Score
Gameplay:	7
Graphics:	5
Sound:	8
FunFactor:	6
PlasmaFactor:	6
Overall:	6.4

MISSING: Since January Review
July 15, 2004 by Brian Callam

by Brian - July 15, 2004

Detective Jack Lorski and Karen Gijman have disappeared. The authorities are stumped, and the only lead they have is a CD made by the kidnapper who calls himself Phoenix. Since the police have been unable to figure out the contents of the disk, they have decided to distribute it to the public to help in their investigation. Jack had been investigating a murder that occurred in 1975 because he found a film that showed a man being murdered, and the man who accidentally filmed it was killed because he filmed it. Karen Gijman is the daughter of the man who filmed the murder. This is where you come in.

Gameplay

Missing: Since January is separated into several sections with multiple puzzles to solve in each. Once you solve a puzzle, Phoenix will show you a piece of Jack�s video journal detailing his investigation. The thing that sets this game apart from every other adventure or puzzle game though is that the game will attempt to involve you in the story by making you do research on the internet and you will even receive emails from the SKL Network (Jack�s work) and other characters who also have the CD and are trying to help crack the case. You will need an Internet connection and valid email address to play the game because quite a few of the puzzles involve a quick google search or a clue on Phoenix�s website. While this is very innovative and helps make the story feel real, it does get annoying at times. A lot of the emails I received helped very little and just served to fill up my mailbox. A few were generally useful though.

As for the puzzles, some of them are really easy and only involve a quick search on the internet. Some are very difficult even if they are just a search. Some of the sites you will visit seem like they have no relevance to the actual puzzle, but if you look deep enough you will figure it out eventually. Luckily there are a lot of walkthroughs for this game if you get stuck because it has been out in Europe for a while now under a different name, In Memoriam. There are also a few arcade like puzzles that test your timing and mouse maneuvering skills. For example, one puzzle makes you move a circle across a maze with your mouse. Seems easy enough right? Well, there are barriers all over the place, tight passages, and if you touch the wall you have to start over. Not to mention that the ball doesn�t actually move under your mouse. Instead, it is attached to your pointer by an elastic string so it can be hard to control at times. These ones are the most fun in my opinion, but there weren�t enough of these types of puzzles. You will never be doing too much of one kind of puzzle at a time though. They are pretty evenly portioned throughout the game, which kept it interesting.

Graphics

If it weren�t for the FMV sequences from Jack�s video journal, this game could have been done in Macromedia Flash. The entire game is in 2D. However, as unimpressed with the graphics that I was, they do fit what the developers were going for. Phoenix is apparently an amateur and made the disk himself so it makes sense that the graphics would be sub-par. That doesn�t excuse the fact that some of the puzzles could have looked a lot better and that the videos could have been a higher resolution though.

As for the videos themselves, they were well acted. More so than I expected from a game like this. The video was also surprisingly smooth and crisp. They did a good job in that department.

Sound

Missing: Since January really excels in the sound effects field. The game uses some creepy and neurotic sound effects to convey the feeling that this Phoenix is one sick individual. I looked forward to whenever Phoenix would interrupt with his textual comments after completing a puzzle just for the music that played while he typed. It was extra creepy.

The narration of the videos by Jack was also well done. In most of the videos you can�t hear what is going on so the narration helped to understand what was going on and it was also acted pretty well.

Fun Factor

Like I said above, some of the arcade game puzzles were very fun and difficult to boot. If that�s your thing, you will probably get a kick out of it. However, searching the Internet for clues isn�t exactly my kinda fun. It certainly adds to the atmosphere of the game, but it�s just not a fun thing to do in my opinion. Although, if you enjoy playing detective, you will have a blast with this game.

Plasmafactor

The game is pretty short. It should take you no longer than ten to fifteen hours without a walkthrough unless you get really hung-up on a puzzle. Also, the game has zero replay value. Nothing will be different playing the game a second time so there is no point in even attempting a second run unless you want to fill your inbox. However, for only $20, you shouldn�t really expect to be playing it more than one time.

 

Conclusion

The game is innovative and manages to create a good atmosphere, but other than that it doesn�t offer much more than a few dozen puzzles and the chance to play detective. If you fancy that kind of thing, check the game out. This game definitely isn�t for everyone. I�m afraid I can only recommend this game to hardcore adventure gamers and wannabe detectives. Otherwise, don�t waste your money.