Touch Detective

"I'm going to have to touch you again, Mr. Walrus. It's my job."

If you liked Phoenix Wright or Trace Memory, you'll probably enjoy Touch Detective, although maybe not *quite* as much.

Touch Detective is in the vein of classic point-and-click adventures, going back to PC classics such as Monkey Island, King's Quest VI, and Indiana Jones and the Secret of Atlantis. The mystery-solving aspects of Touch Detective could also be likened to more recent DS releases like the aforementioned Phoenix Wright and Trace Memory. There's no fast-paced action here. Your reflexes aren't important. The only thing that matters is your brain and your ability to solve basic puzzles.

You play Mackenzie, a young detective trying to make a name for herself with the help of her butler, Cromwell, and her two friends, Chloe and Penelope. Mackenzie's job is to solve cases around her small town to further her reputation as an aspiring detective. You will have to talk to people around town, gather evidence, and catch culprits. All of this is done is simply and straight-forwardly by "touching" with the stylus.

Control-wise, the game couldn't be simpler. The tutorial at the beginning will tell you everything you need to know to beat the game. When you want to inspect something, just touch it. If you want to talk to someone, touch them. If you want to use an item, touch the item then the object to which you would like to apply it. As Geico would say, it's so easy that even a caveman could do it. Stylus accuracy as far as letting the game know what you're trying to target is likewise very good. There was only one tiny part of the game during a Hide and Seek mini-mission that I was frustrated trying to click on an area.

One of the things that separates Touch Detective from other games in the same genre is its charm. The artwork is very cool and unique, and the dialogue has a good sense of humor about it. Even though many of the people you will come across look positively zombie-esque, this game is overall very light-hearted. Don't rush through the dialogue, or you might miss some of the subtle jokes.

In addition to the main cases, you have some other things to do if you want to get 100% completion. You have an Investigative Report and a Touch List that need completing. The Report can be completed by doing a "Bonus Episode" between cases, and solving lots of little requests, challenges, and quizzes. The Touch List is a list of 50 things that Mack must "touch" and make a record of for a school project. No, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but some of her reactions, particularly when touching people, are amusing to say the least.

All of this is very good, but the game does have its downsides. A lot of the puzzles could stand to be more challenging, which is fine if you don't care about challenge and just want to see the story unravel. It might be a little annoying however for a veteran puzzle-solver. My main gripe, however, is that the game is much too short. This game can be wrapped up from start to finish in maybe 6 hours if you don't get too stuck, give or take. So it's about the same length as Trace Memory. Because of this, I would probably call the game more of a rental than a buy. You can get everything the game has to offer in a couple days, and at the end, I was left wanting a little more. I would not mind a sequel, but I hope the next installment brings a bigger adventure to the table.

All in all, I would still say Touch Detective is very much worth anyone's attention, particularly if they are a fan of puzzle-solving games, and otherwise quirky, charming games. It's very polished and well-done, from the artwork to the controls to the story, but it's short.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/03/06