Review: CSI: Hard Evidence

I rented CSI: Hard Evidence for the Xbox 360 last week from Gamefly. The only thing I knew about it before playing was that it had to do with the show CSI.

Game Score: 6 out of 10
Story: You’re a new CSI investigator, helping the team solve 5 different cases.
Graphics: Not really next gen. The environments are okay, but the character models are somewhat creepy, especially when they talk to you.
Sound: The sound is fine. The other CSI members are voiced by their respective actors.
Gameplay: Overall it works well. Sometimes you know what you want to happen, but getting it to happen in game can take trial and error. Luckily, these instances are few and far between.
Replay Value: Little to None
Recommendation: Possible rental

This game puts you in the role of a new CSI member. Each case will team you up with one of the investigators from CSI Vegas. While investigating, you’ll be able to gather and process evidence and question suspects.

It is a decent concept. I like the investigating and processing evidence. If you watch the show, you know that it is somewhat inaccurate with the CSI members constantly interrogating suspects and helping arrest people. The game is the same way.

One thing that I find very lame about the game is that you can’t falsely accuse suspects. You have to just keep processing the evidence until only one suspect remains and they confess. In this aspect, the game is very linear and it’s just like a somewhat interactive episode. I never really felt like *I* was solving the case. I was just pushing buttons, moving everything forward. If you ever do get stuck, you can ask your CSI partner for hints(although this counts against you in your evaluation(which means nothing)).

Another annoying thing is that they have little cutscenes of shots of Vegas when you change locations. You can easily skip them with the push of a button. So why is this annoying? Well, they happen *whenever* you travel. So if I travel from inside a house to the backyard, I see a cutscene of the Vegas strip. Am I taking the super long way to the backyard?

Overall, the game is an interesting attempt but fails as a blockbuster. It has 5 easy achievements for the 360, netting you all 1,000 points. But I would not pay retail for this game. Rent it if you’ve got some spare time or money. Or better yet borrow it from a friend.

Release Date: 9/27/07
Platforms: Nintendo Wii, PC, Xbox 360
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Telltale Games