CSI: NY

OS: Windows XP/Vista
CPU: 800 Mhz or faster Processor
RAM: 256 MB
Hard Drive: 181 MB

CSI: NY review

CSI: NY has tried to balance both the crime-solving element of a detective game and an adventure games’ puzzle solving element; but the supposed to be hit formula has fallen flat on its face. The above two elements loses their individual identities in the confusion that prevails in the game. Well, that doesn’t mean that the game is a dud, but it could have been made a lot more interesting.

The game requires a player to play any of the two main characters of the game, Stella Bonasera or Mac Taylor (actually they are characters of a popular detective show). Both are known for their above average intelligence and crime investigating prowess.

There is no 3D modeling, but plain graphics in the game that follows the conventional form of point and click game play. The CSI: NY is all about the tasting the old wine from an old bottle! So, be ready to interact with static characters and the hand drawn sketches as the background. Your mouse is the sole tool at your disposal and it will help you to perform all the tasks as well as interact with the other characters in the game. The interrogation or the questioning sessions are pretty straight where you have to click on the phrases or the characters spoken by the characters to gather more information about the same. This can be a little frustrating as you end up a little exhausted.

There are a lot of mini games and you are slated to spend most of your time playing these. The mini games range from swiping fingerprints to tracing the blood stains. There are also puzzles where you need to find out the elements that are not part of a picture. I found the click fests to be the most boring aspect of the game but few people may like it. As a measure of punishment for clicking randomly, you may even see your cursor vanishing from the screen for a second or two.

The hint factor in the game is pretty childish because they do not stop at hinting, they tell you what exactly is to be done. There is also the option of skipping a puzzle if you do not wish to perform it. But that option is limited to only two in a single episode. The total number of episodes is 4 where in the first episode itself you are supposed to investigate the death of a person who fell from a high-rise. The second entails you to investigate the death of a food critic found inside a freezer. The third is about finding the cause of death of a girl in a circus theater. Last episode requires you to find the reasons behind the murder of a girl who dies while shooting her video blog.

Conclusion: The game has its moments where you will really experience that investigating a murder is not so easy. The murder mysteries are the only thing that makes you forget the drawbacks in the game. The biggest drawback of the game is that you are made to repeat the same old things again and again in the game. Things become really monotonous and uninteresting because you are made to collect clues that are irrelevant and are of no use to a case. No gun booming, no panning o the camera but it is plain boring to express in a word. CSI: NY is not the type of game that you expect to hit the online circuit when there are many games that have several interesting aspects.