2005 – a banner year if there ever was one – laid a solid footing for Nintendo’s so called “Third Pillar” to go on and become the most successful video game handheld of all time, and as some would argue the best video game device ever made. The number of system defining games that were released over the course of 2005 was staggering, which included Nintendogs, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, Warioware Touched, Advance Wars DS, Castlevania DoS, Trauma Center and finally, the reason for this whole 2005 was awesome diatribe, Phoenix Wright. (Fine, technically Phoenix Wright was originally released for the GBA in 2001 in Japan, but there was maybe only one or two people that actually played the original titles in the United States, so for all intensive purpose, Phoenix Wright came out in 2005.)
In retrospect, it is hard to attribute the release of Phoenix Wright as the sole influence that precipitated the subsequent swell of adventure games that followed, but to ignore its significance as an introduction, or reintroduction of the genre to American gamers would seem short-sighted. While the visual novel genre is big business in Japan (acting as a natural bridge between the manga and anime industries and the video game industry) a market for this type of game simply didn’t exist in the US. Capcom choose wisely by launching a series devoid of the culturally jarring romance tropes seen in most Japanese visual novels and landed in the proverbial ‘right place at the right time.”
So wow, there is a whole lot of information about Phoneix Wright when this review isn’t even about a game from the series. Despite being somewhat of a longwinded explanation, it is important to note the difference in the industry (for comparison sake) between the time that the first Phoenix Wright title was released and now with the release of series creator Shu Takumi’s newest property, Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective.
Game: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Genre: Adventure
Price: $29.99
Verdict: An interesting and well told story marred by a poorly implemented game mechanic.
Pros: Incredible character designs and stellar animation.
Cons: An unnecessary time constraint makes some puzzles frustrating and broken.
Purchased by Reviewer
On the surface, Ghost Trick looks and feels strikingly similar to titles in the Ace Attorney series. In traditional Takumi fashion, and easily the strongest part of the game (with an effort placed on keeping this review as spoiler free as possible), the narrative of Ghost Trick is superb. The game sets the player in the shoes of Sissel, a newly dead amnesiac ghost who is tasked by a talking lamp (Yup, no joke) to help a young detective get to the bottom of a decade old mystery which in the process will reveal who you were, as well as who killed you and the reasons behind your death.
The core gameplay concept used by Ghost Trick is the ability to travel back to four minutes before an individual’s death in an effort to change their fate by manipulating objects in the environment to save their life. Action takes place on the touchscreen by allowing Sissel’s soul to travel between certain nearby inanimate objects located in the world, as well as allowing travel between different areas through telephones. Unlike the slower and deliberate pace of the Ace Attorney games, Ghost Trick adds timing based interactions to its puzzle solving with somewhat mixed results. Much like any other point and click adventure game, puzzles have a singular solution, with the artificial time constraint acting as nothing more then a continual annoyance that causes certain puzzles to be restarted numerous times in search of the correct sequence of object manipulation.
Besides the well-told and engaging story, which uses Shu Takumi’s signature character designs, the real reason to play Ghost Trick comes from the graphical style and character animations. Using what seems to be some kind or modified rotoscope animation, an unbelievably realistic feel accompanies the colorfully animated personalities of the game. Some of the characters personalities and mannerisms actually seem to be inspired by what the tech could do, especially where dancing is concerned. To really understand what the game looks like, curious parties should check out this trailer that shows off the style in motion (screenshots simply do not do the effect justice).
The sound design is well implemented and comes in a style that seems to echo the philosophy behind noir in the terms of a video game soundtrack. This fancy metaphor ultimately means that the music has a “can’t place it” kind of familiarity and inspires nostalgia for a product lacking a previous installment; although an argument could be rightly made for it being a natural evolution of the Ace Attorney series.
Ghost Trick adds a few neat (although certainly not original) ideas that are unfortunately also packaged with one poorly implemented one. Lacking the wow factor that the original Phoenix Wright represented, Ghost Trick is likely destined to be little more then a cult favorite.
GrE Grade: B
Popularity: unranked [?]
