When Exit was first released on Sony’s portable handheld, it offered an interesting twist in the puzzle genre that fell short in a few areas. Still, it was hard to deny that it was interestingly unique and many of the levels contained inventive puzzles. Making its jump onto the Nintendo DS, Exit DS means to use the handheld’s touch-screen technology to make this a unique puzzle game, but it still isn’t able to make this game a puzzle gamers’ dream come true. 

The art of escape

You play the dashing, speedy and mysterious Mr. Esc who rescues the helpless in dangerous situations and helps lead them to safety. He’s a professional escape artist who decided to put his skills to good use by saving people trapped in burning buildings or sinking ships. He’s able to climb his way to some tough spots and survey the dangers that he comes across and he must do it quickly. Armed with very little except for his quick wits, you guide Mr. Esc through more than 100 levels.

The game begins simple enough with a few tutorial levels that will introduce you to the game’s basics and how to deal with the various situations and environmental hazards you’ll encounter along the way. The game’s design may look simplistic enough but there’s more to it than just narrow corridors and ledges. You’ll encounter objects you can manipulate and doors you can unlock and open. Later on in the game you’ll also learn how to deal with civilians you will get to rescue along the way. The levels in Exit DS might look easy to solve but appearances can be very deceiving.

Where there's smoke …

Using the Stylus, you simply tap on Mr. Esc and tap the area where you want him to move. He can hustle towards the spot where you want him to move or run depending on what is needed. There are several environmental objects Mr. Esc can manipulate such as doors and crates you can push to close a gap in certain spots or ease your fall when you need to climb down a platform. While this sounds simple enough, you will often encounter locked doors that require keys and areas that require you to think before you leap. A timer is running so it’s best to clear a level and reach the exit on time.

The best moments in Exit DS happen in the later levels where you’ll be attempting to save people trapped in a burning building or sinking ship. You’ll find a number of civilians in these levels and all of them can be controlled by you much in the same way you control Mr. Esc. While the people you rescue need Mr. Esc to guide them out physically, these companions aren’t completely helpless. Each person has an ability you can use in different situations. For example, children are small and can get through some narrow places adults can’t get through. Large adults have great strength that allows them to push heavier objects. Half the fun is trying to figure out how to use different companions as you help them navigate through each environment. 

The art of not following orders

Sadly, as much as I hate to admit it, the Nintendo DS’ touch screen controls do the game more harm than good. Oftentimes, the Stylus control makes it unclear to Mr. Esc where exactly you would like him to stand in order to climb down a ledge. Sometimes, Mr. Esc will run across the ledge and thus falling to his demise when what you really meant for him to do was climb down to the next platform. It also becomes very frustrating when you keep having to tap on Mr. Esc to move him every step of the way so some of the more impatient gamers will be very frustrated with the controls. Then again, who wouldn’t be when the controls can be this unresponsive. On top of that, the levels begin to repeat themselves … that isn’t bad but this is a game that would have benefited from a Level Editor to come up with your own level designs.

The game’s visual style is also wonderfully unique and resembles the PSP version of the game very closely. The characters are silhouettes with Mr. Esc taking on a look that makes him slightly resemble old comic book character, The Spirit. In fact, all the characters speak through comic book-styled word bubbles. Meanwhile, the backgrounds and visual effects (such as the fires) look decently enough even on the Nintendo DS. The game’s sound, on the other hand, leaves much to be desired. The music, for instance, simply loops repetitively to the point that you will turn the volume all the way down. You won’t be missing very much in terms of the sound effects that aren’t too bad.

Exit DS is one of those great ideas that could have really shined on Nintendo’s innovative handheld but it is held back by a number of things that stop this from being a true puzzle game classic on the DS. This is actually too bad seeing as there are some challenging scenarios that are also fun but its clumsy touch screen controls make for some irritation that is far too noticeable to ignore. If you can’t live without a portable puzzle game then I recommend you rent this one first but otherwise there are better puzzle games for the DS.

Gameplay: 6.5
The touch-screen actions can be very frustrating and even more so for those impatient gamers who like their games to run at a steady pace. There are some outstanding levels that offer more than enough variety but in the long run most of the puzzles will start feeling familiar.

Graphics: 7.0
The game’s visual presentation is actually quite endearing and tips its hat to those classic games that closely resemble it. There are some neat little visual effects here as well.

Sound: 6.5
The music will start driving you crazy somewhere around Level 20 if not sooner but at least there are some decent sound effects.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
The game gets progressively harder the farther along you go and the levels where you’re tasked with rescuing civilians are even more challenging. Either way, be prepared for some interesting puzzles.

Concept: 7.0
The touch-screen action just isn’t as smooth as one would expect on the Nintendo DS but - aside from some weak Stylus-control issues - there’s some inventive touch-screen fun to be had during the more complex levels. You can go online but to post your best times for bragging rights.

Overall: 6.5
Exit DS is one of those games that really would have benefited from the Nintendo DS’ touch screen but, sadly, the awkward controls make for some rather frustrating gameplay. On the other hand, those who are patient with the game will find themselves enjoying the puzzles for a short time. It’s a good try but it just isn’t good enough to recommended.