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Developer: Big Fish Games
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Sept. 8, 2008
System: Nintendo DS
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site
0:00 I feel like Nintendo has been sending me press releases about this game for years now. I'm expecting something along the lines of
Professor Layton, maybe with some
Phoenix Wright mixed in.
0:01 "To seek and solve: You be the detective," reads the intro screen. Some mysterious music plays amidst a title screen crowded with junk.
0:02 I like the old-style typewriter used for name entry. Rookie or Detective difficulties: The latter is timed and has fewer hints. I'm feeling cocky ... let's go for Detective!
0:03 "Prelude: It's good to be Phil T. Rich." OH, THE PUNS! One year ago ... "Welcome, Detective. I'm Phil T. Rich. Thank you for helping me with this trifling matter." He looks like Richie Rich all grown up. Complete with monocle!
0:04 Phil lost some priceless items that he needs to get back to the Louvre. Good lord! You'd think the Louvre would be a little more discriminating!
0:05 So I can scroll around a very detailed, very cluttered scene with the d-pad. I'm looking amidst the clutter for a detective badge. Why the Louvre needs that, I'm not sure. I hope the whole game isn't just this hunt and find stuff...
0:06 The badge is filthy. I need to clean it with the stylus and some microphone blowing. Y'know, I have stuff to clean in my apartment in real life...
0:07 I zoom in on a desk to find a letter opener, then use a hint to immediately find a crown. Ho hum. Phil gives me the badge as payment. I guess the Louvre won't miss it...
0:08 "Chapter 1: Misplaced Millionaire." A shadowy figure ambushes Phil. "The game is over, Phil." Already? Thank god. Oh, he didn't mean the game I'm playing. Periodicals appear on the desk: "Extreme Yachting, Extreme Finance, Extreme Collecting." Then a newspaper with the headline "Extremely Missing!" Man ... that newspaper needs a new editor.
0:09 My contract: "The Master Detective shall find objects hidden in scenes around Tiger Point and feed them to the Crime Computer. The Crime Computer shall then analyze the clues and assist in locating the millionaire." Wait, so I don't even get to try to deduce anything from the clues. Wow ... this is going to be lame...
0:10 "We should start by establishing who knew Phil. They might know what happened to him." No sh** Sherlock. I mean, er, thanks, Crime Computer.
0:11 So I'm looking for Phil's dossier, but I don't really know what it looks like. Luckily I can just tap around randomly until I find it. Sigh...
0:12 On the desk is a picture of a miner named "Cole Minor." ARGH! THE PUNS!
0:13 Off to the mine to investigate Mr. Minor. I have 16 minutes and five hints to find 10 specific objects. Don't ask me how I know what I'm looking for, or why I'm searching for stuff like soccer balls ... just go with it.
0:15 In the timed mine, too many false clicks causes a loud "gong" sound and a loss of time. That's a nice touch.