Good Game (Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (DS))

Member Name: Almost_Blue

Product:	Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (DS)
Date:	27/07/09 (14 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: stylish graphics, nice story

Disadvantages: too much text

Hotel Dusk: Room 215 is a fun little adventure, with stylish graphics, great music and interesting gameplay.

The year is 1979 and you play as Kyle Hyde a former NYPD detective who now works as a salesman. He decides to go to the last known whereabouts of a former partner (Bradley) he worked with while at the NYPD. Kyle has been searching for him ever since he shot him down 3 years back; this was after he found out that Bradley was in cahoots with a shady organisation known simply as Nile. Bradley was last seen in Hotel Dusk which is where the game takes place. Once you've arrived, you have the opportunity to investigate and find clues in regards to the whereabouts of Bradley as well as mingling with the different guests who all have their own problems and are dying for someone (you unfortunately) to sort them out.

When playing the game, the DS is supposed to be held like a book. This is a nice touch since the game is very heavy on dialogue and you will find yourself tapping away on the screen as you scroll and scroll large amounts of text. Book lovers will definitely find this game enjoyable but those that want to delve into some action will most likely find this game boring and dull.

The gameplay is very unique. You are able to use the stylus to navigate Hyde around the Hotel and this makes for a very easy and comfortable way of playing. My arms did get tired at times, but that wasn't really a problem since I could simply switch to using the d-pad. The stylus can be used for everything, including writing text in Hyde's diary which is something that can really come in handy.

Puzzles are straightforward and rather easy. I didn't really feel that they were challenging and a lot of it is simply down to common sense.

The music in the game fits the era perfectly. As you walk down the corridors of the hotel, the music really adds to the atmosphere and tone of the game. In certain parts of the game you can select the kind of music you want to listen to, some can be cheery jazzy tunes while others a little mellow and downbeat.

Hotel Dusk is a pretty decent game. I definitely had fun with it, although at times I did get agitated with the large amounts of text. Those that love adventure and puzzle games should give this a shot.

Summary: a reasonable puzzle game