4cr Review – Hotel Dusk

Hotel Dusk, the latest creation from Cing (Trace Memory), is a fairly interesting game. Former detective turned salesman, Kyle Hyde, has arrived at the mysterious Hotel Dusk. When told that his room can grant wishes, Kyle knew that he would be in for an unforgettable night. That would prove to be the understatement of the year.

Calling Hotel Dusk an interesting game would also be a major understatement.

A well-written mature storyline is something to applaud in a videogame. It’s just something that you don’t see very often. When I say mature, I don’t mean that there are hookers and people getting shot in the head. That isn’t mature. I mean that Hotel Dusk has a smart, multifaceted plot that doesn’t dumb itself down for a wider audience. Nintendo has advertised this as an “interactive mystery novel,” and it really has fulfilled that promise. The layers of the plot unfold in a beautifully structured narrative that will continually leave you gasping. I’ve heard a few other people complaining about the pacing. I don’t understand that. In my opinion, the story was paced perfectly. Details trickled forth at just the right times to emotionally punch you in the gut. Oh, and it will punch you in the gut. A couple of the characters’ back stories are downright powerful. You will react to each person’s story. You might feel pity, or shock, or anger, but you will feel something. That is one thing that you really can’t say about many games.

Hotel Dusk is an outright homage to the popular film noir stories of the forties and fifties. There are clear traces of D.O.A., Out of the Past, Key Largo, and a few other classics of the genre. If you aren’t familiar with the genre, you might have seen recent movies like Sin City or Brick that also pay homage to film noir. Hotel Dusk wears its roots on its sleeve. The dialogue is just as stylized as you would expect, the ladies are “dames” and the men are “gents.” Also, as you might expect from film noir, the plot is complicated without being overwhelmingly convoluted.

The film noir homage comes out fully in the presentation. Hotel Dusk’s characters are beautifully illustrated in black and white over 3D colored backgrounds. All in all, Hotel Dusk is one of the most beautiful games on the DS. The high-res artwork is absolutely breathtaking. You may have seen screenshots, but they do nothing to convey just how great this game looks in motion. As I mentioned in my initial preview, Hotel Dusk really does show that the Phoenix Wright games are just GBA ports. While the artwork in Phoenix Wright looks good, it is still static. The artwork in Hotel Dusk moves and brings the plot to life. As good as the writing is, it would still fall flat if it weren’t for the artwork. The characters lividly animate their anecdotes and tales. The facial expressions really did it for me. They will smile sadly or scowl at you as you peel away their armor. The DS is not a powerful device. Hotel Dusk would not have worked if everything were 3D. It just would not have been as convincing. In fact, the 3D in Hotel Dusk is fairly weak, especially in comparison with the 2D animation.

Hotel Dusk is the second DS title to make you hold the DS sideways in order to play. I have to applaud whoever decided to make this decision. Hotel Dusk is very much an interactive novel, so it makes sense to hold it like one. In general, Hotel Dusk made all of the right design choices. Holding the DS sideways does actually give more space for the artwork to shine. The DS’s capabilities are really put to full use here. Control is done entirely on the touch screen; you just slide the stylus over a 2D map of the room to navigate. A series of icons give you access to more actions. Anyone who has played an adventure title before will be right at home here. One nitpick that I do have is that it is hard to navigate on the touch screen when your actual first-person view is on the other screen. I eventually gave up and mostly paid attention to the touch screen. One of the coolest features of the game is the notebook. You can write your own notes in an in-game notepad. I’ll admit that I only used it for a few things, but it was nice to have. Designers of adventure games take note; I want to see this feature in every adventure game that I play. It was a brilliant idea. I’m amazed that it hasn’t been done on the DS before.

Hotel Dusk is an adventure game, so you can expect a lot of puzzle solving. If you enjoy a good brain teaser, you’ll be in heaven. The majority of the puzzles in Hotel Dusk are clever, and a few really do a good job of taking advantage of the DS hardware. A few of the puzzles are a bit abstract, and you will spend some time wondering what the hell to do next, but it’s all part of the experience. If you have a little bit of patience, Hotel Dusk will reward your efforts. That said, the game is not all that hard. Just remember to save often; taking the wrong actions will get you kicked out of the hotel. There is actually a fair amount of replay value. In addition to there being twelve slightly different endings, the game has several branching paths depending on your actions. The length is just right, between fifteen to twenty hours depending on just how much time you spend exploring and talking to people.

Hotel Dusk is one of the best titles on the DS; there is no doubt about that. This is also a title that Nintendo really needs to market for all that it is worth. This is the game that they should recommend alongside Brain Age for their new “blue ocean” audience. It is a game that can appeal to the hardcore and casual gamers all at once. Many parents have grown up loving mystery novels or detective flicks. This is the perfect game for them. Fans of the adventure genre will find something to like here. This is one of the best adventure titles since the golden age of Sierra and LucasArts. I can’t wait to see what Cing will come up with next.

Score: 10/10

Hotel Dusk Official Site
Hotel Dusk – First Impressions