Another Code: R - A Journey into Lost Memories

The Good
I admit it, I am the kind of person who enjoy this kind of "game". So, while I am going to be rude with the gameplay part, the overall review is going to be quite kind with the game, so... Don't expect anything else.

Let us begin with the core of this game : the scenario. It begins very very slowly, and stays with this pace for a good half of the game. You are playing Ashley Mizuki Robins, same heroin as the DS episode, but this time, she is 16 years old. She found her father in the first episode, but yet, he once again let her away, and goes work in a laboratory in Lake Juliet. But one day, he asks Ashley if she'd like to come by for a week-end, in order to camp outside of Lake Juliet harbor. She accepts, with difficulties, but soon understands her father had other plans : she already came to Lake Juliet, years ago, with her mother...

The scenario itself is nothing extraordinary. But several elements spice it up. First, the division of the game in chapters : a classic, but a mastered technique, giving the player exactly what he is waiting for, and each time, something like a cliff-hanger at the end of each chapter. Second, the characters themselves. All right, I may be the only one to find them interesting, but I think Cing managed to make them behave like ordinary people. And this is something lacking in most of video games. Each time, we have either eccentric characters or super-heroes. So, this natural note gives the game a sense of plausibility. But it may be boring for some people, so... But we will see that again in the BAD part !

Other good points are mostly technical. I mean, graphically, we are still on the Wii, but it is gorgeous. 3D is basic, but Cing use a cartoony-painting style, throwing away realism and it just look perfectly in harmony with the other elements of the game.

Sounds : I liked the musics in game. Very much. It is not something revolutionary or really original, but, once again, it perfectly fits with the game.

The Bad
And here we are. And the first thing to be slaughtered here is... the gameplay ! So,Another Code R looks everything like your average Adventure game. So, when I say Adventure game, immediately, Monkey Island & the rest of the mythic games of Point & Click. AC : R is far, far away from this standard. It plays like it, but each time, you get a Wiimote gimmick to do. While it is fun, the catch is that they are few of these problems to solve. Add to this the fact that the game is very very linear, and you get a game where the player is carried by the story, and not the other way.

Other bad points include the lack of voice-over, which would have been nice, but hey, it is not that necessary. And, then again, some people will clearly not appreciate the scenario & the pace of the game. It is clearly an subjective element.

The Bottom Line
So, is this a game I would recommend ?

To a casual gamer, clearly yes, and I think you can see why after reading my test. To an hardcore gamer whose sole point is to solve problems "à la Myst" ? Clearly not.

I think the note I am going to give is not in concordance with this review. For now, I believe I have a foot in each gamer's world, and this note is going to show how I enjoyed the game. Then again, the points I made should be enough to explain why you should not buy this game if you can't stand something designed for casual players.