Or should I say Dementium? I really didn't need to increase my DS backlog any further right now as I'm still working on:

A) Phoenix Wright: Trials & Tribulations
B) Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
C) New York Times Crosswords (so sue me, I'm a word puzzle geek too)
D) Castlevania: Dracula X (PSP)
E) Ar tonelico: Melody of Elemia, Misha's path (PS2)

Not to mention a whole host of other PS2, GC and Xbox games I picked up while Sashanan & another friend of mine were visiting this past August.

But I couldn't resist. As part of "Operation Pimp MartinG's DS", in which I find DS games to increase Mart's backlog, I went down to the mall tonight to pick up two surprises. I also ended up with Dementium: The Ward for myself and SimCity DS for my husband, who's currently on a SimCity kick.

I wasn't sure what to expect from Dementium, and I must admit I was dreading it a bit because I royally suck at FPS games. (There, I said it.) The only one I even care about trying to get good at is Metroid Prime, and I really suck at that too. However, I also LOVE survival horror games, and I figured this one might become rare quick.

I saw two reviews - one here on HG, giving it a 6, and one somewhere else giving it an 8.2. After reading through the one on here and seeing that the main complaint was repetitive monsters, I decided it was worth a shot anyway. I mean, a lot of people hated Kuon and I loved it for atmosphere alone.

I'm not very far; I went through an extremely short chapter 1 and just started chapter 2. So here are a few first impressions:

1) Graphics are fantastic. Given the limitations of the DS hardware I'm surprised at how crisp and detailed the graphics are. They are smooth, too, with none of the jerkiness I'd expect. And the flickering flashlight is damn creepy.

2) Sound is.. well, everything you can and should expect from a survival horror game. The background noises during the opening sequence made my skin crawl, and I was sitting in a well-lit room and I did NOT, as many have suggested, have headphones on.

3) Combat is smoother than I expected though it does suffer from the typical SH/FPS genre annoyances in at least one respect - stuff attacks you from behind and it's hard sometimes to turn around fast enough to figure out where it's hitting you from. Using a nightstick to bash something that looks like it's a cross between traditional "demon" art and one of the stranger creatures out of the Shadow Hearts series is much more satisfying than I expected. But dammit, bring on the guns!

All in all, I think I'm going to enjoy this. I am going to shelve it for the time being so I can get back to PW, but I have a warm glow, knowing that those beasts will be there whenever I wish to smack them around again.

But I'll tell you one thing.

I won't be playing this after my husband goes to work tonight. I need to SLEEP, dammit, not scare the crap out of myself when the cats knock something over..

Edited to add: You know, that last line makes me sound like a wuss. But honestly? Very little scares me, but ****ed up noises? Yeah. That's my undoing. And being home alone at midnight, with two inquisitive kitties, after a round of a game that has a high creepy-noise factor? Not conductive to sleep. And sleep is necessary for work. Unless you're one of my 50 ex-co-workers, then carry on. :)

----

Preliminary score, based on first impressions only: 8/10. We'll see if that sticks.

Most recent blog posts from Danyal Vierheller...
Back, I think. Bad form, Capcom, bad form.

Feedback
	MartinG - November 01, 2007 (01:36 AM) "Operation Pimp My DS" could be made into a full-fledged reality show. I'm certainly satisfied with the outcome :D (as well as fidgeting and squirming in anticipation) I'm glad you're liking Dementium, as well as all the other lawyer and schoolgirl games you're playing at the moment. I'll make sure to read through your FAQ when I have a moment.