Trauma Center: Second Opinion

Trauma Center: Under the Knife for the Nintendo DS was and still is one of the most innovative and unique applications of the DS's touch screen interface - not to mention one of my all time favorite games for the handheld. Now Altus has brought the series to the big screen with the Wii version of the title. I say Wii version because Second Opinion isn't exactly a sequel; it follows the same storyline as the original title, and has most of the same surgeries. However, some new items and a totally new control scheme make it seem like you're playing the game for the first time.

For those unfamiliar with the series, you fill the roll of Dr. Derek Stiles - a new surgeon at the Hope Hospital. Fresh out of residency, he is eager to prove himself as a medical professional. The game is divided into a series of episodes that drive the story along via text conversations with static sprites. The 2D artwork in the game is beautiful, but the production values for a full-fledged console title are expected to be just a tad higher. Having the sprites animated with full voice acting would have been a welcome addition, but all Second Opinion has over Under the Knife in this area is higher resolution art.

A second disappointment in the visuals department is the omission of a widescreen mode. When played on a widescreen television with the Wii set to 16:9, the game gets stretched to fill the screen. Fortunately it doesn't skew the look of the game too much, and after a few minutes you no longer notice the stretching. However, for those with a widescreen set, this is certainly an annoyance - especially with the vast majority of other titles supporting widescreen.

Underwhelming plot presentaton and screen ratios aside, the meat and potatoes of the game is spent in the operating room performing surgery on a myriad of patients and tackling a number of conditions. Luckily, the development team took more time upgrading the presentation in the surgery portions. Bodies and organs are displayed in a stylized, cell-shaded 3D that blends realism with a cartoon look so as to not gross most people out. All in all, the presentation in the surgery portions is very slick and eye-catching.

You have a number of tools at your disposal ranging from the trusty scalpel, to the new defibrillator. To choose a tool, you select it from a carousel with the analog stick on the Nunchuk attachment. The Wii Remote then assumes the role of that particular tool. For instance, when using the forceps to pull a piece of glass out of a patient's arm, the A and B buttons must be pressed together to "grip" the shards. To shock a patient with the defibrillator in an attempt to get a pulse, you thrust forward with both the Wii Remote and the Nunchuck to place the paddles, and then Z on the Nunchuk and B on the Remote simultaneously to deliver the shock.

As you progress through the storyline, the conditions get more complex and more difficult. The original DS title was notorious for its intense difficulty and thankfully the developers were gracious enough to offer three difficulty levels for the Wii version. I've started out on easy and the game seems much more forgiving than its handheld counterpart thus far.

The controls feel extremely fluid and aren't clumsy at all. In fact, I much prefer the Wii controls to the DS touch screen thus far. I was worried I would miss having a surface and strict 2D plane to work in, but it's not a problem at all with the Wii Remote. Being able to choose your implements with the Nunchuk is quicker and more efficient than having to first tap the tool to use ala the DS version.

The music is pretty much the exact same stuff from the handheld version. The best musical pieces are in the operating room with a patient's life in your hands. It gets very intense and helps set the mood. Again, for those familiar with the series, this may be an additional disappointment.

Despite having played through the DS version already, I'm itching to get back to Second Opinion. The fact that this is much more a "Wiimake" as opposed to a true sequel will likely disappoint many fans, and it is slightly confusing why Atlus didn't take the time to simply come up with a new plot. At the very least, the developers have taken the time to add an additional scenario to the game with a new surgeon.

Regardless of the new surgeries and tools, the new control scheme is nearly enough to make it feel all new again, and jumping back into the scrubs with Dr. Stiles is as fun, if not moreso than the DS original. For those who have never had the pleasure of playing the original version of the game, Second Opinion should definitely be a title to consider for your Wii launch library.

Join me for stage 2 where I'll talk about some of the new surgeries added to the game, and how the Wii's control scheme holds up in some of the more complex scenarios later in the game.