Trace Memory (2005)

Released in 2005 and developed by the defunct company Cing, Another Code: Two Memories is a DS title that focuses more on the story and gimmicks than the gameplay.

But that doesn't mean it's bad, and it's quite the opposite. Like Ghost Trick and Hotel Dusk (developed by the same company), you have to complete puzzles to advance the story, and while they aren't anything that hard or original (some of them are just blowing on the microphone), they take full advantage of the DS abilities, mainly the touch screen, which is the way of interacting with everything.

This is also a really short title, and you can complete it in under ten hours, so don't expect a long story full of twists and turns, but you feel like it ends just when it needs to end, so the length is perfect for the experience.

The only complaint I have is that some puzzles are kind of obtuse, like the one where you have to move your DS until the upper screen reflects the light in the lower screen or the one where you have to spin a zoetrope until the protagonist can see the moving image, where I was stuck because I wasn't spinning it fast enough, so I had to see the damn bird for 10 minutes until I could continue the story.

Also, the story is quite simple, you know how it will end halfway through, and while the themes are interesting and some moments are shockingly mature compared to the rest of the game, I doubt it will change your life or that you will remember it after a while.

In conclusion, Another Code: Two Memories (or Trace Memory, whatever you prefer) is a simple game that you can complete in two days or less, but the story and puzzles are so charming and engaging that you won't regret spending your time playing it.

Developed by the same guys (CING) who did Hotel Dusk: Room 215 and published by Nintendo, we have 13-year-old Ashley going off to a mysterious island to solve the mystery of her father. I enjoyed this game quite a bit, and very disappointed to learn that its sequel only exists on the Wii and never released in North America. It is a very short game, a single run through should be around 5-6 hours.

Story: There are two stories - the first one is Ashley's tale involving her parents and the mysterious Trace machine; the second one involves a ghost named "D," who has amnesia and cannot move on to the afterlife. Depending on your decisions, what you find on the island, and the puzzles you solve will slightly alter the ending you receive. More plainly, you will solve Ashley's story as part of the main game, but D's story requires more investigating on your part - you will either get the bad or good ending for D.

Technically, this game is designed for you to play twice. The first round, I played as I would normally - fumbling around - and I got the bad ending with D. However, during the second play with the guide of a walkthrough, different/more information came up on the DTS cards as part of the story and there is one puzzle difference. I did get the good ending with D, but I also got a fuller story because of the different dialogue presented during the second round.

Gameplay: It is fairly straight-forward. You will move Ashley around on the bottom screen with an overhead view, investigate items as the magnifying glass icon lights up, take photos with your DTS, and pick up items/DTS cards. The most challenging part (dealing with D's story) is knowing when to click on specific parts or clicking more than once in order to prompt a response from D. If you are up for playing this game twice, I would just freely play as you would for the first time, then use a guide a second time.

Characters: Like Hotel, the characters are not really remarkable in any particular way, but the friendship between Ashley and D might give you some feels during the end. As most games that involves teenagers as your protagonists, the adults in this game are always causing problems. Ashley is surprisingly cool about the situation most of the time, despite her age and the general wackiness of the bullshit she is going through. D is her guide, helps her calm down when she is upset, and gently reminds her of what is going on. Everyone else is just there to cause problems.

Overall, it is a fun, short game. The story was very good and the puzzles were pretty fun, although a few were a bit frustrating. The sequel, Another Code: R - A Journey into Lost Memories, has never been released outside of Japan and Europe unfortunately, so it would be a little tougher to get your hands on it if you live in America. Furthermore, you will have to mod your Wii since it is region-locked.