Trauma Center : Under the Knife

Platform: Nintendo DS
Publisher: Atlus
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Retail

I know what you're thinking: "Not another surgery game! When will game designers start making games about something different, like space marines or football?" Until the glorious day comes that our store shelves are overflowing with war simulations and first-person rehashes of Aliens, we're just going to have to make do with been-there-done-that games like Trauma Center: Under the Knife.

In all seriousness, the promise of innovative (or at least more interesting) games on the Nintendo DS is finally starting to bear out. Trauma Center: Under the Knife makes use of the stylus and touch screen by allowing you to make incisions, sew stitches and inject medicines by hand. The experience, especially when using the forceps and scalpel, is a very tactile one.

Surgery is a harrowing experience in the game. The patient is forever on the edge of some kind catastrophe and unexpected complications almost seem always pop up. The difference between sucess and failure depends not only on remembering and completing the many steps for your procedure, but also maintaining the patient's vitals with medication. It's a juggling act that tests the players dexterity, memory and nerves.

The game sports an anime-styled look and traces the story of an irresponsable young doctor who may just have the mystical gift of "The Healing Touch." Okay. So the story might not be the most realistic, but we're not talking about brain surgery here.

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