Ultimately, this was an ambitious game for the DS, and it's reaching just slightly too far. If it had been delivered on one of the more powerful consoles, where you might have the option to genuinely 'investigate' crime scenes as you see fit, in the order that makes sense to you, then VideoGamer is sure it would be a hit. As it is though, the limitations of the DS means the gameplay is too linear, and some of the clues far too obscure, for the overall experience to really be enjoyable.
VGC writes: "On my quest to try out all of the adventure games that the DS has to offer, I have played many games. Some were exciting and different like Theresia, and others were a bit bland, like the first Jake Hunter game. When it came to checking out a little budget game called Unsolved Crimes I was a bit worried, as budget games are hit or miss sometimes. One thing is very apparent after beating this game: you are either going to love it or hate it. For me it really boils down to how you approach the game."
AATG:
"It's obvious the developers were onto a real winner, here, but somewhere among the cheap script and silly pop quiz assessments, something got lost along the way. As a result, it's left as a game that deserves your attention, but won't leave any huge impression."
411Mania writes: "It has been around four years since the launch of the DS, yet I can still recall how excited everyone was for the potential games to come on the system. There were games like Trauma Center, Feel the Magic, and most relative to this review, Phoenix Wright. Many were excited to see that perhaps the DS could be a small-scale revival of the adventure genre, and they certainly haven't been disappointed. With games like Hotel Dusk and Phoenix Wright, the adventure genre has truly flourished on the dual-screened portable. Naturally, other developers will want to take a stab at the suddenly rejuvenated genre, and that brings us to Unsolved Crimes. Unsolved Crimes is somewhat of a hybrid between the two aforementioned adventure games, which sounds great on paper. However, this entry into the mystery genre falls flat on its face."
