him to realise that another message was sent from her phone. Rintarō confronts Moeka about FB and tells her about her future suicide. Rintarō finds the offending text, which involved the location of the IBN 5100, but annuling it via another D-Mail still doesn't change the timeline. As Rintarō decides he needs to send a D-Mail from FB's phone, Moeka tells him the location of the IBN 5100. | ||
| 20 | "Finalize Apoptosis" "Ensa Danzetsu no Apotōshisu" (怨嗟断絶のアポトーシス) |
August 17, 2011[9] |
| Despite Rintarō knowing the location of the IBN 5100, Kurisu is against him trying to steal it, as it most likely won't change the world line. Instead, she suggests that Rintarō stakes out the location in order to find FB, with Moeka deciding to join him. As they observe the IBN 5100 being taken out, they follow it as it is passed along to several people, including Tennōji, before it ends up on a plane towards France. Rintarō, Moeka and Kurisu confront Tennōji, who reveals himself to be FB, killing Moeka before taking his own life. Rintarō uses Tennōji's cell phone to finally cancel out Moeka's D-Mail, returning to a world line where both Moeka and Tennōji are alive and he possesses the IBN 5100. As Rintarō gets Itaru to hack into the SERN network to erase the data they have on them, he comes to the sudden realisation that he needs to undo an additional D-Mail: the one that prevented Kurisu from getting stabbed. | ||
| 21 | "Paradox Meltdown" "Ingaritsu no Meruto" (因果律のメルト) |
August 24, 2011[9] |
| Not wanting to move to a world line where Kurisu dies, Rintarō decides against the hacking. Too afraid to tell Kurisu the reason behind his change of plans, Rintarō accompanies Mayuri to a Comic Market, trying to think of a way he can save her without changing world lines. As a car appears during Mayuri's fated time to die, Rintarō attempts to change her destiny by letting the car hit him instead, but Mayuri ends up dying trying to save him. After he leaps back in time, Kurisu has Rintarō reveal to her that she dies in the Beta world lines. Rintarō finds Mayuri visiting her grandmother's grave, where he overhears that she's been having dreams of the times she has died, and about how she has noticed Rintarō's suffering. | ||
| 22 | "Being Meltdown" "Sonzai Ryōkai no Meruto" (存在了解のメルト) |
August 31, 2011[9] |
| Kurisu reveals to Rintarō that she recalls her stabbing from dreams, as well as Rintarō's various attempts at saving Mayuri. When Kurisu tells Rintarō that he should save Mayuri over her, he can't accept it and runs off. As Rintarō attempts to time leap again, Kurisu stops him, worried that seeing Mayuri die over and over will destroy him. After giving in and choosing to save Mayuri, Rintarō tells Kurisu he loves her, to which she responds by kissing him. The next day, Kurisu leaves Japan, whilst Rintarō and the others delete their data from the SERN network. Just before this act takes Rintarō to a Beta world line, Kurisu returns to tell him that she loves him. After getting rid of the Mobile Microwave, Rintarō receives a call from Suzuha, telling him he needs to prevent World War III. | ||
| 23 | "Open The Steins Gate" "Kyōkaimenjō no Shutainzu Gēto" (境界面上のシュタインズゲート) |
September 7, 2011[9] |
| Suzuha explains that her mission is to prevent Kurisu's death and enter a world line known as 'Steins Gate' in which World War III never happens. Rintarō travels with Suzuha to just before Kurisu's death, running into her and then hiding in the place where she will be stabbed. There, Kurisu is attacked by her father, revealed to be Doctor Nakabachi, who tries to steal her time travel theory. As Rintarō attempts to save Kurisu, he inadvertently stabs her himself, allowing Nakabachi to escape with her theory to Russia, an event that will eventually lead to World War III. Returning to the present, Rintarō falls into despair but Mayuri slaps some sense into him. Suzuha reveals that Rintarō was meant to fail this mission and a scrambled video he received on the day of Kurisu's death is now viewable. It is a video D-Mail from his 2025 self, telling him that the key to saving Kurisu without changing the events that led them to develop the time machine and fall in love is to fool his past self into believing Kurisu has died. | ||
| 24 | "Achievement Point" "Owari to Hajimari no Purorōgu" (終わりと始まりのプロローグ) |
September 14, 2011[10] |
| Picking up a sabre toy in order to use its liquid as a substitute for Kurisu's blood, Rintarō and Suzuha return to the day of Kurisu's death. First, Rintarō makes sure to obtain the metal toy he previously gave to Mayuri in order to prevent it from saving Kurisu's time travel theory from a fire. When Rintarō finds the liquid in the sabre had dried up, he decides to taunt Nakabachi into stabbing him before knocking out Kurisu with a taser. Letting Nakabachi escape with Kurisu's theory, Rintarō uses his own blood, screams of pain and the unconscious Kurisu to recreate the scene his past self saw. As Rintarō returns to the present, Suzuha gives her thanks before she disappears, saying that she can't stay with him. After he recovers from his wound, Rintarō starts giving out badges to the lab members he recruited in other timelines (including Moeka, who now works in Tennōji's shop), saving one for Suzuha, who will be born in seven years. While walking in the street, Rintarō runs into Kurisu, who was looking for him to thank him for saving her life, and the two renew their relationship. | ||
| OVA | "Egoistic Poriomania" "Ōkō Bakko no Poriomania" (横行跋扈のポリオマニア) |
February 22, 2012 |
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