9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors

When I was first debating whether or not to buy Corpse Party (back in November), I checked the GameFAQs messageboards to see whether or not the game was actually worth it. While I was there, I saw a lot of people comparing it to 999 (9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors), a game which I had never heard of before. Probably because it's on the DS and I never bother to use my DS. I decided to play Corpse Party and fell in love with it, so the other day I bought 999.

999 isn't so much a visual novel as it is a point and click adventure game (literally, if you use the stylus on your DS). If you know me, you know I love point and clicks, like Shivers and Scratches. 999 is about a group of people put on a ship identical to the Titanic, and told they have nine hours to escape before the ship sinks. They can't just walk right out onto the deck though. They have to go through a series of doors, labeled 1 through 9. Their captor explains to them that only 3 to 5 people can go through a door and their numbered bracelets (1 through 9, of course) must have a digital root adding up to the door's number. (Example, to go through door 6, people with bracelets 8, 4 and 3 would be able to walk through together because 8+4+3 = 15 and 1+5 = 6. That is a digital root.) They are told that once they activate a door, they have 9 seconds to enter it and 81 seconds before their bracelets detonate and they are killed if they don't activate the deactivation device on the other side of the door. If they don't all walk through the door together in those first 9 seconds, they won't be able to deactivate the door and whoever is trapped inside will be killed.

 

There is more to the story than that. I tried using my brilliant crime solving skills I acquired from reading so many Hammett novels to figure out who was behind this setup, but after playing through all the endings, I realized my attempts were in vain. You will never figure it out, especially on a first playthrough. You will need to play through the game at least two times to get the important details of the story. The game is really interesting to start off with. It's not scary at all, but it is suspenseful. As you get further into it though, the plot becomes convoluted and leans a bit more sci fi than anything else. You really have to pay attention to what you're reading in order to fully grasp the ideas in 999.

 

Clearly, numbers play a large role in this game. You'll be solving various number puzzles along with some other puzzles. Most of them are simple enough, you'll rarely come across anything that is frustratingly difficult as long as you take the time to thoroughly examine your surroundings. Investigate everything. You never know which items may be helpful.

 

There were a couple things about this game that disappointed me. Nothing major enough to ruin it for me, but still. I was not pleased with only having one save file. I've discussed this before. I like having multiple saves just in case I reach a point where I've screwed the game up so much that I can't possibly fix it. I'll save you the stress of worrying about it though, you can't do that in this game. Yes, you can get bad endings, but that's quite different than getting to a section in a game that you're unable to complete for one reason or another. If it ends, that's fine with me. At least, technically, it has been completed.

 

I was also disappointed that the timer wasn't in real time. I always think it would be cool in games like this if there really was a time limit. Like when Zero (your captor) tells you that you only have nine hours to escape, you REALLY only have nine hours to play the game and if you're not done by then, the game is over. You lose. It would help immerse you in the game if you feel that added pressure.

 

999's audio is surprisingly good for a DS game. There's no voiceacting, but that's to be expected. Instead, each character "speaks" with a series of beeps that vary in tone. The girls have higher tones while the boys have lower tones. It's a minor detail, but I liked it. The soundtrack also fits in well with the setting of the game.

 

You are required to play through 999 at least two times to achieve the "true ending," which may sound daunting once you see how much dialogue is involved. Thankfully, you're able to fast forward through any dialogue you have already read on subsequent playthroughs, which saves you a lot of time.

 

Overall, 999 is a very enjoyable game. I didn't like it as much as Corpse Party, but to be fair, I don't really understand the comparisons between the two games to begin with. They differ greatly and as I've already said, 999 is more sci fi than horror. If you're looking for a game with a lot of weapons and action, this isn't for you. However, if you like story-driven games, you should definitely give this one a chance.