A few mystery/puzzle games im looking into

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

well, this mystery puzzle game genre has been little by little making me want to try a game or two of it, the ones I've been looking at and are intriguing me the most are Hotel Dusk: Room 215, Professor Layton: The Unwound Future, and Nine Hours Nine Persons Nine Doors.

Unfortunately the sequel to Hotel Dusk, The Last Window: Midnight Promise (Secret of Cape West) was never localized and it's looking like it never will be. Although, hotel Dusk itself is most intriguing because it lets you explore the hotel in polygonal 3d from a first person prospective unlike most of this genre that are purely point and click. Annoyingly though, it looks like you have to hold the DS vertically to play this game, but that's not enough to alone offset me from this game. What I want to know is if anyone here has played it and what they thought of it, are the puzzles too easy or too difficult? does the vertical holding position take too much away? Is the story line as well presented or intriguing as it looks?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYY3ocPMx9w

I've been looking at Professor Layton a little bit since the last game came out, and when the 3DS game was announced I thought it looked pretty cool, so I looked into the next game that was shown a few times in Nintendo Power. Then when NP gave this game a huge recommendation I started to think about getting it. I know this game hasn't been out very long, but if anyone imported it or played the previous games and could tell me why they liked the game (or didn't) that would be great.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks__4i9qPZM

The third one I'm looking at, Nine Hours Nine Persons, Nine Doors, intrigued me since the second i read NP's news on it, this game may not be out yet, but if anyone knows much about more than that it's a puzzle game with a bit of click adventuring, (no storyline spoilers though, i know the base of the plot, but i don't know much else).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=869azSXO1BI

[Palle]

I enjoyed Hotel Dusk, even started a second playthrough for the hell of it. You can get the PAL version of Last Window from NCSX and play it in English on an American DS.

Last Window: The Secret of Cape West (http://www.shopncsx.com/lastwindowthesecretofcapewest.aspx)

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

what are PAL and NCSX, and can they be played on an American DSi? i heard rumors DSi's were region locked.

[Palle]

Sorry, 'PAL' probably isn't the right term, just an old force of habit. I meant that the cart would be an EU version.

NCSX is an importer selling that version in the link I posted.

All of this was posted on the assumption that you are in the NA territory. The Last Window cart should work on any DS or DS Lite, but I'm not sure if it would work on an NA DSi. I suspect not.

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

well, that sucks, although i do have access to na old ds, but i prefer m dsi, no big deal tho, thanks for the link

[Outrider]

I've been meaning to play Hotel Dusk one of these days, as I've heard great things about it and I enjoyed Trace Memory.

I'd definitely recommend the Phoenix Wright games if you're looking for more adventure games on your DS. They're just... really, really good.

They're a little pricey these days as you can't buy them new on the DS anymore, but you can buy WiiWare ports for $10, which is a great deal.

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

thanks for the recommendation, i have been looking a bit at those games

[Sinue_v2]

I haven't played Professor Layton, but from the reviews it seems to be a pretty "adventure game lite" type game. Aside from Phoenix Wright (which I didn't really care for), I haven't played any decent games of that type lately. Though if you're not adverse to older PC games, you might like the "Dr. Brain" games Sierra used to make. (Though might need DOSBOX to run them now)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv-m4sDZ4ps

Trace Memory was a great game for what it was, but it's markedly different in that it features a lot of item based puzzles and exploration to space the narrative, rather than sequences of largely self-contained puzzles. If you don't mind those sort of "point & click" adventurey type games, I can toss out a few recommendations.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiHlgAUlGas

Time Hollow is a lot like Trace Memory, except that it's schtick is that your DS stylus is a "Time Portal Drawing Pen" which you can use to change the past.. but it only works when you figure out what happened in the changed timeline and what you must do, when you must do it, to correct it. You get clues in the form of flashbacks (ala Butterfly Effect) and by going around town doing a bit of detective work. Not a bad game, but not as good as Trace Memory IMO.

The other is Secret Files: Tunguska Experiment


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlM-itt3TJw

I haven't played it yet, but it's a much more advanced form of "Trace Memory" in the vein of the classic adventure games like Monkey Island/King's Quest. It's available on Wii and DS, if platform matters to you. From what I've heard on reviews, it's not a bad game - but is severely broken by an all too easily tempting hint system which can basically play the game for you. However, without this hint system, the puzzles often prove to be so illogical and non-linear that it becomes overly frustrating and prone to evoking more of a "wtf was that about" response to solving puzzles - rather than satisfaction or accomplishment.

Personally, I'm looking forward to Grey Matter - the new Jane Jenson game which is coming out for PC, Wii, and 360. The production company and publishers are pretty low brow (not surprising, given the popularity of Adventure games these days), and it will be interesting to see whether or not Mrs. Jensen's talent can overcome this hurdle. Remember, she's one of the only people to have ever made an FMV game (Gabriel Knight II: The Beast Within) that was actually good. Not only good, but excellent by any standard. A rarity among rarities. While I can't vouch for the gameplay or puzzles, I can vouch for Jane's skill as a writer. If she hasn't lost her touch, the game will still be worth checking out for it's masterful and complex storytelling. She's like a mixture of Michael Crichton and Anne Rice, mixing real world science and history with the supernatural legends and mythology so completely that it's at times difficult to pry the fact from the fiction - blurring the line between the two into an engaging and immersive narrative.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evkLxOKWZlY


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SVtLmS1K9Y

(Sorry for German language preview narrative, but the English version is still a few months off)

If you're not interested in console based versions, I hear that a DS version of Grey Matter is also in the works... but that's only a rumor for the time being. Something to keep an eye on, if the console versions hold something to pique your interest.

An example of her work from Gabriel Knight: TBW.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4oV535WS0c

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

i've been interested in Time Hollow for a bit, but as far as pc games go, im mostly looking for DS games atm for the handheld aspect.

[CAMPSO]

I've played a few of these. Story wise Hotel Dusk is awesome.
IMO the puzzles weren't too hard. The same with Time Hollow as well.
The actual gameplay isn't too great but the story definitely is.

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

well, thats good seeing as im huge on storyline.

[Outrider]

It won't be coming out for a while, but Level 5 just announced a Phoenix Wright/Professor Layton crossover game for the 3DS.

Which is all kinds of insane and awesome.

[Sinue_v2]

i've been interested in Time Hollow for a bit, but as far as pc games go, im mostly looking for DS games atm for the handheld aspect.

The puzzles in Time Hollow probably won't give you any real challenge, and the storyline is (imo) fairly weak - though by no means is it bad either. It's competent, at least for the kind of bar Time Hollow is aiming for, and I found it kind of blasé. It's very much a game for early to mid teenagers, though there are a few scattered events which took me by surprise due to their subject matter. Trace Memory had a similar simple storyline tailored to younger audiences, but I found it more enjoyable, fairly consistent and better paced, with a cast of more likable characters. Really, you're not going to get the more advanced and well written story lines until you venture into PC, or on the rare occasion on console. (Still Life (http://www.microids.com/en/catalogue/10/still-life-victoria-mcpherson-s-adventures.html) was a good last-gen Xbox adventure with a mature storyline, and DreamFall: The Longest Journey (http://www.longestjourney.com/) had an atmosphere and plot that simply absorbed the player into it's world in a way few games can. It's an experience all it's own. If you change your mind, those would be great places to start.)

Anyhow, remember that Secret Files: Tunguska is available for the DS, and there's a chance for Gray Matter to be as well. That is the one to look into if you like story, as she is one of the best the games industry has ever seen.

You might also want to try Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templar if you haven't played it yet. It's an older adventure game which, was never really that impressive IMO, but still seems to have warranted several releases on multiple platforms over the years. So you might find something about it which hooks you.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcpwZnkq8kQ


There's also a game called The Whispered World I heard about recently, but haven't bothered checking into. I did find a YouTube promo of it though; to see if piques your interest.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVY_bw1Ty-I


You might want to check out the site JustAdventure (http://www.justadventure.com/), as they specialize in reviewing adventure and puzzle games for multiple platforms. They might have a preview or review of an overlooked title you didn't know existed... since that's more the rule than the exception in this genre these days.

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

It won't be coming out for a while, but Level 5 just announced a Phoenix Wright/Professor Layton crossover game for the 3DS.

Which is all kinds of insane and awesome.

I watched the trailer, you're right, that does look like all kinds of insane awesome!

[Chukie sue]

I saw 999 in a Nintendo Power - cant wait!

[Kyrith_Ranger_Pso]

yah, that's where i saw it too