Don't Break your DS Screen - Lux Pain

Like many adventure games, Lux-Pain stars a cast of absolutely beautifully drawn characters typical of Japanese games and a soundtrack full of mysteriously eery melodies, but the main attraction is its full use of the touch screen facilities of the Nintendo DS.

Doubtlessly, the Nintendo DS gets a lot of good games, but I could not help but think that some of them might actually be nicer when played on the Sony PSP. Tales of Hearts, and Final Fantasy III and IV, for example, have some stunning movies and its gameplay doesn't require the use of a stylus much.

Lux Pain, on the other hand, exploit this facility to the point where you might accidently leave scratches on your screen. Your objective in the game is to get rid of worms called "Silence" within people, find the culprit of a string of murders and gather clues as you read people's memories as well as emotions.

You do this through using your stylus to erase a person's shell and pretences and delve straight into their heart within a time limit. See the string of yellow dots? That's the memory, or the worm you are after, be sure to catch it as soon as you spot it as pretenses build up very quickly and the these yellow dots slither around fast.

So, excitement and adventure with a wonderful cast, this is not a visual novel that simply makes you want turn page after page, but a game that makes you sweat adrenaline.


Before you get your game, you really should get some screen protectors just in case you can't control your strength and leave blemishes on the screen. It's really useful for this game.

The atmosphere was somewhat dark and eery, but hardly bloody, yet scenes of cruelty are hinted at. After all, the "Silence" worm brings out a person's darkest sides, so it's not surprising that the plot has to include these scenes.

Another wonderful thing about Lux-Pain is the voice acting. I have only played the Japanese version, so I am in no position to comment about the English version.

Miyano Mamoru, the voice behind Light Yagami from Death Note and Tamaki Suou from Ouran High School Host Club. Starring as Atsuki, the lead character with a traumatic past and a quiet personality, his performance is an inch closer to Light than Tamaki, so for those who adore his darker voice, here's a treat. Although its a DS game, it has quite a bit of voice clips, so that's some candies for the ears.

While the gameplay differs greatly, Lux-Pain reminds me of the Persona series that delves into a person's dark side. So people who loves the great RPG series and gloomy/mysterious plots, this game is definitely worth a try!