![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
Review: Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (2005)
Many years ago, I tried to start this game a couple of times but never managed to gt any further than a few minutes. I didn't actually end up playing this game, but I watched this let's play series. Spoilers.
Story
I won't get into the specifics of the story because it'll take too long lol. The story was short, and took place entirely in one night.
It was expected that all of the characters had a relation to Hotel Dusk. However, they weren't all necessarily related to Kyle's own business with Bradley, Nile, and Osterzone. So it didn't feel too much like a conspiracy theory, but more like an opportunity for people to build friendships or bond over experiences.
The tone of the story was very noir and hard boiled. Kyle Hyde was kind of a stereotype but that was fine because it wasn't overdone. The point of the mystery wasn't to arrest anyone, but to find out the truth to what was happening. In the end, Kyle found out the truth, and the game ended very happily, with people finally being able to get over the unknown and start new chapters of their lives.
I thought that Mila joining Kyle at the end of the game was a little random, seeing as how he's only distantly related to her situation. If anything, I thought Mila would've wanted to join Dunning instead, but whatever, it's not something I care that much about. I'm just curious if Mila will show up in the sequel, the Last Window, which I plan to watch next.
Characters
Kyle Hyde - He's typical of a hard boiled protagonist in that he's tough and a no nonsense kind of guy, but I didn't find him that aggressive or overbearing. The player is supposed to play as him, so I guess he had to be a bit more of a blank slate in order for the character to be able to assert their own decisions in the game. Nevertheless, I still find that I enjoyed his mannerisms.
Dunning Smith - He ended up being the guy with all of the secrets. The final challenge of the game was for Kyle to find Dunning's secret basement and drag out the truth of Osterzone, Nile, Robert Evans, and Bradley from Dunning. Dunning was kind of mean at first, but over the course of the night, he got nicer lol.
Louis DeNonno - Louie was a guy that Kyle busted while still in New York. Due to their past history, he ended up being Kyle's sidekick, even helping him with his investigations. He was a bit sleazy, trying to get to know Mila and all, but he dropped it after a couple of times.
Rosa Fox - Rose was the overbearing mother-type to Mila. Her son was working all the way in Manhattan so she didn't have anybody to mother at Hotel Dusk. I thought that Rosa's son would end up being an acquaintance or associate of Kyle's but that didn't happen. Kyle got a lot of information from her regarding the history behind Hotel Dusk.
Helen Parker - Helen had abandoned her son Alan to resume her magician career but regretted her actions soon after. She reconciled with her son at Hotel Dusk ten years ago. She'd wanted to meet with her son again at Hotel Dusk this year, but her son was missing. She wasn't related to the art theft story line, but I thought she was a nice character.
Iris - Iris was a minor celebrity and she was initially the diva character in this bunch. Later, we found out that she was the sister of Grace, who was Kevin's missing wife. Grace sent a cassette to Iris, which was evidence that the Osterzone paintings weren't what they were said to be. Iris was also looking for Grace, presumably because Nile or other people found out that Grace had incriminating evidence.
Jeff Angel - Angel was the typical rebellious kid type. He stole money and a gun from his father with whom he was on bad terms with. He then hid the money in Kyle's room and hid the pistol in the laundry room. When Dunning called the police, Angel would tell the police everything about his father. Angel, actually Jeff Damon, hated his father for defending criminals, including the Nile criminal organization. Jeff got a stern talking to from Kyle during the game, and by the end, Jeff apologized to Kyle for causing him trouble, and said he'd turn himself in for his own crimes. Kyle had told Jeff to walk the talk and living life properly as an example before trying to show his father that living life well was possible.
Kevin Woodward - Like Jeff, Kevin was also a douche at first. He never seemed to be around and we saw how lonely his daughter was. Through his magical skills of persuasion, Kyle got Kevin to realize that Melissa still loved him, and that Kevin had a reason to be a better person than he was. Kevin was looking for his missing wife Grace, who as I said was probably on the run because of her incriminating evidence.
Melissa Woodward - Melissa was a guest at Hotel Dusk. She was just a lonely little girl, and I enjoyed that Kyle spent a bit of time trying to cheer her up, such as digging out the Christmas tree from storage.
Martin Summer - Let's all be real, Summer was a little annoying because he wanted to be famous so bad. Kyle's confrontation with Summer felt a little reminiscent of Phoenix Wright gameplay because Kyle used actual receipts and logic to drag the truth out of Summer. Summer passing off Alan Parker's work was kind of a parallel story to Dunning posing as Osterzone, though of course, Dunning really is Osterzone where it counts (i.e. the artistic skill). In the end, Summer and Helen Parker had some chats, and Summer also vowed to try to write a bestseller under his own name. Like the main story line, Kyle didn't care much for outing Summer's theft, but Summer left th esituation realizing the wrongs of his ways.
Mila Evans - Mila was the mysterious girl that Kyle had passed on the road to Hotel Dusk. She was eventually picked up by Jeff Angel and brought to Hotel Dusk. Here's the deal. Mila was nine years old when she saw her friend being kidnapped in front of her, and fell into a coma. She was in a coma for ten years. She woke up, and immediately tried to look for her father, with only an old Hotel Dusk brochure for guidance. I would really consider Mila a nine-year-old in a nineteen-year-old's body, which does make Louie's perving a little creepy. Dunning seemed to recognize Mila and asked her to tell her more about Jenny. And Dunning also told her what he knew about Robert Evans. From Kyle's deduction, he was pretty sure that Bradley killed Robert Evans for the mess with Nile, but I don't know if he told Mila that. In the end, Mila wanted to follow Kyle on his journey of self-discovery, which I guess works for Mila because she'll also have to spend time re-orienting herself.
Ed Vincent - Ed was Kyle's boss at Red Crown. He didn't really do much in terms of the plot. However, he did know that their client was Bradley, but had to hide that from Kyle in order for Kyle to discover the truth on his own.
Rachel - Rachel was the assistant at the Red Crown whom Kyle spoke with often. She would do research for him and such.
Bradley - Bradley was Kyle's old partner whom he was intent on finding. As mentioned, Bradley ended up being the client he was working for, and had set up all of the clues at Hotel Dusk so that Kyle could find out what happened without needing to actually meet up with Bradley. I think it's implied that Bradley is still on the run from Nile.
Other
Gameplay
I think this was one of the first visual novels on the Nintendo DS, and really showed off how creative gameplay could be on that console with one touch screen. The narrative-guided gameplay was spaced out with minigames such as the bowling minigame, building puzzles, and other click-and-drag minigames. That being said, the sleuthing and interrogating were the main stars of this game.
I think Hotel Dusk was also one of the precursors to the popular visual novel format of today. If the company that made Hotel Dusk didn't close down, I think this serious might've been as popular as Ace Attorney.
Music
The music in this game was really catchy, especially the background music that was played during the recaps.
Art style
I would say that the art style is one of, if not, the biggest draw of this game. I love that it animated static portraits a little to give them a bit of life. For those of you who've played visual novels, it gets really awkward when you're clicking through paragraphs and paragraphs of text and the character's pose never moves. Their facial expression may move, but you can't help but feel like you're talking to a cardboard cutout. So I really liked this animation style.
In addition, I felt that the poses and mannerisms of the characters felt much more natural. For example, Louie's surprised expression felt very genuine. Maybe it was an effect of the animation, but either way, the art style really stood out.
Overall
I think this would be a nice compact and short game to pass the time :)
Story
I won't get into the specifics of the story because it'll take too long lol. The story was short, and took place entirely in one night.
It was expected that all of the characters had a relation to Hotel Dusk. However, they weren't all necessarily related to Kyle's own business with Bradley, Nile, and Osterzone. So it didn't feel too much like a conspiracy theory, but more like an opportunity for people to build friendships or bond over experiences.
The tone of the story was very noir and hard boiled. Kyle Hyde was kind of a stereotype but that was fine because it wasn't overdone. The point of the mystery wasn't to arrest anyone, but to find out the truth to what was happening. In the end, Kyle found out the truth, and the game ended very happily, with people finally being able to get over the unknown and start new chapters of their lives.
I thought that Mila joining Kyle at the end of the game was a little random, seeing as how he's only distantly related to her situation. If anything, I thought Mila would've wanted to join Dunning instead, but whatever, it's not something I care that much about. I'm just curious if Mila will show up in the sequel, the Last Window, which I plan to watch next.
Characters
Kyle Hyde - He's typical of a hard boiled protagonist in that he's tough and a no nonsense kind of guy, but I didn't find him that aggressive or overbearing. The player is supposed to play as him, so I guess he had to be a bit more of a blank slate in order for the character to be able to assert their own decisions in the game. Nevertheless, I still find that I enjoyed his mannerisms.
Dunning Smith - He ended up being the guy with all of the secrets. The final challenge of the game was for Kyle to find Dunning's secret basement and drag out the truth of Osterzone, Nile, Robert Evans, and Bradley from Dunning. Dunning was kind of mean at first, but over the course of the night, he got nicer lol.
Louis DeNonno - Louie was a guy that Kyle busted while still in New York. Due to their past history, he ended up being Kyle's sidekick, even helping him with his investigations. He was a bit sleazy, trying to get to know Mila and all, but he dropped it after a couple of times.
Rosa Fox - Rose was the overbearing mother-type to Mila. Her son was working all the way in Manhattan so she didn't have anybody to mother at Hotel Dusk. I thought that Rosa's son would end up being an acquaintance or associate of Kyle's but that didn't happen. Kyle got a lot of information from her regarding the history behind Hotel Dusk.
Helen Parker - Helen had abandoned her son Alan to resume her magician career but regretted her actions soon after. She reconciled with her son at Hotel Dusk ten years ago. She'd wanted to meet with her son again at Hotel Dusk this year, but her son was missing. She wasn't related to the art theft story line, but I thought she was a nice character.
Iris - Iris was a minor celebrity and she was initially the diva character in this bunch. Later, we found out that she was the sister of Grace, who was Kevin's missing wife. Grace sent a cassette to Iris, which was evidence that the Osterzone paintings weren't what they were said to be. Iris was also looking for Grace, presumably because Nile or other people found out that Grace had incriminating evidence.
Jeff Angel - Angel was the typical rebellious kid type. He stole money and a gun from his father with whom he was on bad terms with. He then hid the money in Kyle's room and hid the pistol in the laundry room. When Dunning called the police, Angel would tell the police everything about his father. Angel, actually Jeff Damon, hated his father for defending criminals, including the Nile criminal organization. Jeff got a stern talking to from Kyle during the game, and by the end, Jeff apologized to Kyle for causing him trouble, and said he'd turn himself in for his own crimes. Kyle had told Jeff to walk the talk and living life properly as an example before trying to show his father that living life well was possible.
Kevin Woodward - Like Jeff, Kevin was also a douche at first. He never seemed to be around and we saw how lonely his daughter was. Through his magical skills of persuasion, Kyle got Kevin to realize that Melissa still loved him, and that Kevin had a reason to be a better person than he was. Kevin was looking for his missing wife Grace, who as I said was probably on the run because of her incriminating evidence.
Melissa Woodward - Melissa was a guest at Hotel Dusk. She was just a lonely little girl, and I enjoyed that Kyle spent a bit of time trying to cheer her up, such as digging out the Christmas tree from storage.
Martin Summer - Let's all be real, Summer was a little annoying because he wanted to be famous so bad. Kyle's confrontation with Summer felt a little reminiscent of Phoenix Wright gameplay because Kyle used actual receipts and logic to drag the truth out of Summer. Summer passing off Alan Parker's work was kind of a parallel story to Dunning posing as Osterzone, though of course, Dunning really is Osterzone where it counts (i.e. the artistic skill). In the end, Summer and Helen Parker had some chats, and Summer also vowed to try to write a bestseller under his own name. Like the main story line, Kyle didn't care much for outing Summer's theft, but Summer left th esituation realizing the wrongs of his ways.
Mila Evans - Mila was the mysterious girl that Kyle had passed on the road to Hotel Dusk. She was eventually picked up by Jeff Angel and brought to Hotel Dusk. Here's the deal. Mila was nine years old when she saw her friend being kidnapped in front of her, and fell into a coma. She was in a coma for ten years. She woke up, and immediately tried to look for her father, with only an old Hotel Dusk brochure for guidance. I would really consider Mila a nine-year-old in a nineteen-year-old's body, which does make Louie's perving a little creepy. Dunning seemed to recognize Mila and asked her to tell her more about Jenny. And Dunning also told her what he knew about Robert Evans. From Kyle's deduction, he was pretty sure that Bradley killed Robert Evans for the mess with Nile, but I don't know if he told Mila that. In the end, Mila wanted to follow Kyle on his journey of self-discovery, which I guess works for Mila because she'll also have to spend time re-orienting herself.
Ed Vincent - Ed was Kyle's boss at Red Crown. He didn't really do much in terms of the plot. However, he did know that their client was Bradley, but had to hide that from Kyle in order for Kyle to discover the truth on his own.
Rachel - Rachel was the assistant at the Red Crown whom Kyle spoke with often. She would do research for him and such.
Bradley - Bradley was Kyle's old partner whom he was intent on finding. As mentioned, Bradley ended up being the client he was working for, and had set up all of the clues at Hotel Dusk so that Kyle could find out what happened without needing to actually meet up with Bradley. I think it's implied that Bradley is still on the run from Nile.
Other
Gameplay
I think this was one of the first visual novels on the Nintendo DS, and really showed off how creative gameplay could be on that console with one touch screen. The narrative-guided gameplay was spaced out with minigames such as the bowling minigame, building puzzles, and other click-and-drag minigames. That being said, the sleuthing and interrogating were the main stars of this game.
I think Hotel Dusk was also one of the precursors to the popular visual novel format of today. If the company that made Hotel Dusk didn't close down, I think this serious might've been as popular as Ace Attorney.
Music
The music in this game was really catchy, especially the background music that was played during the recaps.
Art style
I would say that the art style is one of, if not, the biggest draw of this game. I love that it animated static portraits a little to give them a bit of life. For those of you who've played visual novels, it gets really awkward when you're clicking through paragraphs and paragraphs of text and the character's pose never moves. Their facial expression may move, but you can't help but feel like you're talking to a cardboard cutout. So I really liked this animation style.
In addition, I felt that the poses and mannerisms of the characters felt much more natural. For example, Louie's surprised expression felt very genuine. Maybe it was an effect of the animation, but either way, the art style really stood out.
Overall
I think this would be a nice compact and short game to pass the time :)