"Dementium: The Ward - a first-person shooter that shoots above its station"

Compromise, an ever-present de facto in videogame development that can be construed as a bane or benefit depending on its handling. In the case of Dementium: The Ward for the Nintendo DS the compromise seems to be the former, as the small studio known as Renegade Kid tries to realise an ambition that escapes their grasp.

The ambition in question deserves applaud in one sense. Thrust straight into a hospital of horror, the first-person shooter sets its high mark early with its blood-splattered scenario convincingly replicated thanks to the detailed and claustrophobic engine. The vista is opened up further once a flashlight is in hand, showcasing a believable lighting system that encourages exploration even within the darkest depths. The controls too are as impressive with a responsive free-look, intuitive walk / run system and easily accessible tools via the touch-screen, the only oversights being the not-so-intuitive instant weapon-switch input and the separation of the map and notepad, both of which could have been better served by double-tapping the screen and combining respectively. Regardless, the groundwork of Dementium is without doubt the most impressive aspect of it, providing a great starting point for a genre so heavily dependant on atmosphere.

With so much attention spread upon the groundwork one would expect equal spreading upon the design and this expectation is met satisfyingly enough with the first few (of sixteen brief) chapters. Thereafter though the problems become apparent as the realisation of little else new or creative being offered sets in.

Indeed it is a bitterly disappointing experience to wade through so much squandered potential, and so quickly at that… Whether it be the recycling of environmental assets to the point of repetition, the slight hope raised when a new setting is introduced only to be severely underdeveloped, the few generic-looking ghouls / bosses presented as new entries via palette swaps, the lack of challenge with simplistic AI, plentiful health / ammo supplies and a misguided fusion of two save systems, the shoe-string plot that gives little incentive to push on, or the pointlessness to the number of weapons and their unsatisfying sound design. Dementium is given every opportunity to shine after its well-founded beginning yet the responses barring much of the suitably-composed music fall far of the mark, exemplifying a design that had much to say but little conviction to see it through.

So after the pressing question of whether the game will pick itself up is disappointingly answered it is replaced by another, the what could have been if Renegade Kid was allowed to develop the game to its foreseeable potential. Though a great testament to the studios technological muscle, Dementium: The Ward fails in its design, the results leaving you rarely impressed and hardly challenged.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 11/06/07, Updated 11/07/07

Game Release: Dementium: The Ward (US, 10/26/07)