Ghost Trick: Inhabit a Great Story With Interesting Mechanics
Upon first starting up Ghost Trick, the first thing that impresses is the graphics. Simple and understated models are the name of the game here, but the fluidity of the sprite animation (or is it polygonal? Too good to tell) is amazing, bringing the characters to life in ways that I haven't before seen on the DS. The characters appear fairly large on the screen, fitting since the wacky yet grounded cast is the main draw here.
So how do the gameplay mechanics lose to the writing in a game that's really only known for the former? While the tactic of using your ghost body to possess nearly any object in a given environment to try and connect a series of dots before time runs out is compelling and different enough to make the initial buy-in worth it, it really just seems like a means to get to the next cut scene and/or series of dialogue. This is not a bad thing, as the ghost tricking sequences are fast and inventive, and they function to funnel you further and further down the twist-ridden plot.
Puzzles that challenge the mind as well as the reflexes offer cause-and-effect gameplay that stands as the most innovative aspect of this game that will bring players to the table. Hopefully it will be the well-crafted mystery (which I hadn't even completed when I sent the game back) that sticks in the player's mind long after the playthrough is over.
