Proves we shouldn't bury the DS just yet.
The game I speak of is Ghost Trick where you control the spirit of a murder victim named Sissel. Who is unable to recall his identity is or why he was murdered. On the upside his death has led to the discovery of special powers that will unlock the truth behind his murder. These powers allow Sissel to stop time and jump between inanimate objects. The story as a whole is well written and constantly keeps you intrigued with the occasional twist. But it's the clever humour and assortment of wacky characters that steal the show. Although the casual approach to death may be a bit off putting for some players.
You can control the game with the stylus or the buttons on the DS. Or even a combination of the two. Moving your character between objects is a breeze and brewing ways of getting from point A to point B is an amusing challenge. As you progress through the game a series of unpredictable deaths will stall your investigation. However you do hold the necessary powers to save people who are valuable to your goal.
When you encounter a dead person you are able enter their body and turn the clock back to 4 minutes before their death giving you the chance to change their fate. Of course trying to save people can be an intense yet entertaining experience. Since you have just 4 minutes to analyse the surrounding environment and yield a solution to the puzzle like scenario. Unfortunately in most cases the only key to success is through trial and error. But when you do eventually formulate the solution you'll often be treated with an entertaining conclusion.
Graphically the developers have stuck with traditional hand drawn sprites and backgrounds. But an incredible amount of labour has gone into drawing them with detail and you'll never see another game on that small screen with animation this impressive. The soundtrack on the other hand is not as memorable as the game's visuals. But it gets the job done and is easy on the ears.
If you're up for a murder-mystery adventure that offers a brilliant storyline and original game play. Then Ghost Trick is the game you've been looking for and is one that proves we shouldn't bury the DS just yet.
RATING - 9/10
+ An intriguing murder mystery storyline.
+ Humorous script and a large array of fun characters
+ Original and challenging game play.
+ Super smooth animation.
- Trial and error experimentation can become tedious.