Addictive and incredibly difficult
Despite the fact that motion detection-capable controllers had been available for some time when it was first released, Trauma Center was still an incredibly fresh experience. An operation game could have been something simple to consider yet difficult to implement. Atlus brought us this gem of gamemaking and we love them for it.
The player takes on the role of Derek Styles, a doctor fresh out of residency whom, after a particularly stressful experience, discovers he has the "Healing Touch" - the ability to concentrate so hard on the operating table that he manages to pull off operations no one else does. The game follows the good doctor as he descends into a spiral of madness against the medical terrorism organization Delphi, which claims doctors are intruders upon natural selection, and develop several strains of an artificial disease called GUILT in order to overpower them.
All things considered, the localization doesn't hurt the enjoyment of the story - despite the name of practically every character being changed around, and the scenario of the game being changed to the US, the plot remains consistent. Some might say the game's story is quite a stretch; personally, I feel that it is used as a tool to get the player involved in the operations themselves, instead of looking at it as repetition.
Control is entirely stylus-based. Each condition has a method of being dealt with, with some conditions requiring the use of multiple instruments, and in some operations, several conditions require the player's attention at once. Speed and precision is of the essence - should the player find he has to sacrifice one or the other, precision should be his pick.
The soundtrack is fairly simple, but it gets you quite involved. Graphics wisem the game is none too shabby, particularly in the operations themselves.
One point that may be considered either a plus or a minus is the difficulty. It scales quickly and relentlessly. Each operation requires the player be faster and craftier than the last. Upon finishing the game, one gains access to "secret operations" that are even harder than the main game. Definitely not for the faint of heart, but garanteed to keep you busy for hours as you knit, slice, extract, inject and drain the sickness out of your patients.
