Exit DS
Score: 88% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: Square Enix Developer: Taito Media: Cartridge/1 Players: 1 Genre: Puzzle/ Strategy/ Action
Graphics & Sound: Some games just have a distinctive look, and this is one of them. Mostly the visuals draw on a silhouette art style, but there are some textures and colors that break the look a bit. Big differences in the look of each stage help keep tedium from setting in, as you migrate from burning to freezing to water-logged environments. There are some simple sequences that open each stage, done in a static, cartoon style. The lead character, Mr. Esc, has lots of neat animations and moves around with lots of panache. His so-called Companions are an interesting bunch, drawn in the same silhouette style, but with lots of variation in size and style. You can browse the Companions rescued in each level and read little blurbs about their backgrounds as you view a little snapshot of them. All this paints a neat picture of Exit DS as a game that stands out from the crowd with its graphics. In the same way you'll appreciate the sound in the game, through familiar cues that relate to obstacles and tools you'll use to solve each level. There is a little too much repetition for my taste in the way Companions cry for help in a level. At first, it is cute and then you'll start nudging the volume down. Mr. Esc also does a bit too much of the "anyone there?", commenting if you neglect him for a time, which is a drag. The best thing would be to have sound design that parallels the graphics, stripped down to essentials and extremely functional. Instead it feels like the developers went a bit overboard on trying to bring sound design to center stage.
Gameplay: Puzzle games too often fall into boxes that we've seen a million times before. Dropping blocks, popping bubbles, matching colors, matching shapes, and on and on... Even games that made a fairly good splash, such as Puzzle Quest, were mostly variations on a theme and still derivative. The big deal with Puzzle Quest seemed to be that it was a mash-up, combining RPG and Puzzle dynamics. So, we will go out on a limb and say that Exit DS has potential to be a sleeper hit, thanks to its unique combination of puzzle dynamics and platforming/action gameplay. Only time will tell, but there's no doubt that Exit DS will gain a cluster of devotees. The premise of the game is pretty simple. You play as Mr. Esc, a man that helps people escape from bad situations and emergencies. He's like an escape artist, but then there's the whole Florence Nightingale thing. For this guy, escaping isn't enough. He's gotta get everyone out along with him, even dogs! There are a whole set of rules attached to how these people you rescue, the Companions, can move around each level. Between the rules and the level design, Exit DS constructs some elaborate set pieces that will have even the most skilled players scratching their heads from time to time. It's one thing to envision a few pieces of each level, but to really master the game, you'll need to complete a level without faults and before the clock runs out. The nearest equivalent that comes to mind is the Wii game, Zack and Wiki; if you played that one and enjoyed it, you're gonna love Exit DS. This would have been a perfect title for multiplayer collaboration, since Companions often have very important jobs and are integral to solving a level. The compromise we have is an online leaderboard, showing completion times for each of the Exit DS levels. This is a nice touch and keeps you on your toes as everyone with the game strives to compete for the best time. The other piece that would have made a big difference in the replay value of Exit DS is if some type of level editor was included. The building blocks of each level are simple enough that it would not have been difficult to build this in... maybe the next time around. By the same token, it's not like you're going to run out of levels anytime soon, considering there are well over 100 to solve. Before you get through the first 20, you'll have been stumped at least once.
Difficulty: Being stumped and being frustrated are obviously two different things. The greatest thing about the way in which Exit DS is built is that the answer is always right there in front of you. Solving a level doesn't take any twitch reflexes, doesn't require complicated button combos, and won't require any special knowledge. How then do these levels manage to be so complex? It's all about sequencing... As new Companions are introduced and you move through new environments, you'll find yourself stuck and realize that you missed an opportunity at some point. Objects you can manipulate as Mr. Esc or as one of the Companions (you control all the characters in each level, not just Mr. Esc) are scattered through a level and it falls on you to determine how you can use them to accomplish the goal. The goal is always the same and pretty simple: help everyone reach the exit. Just try doing this when you have three Companions to rescue, each with specific movement constraints and special abilities that can help you solve a puzzle. You'll reach a point where you know just by looking at an obstacle that you'll need the help of a particular Companion, because Exit DS is not so open-ended as to allow multiple solutions. What you will usually find is that a specific combination of characters in a specific sequence is required to solve a given level. Trial and error definitely factors in, which would be frustrating if levels were long. Since the levels are positively bite-sized, you'll rarely mind going back to replay one. If you're going to rank yourself against those online leaderboards, you're going to have to do plenty of replaying, anyway.
Game Mechanics: There are two styles of control for Exit DS, which is a nice offering to gamers that find either mode awkward. For my money, after using the touch-screen controls, I can't imagine why you'd use anything else. The design of the game really suits the touch controls and everything becomes easier when controlling in this way. Controlling without the stylus often requires combination button presses to perform actions that only require a tap on the lower screen in touch mode. It is easier to send Mr. Esc hurtling to his doom using the button controls, than using the stylus, so perhaps the alternate controls are for people that want more of an action feel in their game? The action and the button controls aren't all that smooth anyway, making Exit DS feel more like a bad Platformer than a good Action/Puzzle game. Nobody should spend any time learning the buttons when touch-screen control is tight and produces a much more consistent game experience. The lack of any editor is a downer, but a wish-list item at the same time. Nothing that actually is here came up short. Exit DS plays great and has some very creative puzzles that will work your frontal lobe to no end. Puzzle fans will be thrilled to get so much meat on the bone in a game that doesn't appear on the surface to be all that exciting. The simple graphics help clear the decks for players to visualize Mr. Esc and the Companions as if they were pieces on a game board. The analogy isn't a bad one, but instead of something simple like checkers, we have chess. Among a short list of highly creative puzzle games such as Patapon and Zack and Wiki, we must now add Exit DS. See you on the leaderboards!
-Fridtjof, GameVortex Communications AKA Matt Paddock
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