Another Code: Two Memories (Nintendo DS) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

Another Code is one of many DS titles that a group of us journalists were given the opportunity to try out recently, thanks to Nintendo's now annual post E3 show which generally takes place just a few weeks after the LA bash. What drew most to Another Code is the fact that many of its gameplay features could only be achieved on this unique format, meaning that developers are thankfully starting to get to grips with the system?s strengths. This is good news indeed as even in the DS's short life span there've been some questionable decisions made at the design stage, which unfortunately have made it through to the final product. What it also means is that handheld fans who've been sending us repeated requests regarding Lucasart's 'point and click' classics might be seeing the likes of Sam and Max on the DS after all. It's certainly possible. The golden age of adventures aside though this is a completely original title so, what's it like?

Gameplay

It's difficult to give an adventure a full review without revealing key game points so please forgive me if some of the details seem a little abstract. You'll thank me later when you're actually playing the game. Because of this we'll deal with the game mechanics and just say that the story involves a girl?s quest to re-unite with her father. Any more than that and I'll be giving away some wonderful surprises and plot twists, which will undoubtedly spoil your enjoyment of the game. If you haven't encountered a game like this before the majority of your time is going to be consumed by exploration and investigation. The former is the most important and searching every inch of the various rooms or gardens will uncover objects. Some of these may turn out to be useless but others will be essential to your success. You just won't realize it at the time. The investigation is all about talking to people, asking them the right questions and discovering what they actually mean by their occasionally obtuse responses.

With you on your journey is your handy DAS (a kind of PDA) and it's this that aids you in your other pursuit: experimentation. Pick up everything, turn it upside down, see what it's made of, does it work or fit with any other object? The possibilities are truly endless but to be fair there's little here that will have you really stumped and the majority of puzzles are very logical. One very frustrating part of the game is the seemingly endless back tracking and on more than one occasion you'll be forced to travel back to a room you visited hours ago in order to retrieve an item. You?re probably thinking right now that you'd just pick everything up and unlike some other adventures you can collect everything you seen. The problem here is that some items only become 'active' when they are relevant so you can only pick them up when you've encountered the other part of the puzzle.

Controls

While you can choose to control a few aspects of the game by traditional means, you can actually play the whole thing via the stylus and touch screen so don't waste your time here and use the DS for what it was designed for. It does take a little getting used to but once mastered, you'll never look back.

Graphics

It's always a little ambitious trying to mix a handful of visual styles and while you might think the outcome would be cluttered, the graphics here actually work very well together. For the most part your DS is split into two areas, with the bottom screen a 3D representation of your world as you travel around it in real time. This works very well and the environments feature some incredible design work. This bottom screen is also used for your interaction so you'll also be treated to some wonderful representations of your new world, which you can explore and interact with. The top is the story screen, which mixes pencil sketches, and water colors in a dynamic fashion in order to evoke as much emotion as possible from the gamer.

Sound

In isolation the audio is somewhat unspectacular but there are areas of the game where both music and sound effects are used effectively to create a required atmosphere. When this is successful there really is nothing like it and the whole game begins to fell like a fully-fledged Film Noir rather than a series of static screens. Overall though there's little to complain about and the DS's sound chip does a fine job even with the missed opportunities.

Dual screen

Another Code is one of many DS titles, which offers dual controls: the touch screen and the more traditional D-Pad. Where it succeeds though is by making the dual screen so intuitive that your stylus will become an essential item and you're likely to use it for everything. Even guiding your characters around the game. It goes without saying that it's much easier to interact with your DAS in this fashion too. After all this is how things work in the 'real' world. What Another Code also does which I don't think I've ever encountered before is to encourage you to use your handheld console in new and original ways and it's only by this thinking 'outside of the box' you'll be able to solve some of the latter puzzles. Again, I don't want to spoil anything but be prepared to look at your DS in an entirely different way.

Final comments

Another Code is well-designed, innovative and incredible fun and just a little on the short side. It would be even shorter still when you consider just how much back tracking you'll have to do but there's no doubting the first play through is thoroughly satisfying. Possibly a little too easy for the average adventure head but even these will still no doubt applaud the ingenious design. In short Another Code is the game a great deal of DS owners have been waiting for. A title which could really only appear on the system whilst highlighting just why it was such a great idea in the first place. For gamers left wanting more there's also this summer?s Lost in Blue and if this is as successful as initial numbers suggest there's no doubt a sequel in the works. For now this is the only title occupying a gaming genre that is likely to grow significantly over the years for the DS and outside of the experimental Feel The Magic it's the only title demonstrating why the DS is so special.

Pro: Utilizes The DS's Strengths
Con: Far Too Short
Final score: 7.1

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