Review: Hotel Dusk - Room 215

Background:

Hotel Dusk - Room 215 casts you as a hard-nosed ex-cop who quit the force following a series of unfortunate events. Still rattled by the experience and betrayal of your former partner you take on the role of Kyle Hyde hellbent on unraveling the mystery that unfolds in Hotel Dusk, a run-down joint that holds more than it's fair share of secrets and links to Hyde's past.

Gameplay:

Played orienting the DS on it's side like Brain Training, Hotel Dusk makes great use of the dual screen. For most of the game, a 3D first-person view is shown on the left screen while an overhead floor plan of various rooms and corridors is shown on the right touchscreen which is also used to move Hyde from location to location. At first this seems a little odd but soon becomes second nature. Dialogue takes place with various characters occupying their own screens, face-to-face across the DS. Conversations take the form of multiple choice selections with various lines of questioning easily followed with the stylus.

Pros:

+ Well written: solid script, dialogue and characters.

+ Slick presentation, good use of stylised graphics and music.

+ Not just another pokemon type adventure.

Cons:

- Needs half an hour sessions at least, not 10 minutes.

- Later chapters require searching around in vain sometimes.

- Not for people who hate reading (thick people).

Verdict: 90%