Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors

2010 saw the release of a bit of a marmite game called Heavy Rain. Some people, like me, loved the game but even the most blind fanboy couldn’t argue that it didn’t feel like a game, a common criticism from the hate camp. It was true, it wasn’t much of a game more of a choose you own adventure movie. In my eyes this wasn’t a bad thing, I loved the whole experience and remains my only Platinum (I’m more of a 360 gamer).

When I think about it though most point and click games fall into this category too. What I mean they are games that behave more like other things and as a game they leave much to be desired, but as an experience they are amazing. Take for example the Phoenix Wright games, or more recently Ghost Trick.

The Import only (well if your live outside of Japan and North America) Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (or 999 as it will be referred to as from now on) is another one of these games. There is a lot of text, to the level were some of the descriptive text is a little over the top. At times, particularly early on it feels more like a book than a game.

If you can get over this fact 999 will offer you a fantastic experience to rival any game. If not I strongly suggest you try anyway. After 6 playthroughs I am hooked on the story, trying to second guess where it is going and constantly being surprised.

You play as Junpei who find himself on a sinking ship. You meet up with 8 other people who, all except one, are complete strangers. Each has a bracelet and due to mistrust use a codename to refer to themselves. Someone who announces themselves as Zero states you have 9 hours to escape the ship. To do so you must find a Door with a 9 painted on it.

So you have Nine hours to get Nine People through Nine Doors, hence the name. Everyone has a bomb inside them that will go off if they go through a door incorrectly.

999 as a game is a bit of a mixture between Phoenix Wright and Another Code. Each door leads to two rooms where you have to seek a way through each of them by solving puzzles. Say the key is locked in a safe, to get the code to open the safe you have to translate a piece of paper, the piece of paper is stuck in a piece of frozen meat but you’re in a kitchen, etc.

You investigate a room much like a crime scene in Phoenix Wright, picking up useful objects, examining them and solving puzzles. You also come across Another Code style puzzles like entering a code in a briefcase or playing keys on a piano in the right order.

While you may not get the ability to interrogate the other mysterious members of your party, and while the puzzles are not nearly as clever as Another code, it still all works really well to create a tense atmospheric game.

The story is gripping; the characters all superb and the experience will leave you hooked for a long time. As I type this I have been through the game six times and got 4 different endings. Two more endings are implied and I need little encouragement to seek them out.

Visually it is excellent and it uses its sound and soundtrack to create a tense and nervy atmosphere, all helping towards an addictive experience you will go back to again and again until all 6 endings are found. Even when you find out who the killer is, or who certain characters are more questions arise.

If you can get over the large amount of Text and the fact the Gameplay part has been done better in other games (but is still very good), 999’s plot, setting and characters will leave you hooked to the point where you are taking notes and trying to find the answers even when you are not playing.

A fine addition to any gamers collection and one worth importing (it’s on the DS so is region free).

8/10