Title: Contact

Date: 11.09.2006

Genre: Role Playing/Action

Platform: Nintendo DS

Developer: Marvelous Interactive Inc

Publisher: Atlus Software

I have been watching “Contact” closely over the last year or so; since I first saw some of the concept art and heard about the general storyline. It promised to be a unique and surreal RPG adventure unlike anything else. But what would you expect from the developers of “Killer7”? After a few delays, the game has finally reached the US, and I am pleased to say that this game definitely delivers on it's promise of being a refreshingly new RPG experience.

I don't think Contact can really be summarized in a medium such as this. There is no way for me to fully describe to you all of the nuances of the surreal situation it places you in. But I can at least give you the general idea of what to expect.

In this game you do not play a character, you simply play as yourself. While there is a character onscreen that follows your guidance, he is his own person, a young boy named Terry who is just as surprised about this current predicament as you are. Terry is not at all aware of your presence, and indeed he is to be kept in the dark about your involvement as you progress through the game. Your contact in Contact (see what they did there?) is a Professor who sent out a distress signal which you managed to intercept with your Nintendo DS. Well, assuming “intercept” is taken to mean: “Went out and bought a video game.” He speaks directly to you as the player, and also to Terry. He will sometimes tell you things that Terry is not yet aware of, or should be kept oblivious of.

At any rate, he has asked you to help guide this young boy on his mission to collect all of the Power Cells required to get his damaged spaceship back in working order so he can escape his pursuers At the start of the game you don't know where the Professor has come from, why he is being chased, and where he and Terry have now ended up after the ship crashed while being attacked. All will be revealed as you make your way though the strange world of Contact.

The really unique thing about Contact is how it uses the dual screens of the Nintendo DS to present the game world to you. While the DS's dual screens have characteristically been used to give two different perspectives on the same situation, Contact actually uses the dual screens to show two completely separate worlds, each with their own individual artistic style.

The top screen is generally the home of the Professor, who stays inside of the spaceship with his dog Mochi, and oversees Terry's adventure while giving you various tips and bits of advice. The Professor's world looks like a throwback from the SNES classics, with simplistic graphics, bright colors, and the familiar pixelated look.

The bottom screen plays host to most of the action, as it is where you are able to view Terry and interact with him. Terry's world is much more realistic, utilizing hand-drawn graphics and a subdued palette.

While this surreal gameplay mechanic is certainly one of the core elements of the game, Contact is a great RPG in its own right.

It features a multitude of statistics that are built up in real time. If you run a lot, your speed will increase, if you attack a lot of enemies, your strength will go up. This replaces the more traditional “level” system seen in most RPGs, and furthers the concept that Terry is actually a real person, and not just part of a video game.

In addition, it also has a system of fame and karma which determine how people will react to you. It is not unlike what was seen in the XBox classic “Fable”; you can chose the path of good or evil as you see fit. Again, this feature makes Terry's world just that much more realistic.

There is also a system of “jobs” which are determined by the outfit you are wearing. A chef's outfit allows you to cook, a fishermen's outfit allows you to fish, etc. These all augment your abilities in various other ways as well, and prove to be very useful as the game unravels.

Just as unique as the game's premise is it's control scheme. As mentioned before, you are not actually playing as Terry, so controlling him is obviously not as direct as it would generally be. While you can lead him around by moving the stylus, you do not have direct control over battles. You simply put Terry into battle mode and direct him to the nearest target. This is a lot like the combat system seen in some MMOs, like RuneScape. While I can understand this decision, it really isn't all that fun watching Terry get pounded without so much as the option to dodge the attacks.

Another interesting control aspect is the “Decal” system. These are essentially spells which you cast by peeling a sticker off of a pack and then rubbing it over the target to stick it on. There is absolutely no reason that you need to perform this task with stickers rather than just selecting the action from a menu and pointing at the target, but it is still fairly clever and does fit with the offbeat mood of the game. I can however see it getting very repetitive.

Finally, this game features a rather unique form of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection support; by utilizing Friend Codes, you can become an NPC in your friend's game. It does this by trading your personality information (which is collected at the start of the game) with that of your friend. It is an interesting concept, but in the end it does not really do much; it would have been nice to have some form of actual multiplayer, perhaps in the form of co-operative play. Still, it is a nice inclusion at the very least. I can say that I am very pleased with Contact as a whole.

The dichotomy between Terry and the Professor's worlds is wonderfully refreshing and fits perfectly with the hardware. The adaptive world based on the player's actions is something that you don't usually see in a portable game, and is definitely a welcome addition. On the other hand, while the controls are certainly unique, they are also limited by the inherent concept of the game itself. WFC support could also have been a little better developed. There are also a myriad of smaller quirks which I did not mention as they are not really detrimental to playing the game, just a bit annoying. While Contact is certainly not a perfect game, it does deliver a fresh RPG on a system that is relatively lacking in the genre in the first place.

Game Score

B+

Reviewed By: TJ Nardi