User Review : Trauma Team

Trauma Team Review: A Cut Above The Rest

Doctor! The patient is dying! Doctor! The vitals are dropping! Doctor! The hospital is on fire and your credit score just dropped! If you're played a game in the Trauma Center series, that probably brought back a lot of unpleasant, yet oddly entertaining memories from your gaming in the past. Well it's time to prepare for more medical drama with the fifth and latest installment of the series, Trauma Team for the Wii. Released on May 18th, 2010, the latest title the series introduces many new gameplay elements. In past titles, the player only performed general surgery, but this time around there are five new specialties in addition to surgery. Orthopedics, Endoscopy, Forensic, Diagnostics and First Response join the fray. Giving players interesting new variety to play around with this time.

The story takes place at Resurgam Hospital where four of the six characters practice medicine. The general surgeon moves back and forth between his jail cell and the hospital and the medical examiner works in a different facility although she is acquainted with the rest of the cast. Each character has their own storyline with an overarching plot that connects them all. The story and the operations start out relatively normal, but this being an Atlus developed title that doesn't last very long. Each doctor begins to experience strange incidents during their operations or examinations that will test their abilities over the course of the game. The cast of characters are an interesting bunch with a convict serving a 250 year sentence, a superhero, a ninja, a wise cracking doctor with a robot assistant, a hotheaded E.M.T that sees ghost and a medical examiner that can hear the dead on her cellphone. Needless to say, there's never a dull moment at Resurgam.

Trauma Team has been upgraded with a new look to accompany the new additions to the game. One of the more noticeable changes are the new cutscenes that accompany each episode and event. They take the form of semi-animated comic strips which unlike the previous titles, are fully voice acted. The voice acting is well done with each actor's portrayal providing an interesting personality for their respective characters and senarios. It's an interesting change for the series as it presents a bit more action than the other Trauma Center games. The operations have received a graphical overhaul complete with new stylized afflictions. Everything from the blood pools to tumors have gotten new shiny 3-D rendered representations which are a far cry from wispy clouds and "portraits".

The biggest change to the game is the addition of the five other specialties, each with its own approach and gameplay elements. I'm going to break these down separately:

Surgery

Plays similarly to the surgery in the previous titles with a graphical upgrade. With this profession, players will be tasked with making incisions, removing tumors, using the laser to remove growths etc. This time around, however, there is no Healing Touch to slow down time or protect the patient's vitals so only your skill will be able to complete the operation. This may come as a problem to existing fans since the HT was often a saving grace in truly difficult operations, but it isn't a big deal since there's no GUILT or Stigma making your operations a living hell this time. You can't see it right now, but I'm shaking my fist angrily at Triti.

First Response

One of my personal favorites. This specialty tasks the player with juggling multiple patients and performing first aid until the patients are stabilized. You'll usually start with a certain number of patients and as the operation goes on you will receive more new patients as you clear others. You only have access to four selectable tools with most of the other tools you need being accessed from different icons on the sides of the screen as needed. This is the most fast paced of all six specialties so expect to do a lot of switching and panicking. This is also where I ran into one of the control issues in the game. There were certain moments where the controller didn't respond to my actions which were necessary to continue on in the operation. This is a problem since you have a limit to how many patients you can lose and the other patients vitals continue to drop while you are with others. It happened rarely, but it did happen.

Orthopedics

This specialty is all about a steady hand and good timing. This is the only operation based specialty where the player will not be choosing any of their tools. Each tool is chosen as needed for the operation and the player is tasked with cutting out bones, resetting bones, setting screws and splints etc. Each task has its own approach and unlike the other operation based specialties your progress isn't determined by your patient's vitals, but the number of times you are allowed to make a mistake over the course of the operation. Some of the controls in this specialty are far more sensitive than necessary such as the saw tool where the player has to tilt the Wii-mote from side to side in order to guide the saw. It's pretty finicky and can lead to a lot of mistakes if the player doesn't stop repeatedly to correct themselves. For the most part this doesn't become an issue since it's the least used of the tools and is manageable with patience.

Endoscopy

With this specialty, you will navigate the insides of the patient with a camera and tools. The control scheme is different from the other specialties as the camera and the tools are controlled with the nunchuck with the flashlight and movement through the body controlled with the Wii-mote. You'll be navigating in a 3-D plane so don't expect all your targets to be in plain sight (No pun intended). Endoscopy functions a lot like surgery in a maze and some different tools. Be careful not to hit the walls of the patient's insides as you can damage their vitals and you don't want to do that.

Diagnostics

Players will get to live out their House fantasies with the addition of the diagnostic specialty. Here you examine your patient in order to find out what kind of disease is ravaging their bodies. To do this, players will need a keen eye (or ear) in their examinations. Joining you is your robotic companion, RONI, who will record the symptoms that you observe over the course of the examination. You will need to listen to what the patient has to say, check their charts, listen to their heart beats, look for visual signs and compare X-rays, CT scans and more in order to narrow down the diseases in your office. You have a certain number of times you can make a mistake during your diagnosis before you fail and get the dreaded game over screen. The amusing banter between Gabe and RONI is an added bonus.

Forensics

The final specialty is Forensics. Naomi Kimishima returns from Second Opinion having lost her ability to practice surgery. She now performs medical examinations for the FBI. She also has a new unusual ability replacing her Healing Touch as she can now hear the final words of the deceased on her cellphone. It's kind of creepy, but she seems okay with it. During her scenarios, you will gather evidence from the body, personal effects, testimonies and the crime scene. These clues will be recorded as cards that can be analyzed and combined in order to reach a conclusion about the case. Over the course of the examination, the player will often be faced with quizzes that help you piece together clues. At the end, you will piece together what really happened to the deceased and learn the truth behind the case.

All in all, Trauma Team adds a lot of variety to a formula that has been well established throughout the Trauma Center series. It's pretty accessible to newcomers to the series as it has its own story and new gameplay elements. The game has been given a new look with stylized visuals and new character models. It is full of interesting characters and story elements that will keep you coming back for more and make it one of the best entries into the series. While it does have some control issues during a few of the operations and can be quite difficult at times (It is an Atlus game after all), it doesn't take away from the overall experience. Trauma Team will definitely satisfy fans of the series and the new gameplay elements make it accessible to newbies as well. With a price tag of only 40 bucks and a lengthy, interesting story, Trauma Team will let you live out those medical drama fantasies without the pricey dry cleaning bill.

The Good

Great voice acting

New stylized graphics

A lot of gameplay variety

Lengthy and interesting story

Interesting cast of characters

Cheap price

The Bad

Roller coaster difficulty

Some control issues

No crazy nurses screaming about the world ending during your operations every fifteen seconds