Every day I spend approximately an hour on trains commuting back and forth between work and home.  Certainly that’s not a lot of time, unless you’re trying very hard to not stare at other passengers for 30 swaying minutes.  Reading is a popular past-time on these trains. So is portable gaming. I admit I’ve been jealous of another female passenger who had an import light gray DS instead of the standard gleaming white or black, just because it was so… imported, man. That’s cred.

I decided it would be fun to take my DS along with me, as per usual, and put the time to good use by playing through DS games in these commute-sized chunks and seeing how they hold up.  There are plenty of games out there that are wonderful but require significant time commitments per session.  As an example, see pretty much every MMO in the world, and most western RPGs a la Mass Effect.  Portable games really should follow different rules since people playing in these situations are usually like me. We have a bit of time, we’d like to squeeze some gaming in, but we have to close the top when our stop comes up. So it would be great to know which titles make it easy for commuters to play, right?

Sweet! Let’s do a commuter review.  First up--Professor Layton and the Curious Village. I’ve seen this game all over since it came out and I’ve heard nothing but good about it.  I’ve wanted to play it and I know the perfect project for it.

Commuter review!

The game begins with a few puzzles that scale towards the easy side but successfully introduce you to the mental flexibility needed to make headway in this game.  Everyone you meet specializes in tormenting your brain in a different way, and puzzles can take a few minutes or an hour to complete. Frankly, it was sometimes a relief to see my stop coming because I could snap the DS shut and feel my brain ease off its threat to shut down all vital systems.

Hint coins, currency that can be spent to unlock a bit of help on solving puzzles, are my favorite and most-relied-upon feature in the game. They’re found by tapping on objects on the screen in which they’re cleverly hiding. These hiding places can range from a window shutter to a vase to a manhole cover.  They’re almost a little guessing game in themselves.

In addition to the game’s 120 puzzles, which are distributed throughout a sleuth plot that would make Sherlock Holmes proud, there are also bonus puzzles that can only be unlocked by completing extra tasks like assembling paintings or gizmos.  The art style is unique and cute without being sugary. the music is a little bit annoying sometimes. The writing is clear, if sometimes expectedly cryptic.

It’s a good game to pick up and play and put down again when needed, because the concept is simple enough that you don’t lose track of where you’re at and even if you do forget the game helpfully supplies you with your next objective. And, of course, sometimes it’s a relief so your brain can digest a puzzle while you’re not trying to glare an answer out of the DS.

I’m afraid I didn’t manage to play the entire game on the train. In spite of the sadism of some puzzles the game is hopelessly addictive! I found myself playing the game on my couch, in bed, and anywhere else where I had upwards of 2 minutes to kill.  I’m really grateful to the game for making my train rides, and other spare moments, speed by. I can’t believe how quickly the stops tick off while I’m wrestling with my brain for an answer.

If you have a DS I highly recommend this game. Whether you’re a commuter like me or you have large amounts of time to kill, this game will help you, frustrate you, addict you, and delight you.  I can hardly wait for a sequel.

Oh man! I would so LOVE a series of puzzle games based on the Lemony Snickett’s Series of Unfortunate Events books. Frankly, this art style would even be perfect for it. Someone draw up a licensing agreement!

- jinx

my mother knew the words to a lot of different songs