Deadly Premonition or what is the greatest, most unique story to ever touch the video game industry...

User Rating: 8.5 | Red Seeds Profile X360
Deadly Premonition (also known as Red Seeds Profile in Japan) is a low-profile, "unknown" masterpiece of a video game. I stumbled upon the news of this title while waiting for Alan Wake to come out. Personally, I am a huge fan of David Lynch and his Twin Peaks TV series (1990-1991), so seeing a video game that mimics the show was always on the agenda for purchase. Deadly Premonition was developed by Access Games, a small Japanese studio. Low budget proved crucial and they had to sacrifice a lot of features (graphical presentation and controls as the main ones), however don't let this fact keep you away from the game - this is truly an outstanding game with one of the best storyline you would ever see in a psychological thriller.

Story
Deadly Premonition is a psychological thriller. I know that it is being advertised as a horror game, but the elements in it that portray that notion are perfectly explainable in a surreal, psychological sense. The story revolves around an FBI agent called Francis York Morgan, who is called upon in a small little town in the Northwest to investigate a murder of a young girl. Sound familiar? Those who have seen the Twin Peaks series would immediately notice the similarities. The story setting is familiar, but this is where the common ground ends. Deadly Premonition was written by Hidetaka Suehiro (nicknamed Swery 65) and he did an outstanding job with it. The characters are wonderfully developed (providing you spend some time doing their side missions and learning more about their past), the story is unbelievable and perfectly explainable in the end. The plot is full of twists and turns, climax after climax. Emotional, surprising and unique also come to mind. It is everything that Alan Wake should have been. A special mention goes to the main protagonist – you probably haven't seen more quirky, witty and funny protagonist in any video game. The "freshness" he brings is outstanding. Masterpiece! 10/10

Graphics
Deadly Premonition's graphics are low-resolution, in the standard of a PS2 game. The low budget of this title restricted the developer to produce better renderers, even though some aspects are pretty detailed. If graphics are your thing, but story is not, you won't find this game appealing. 6/10

Sound/Voice Acting
The soundtrack of this game is quite good. Some of the songs are very memorable, and some could be kind of repetitive. Voice acting is average, but we do hear some great performances and some poor ones. Once again, the low budget came into effect. 7.5/10

Gameplay
For a low-budget title, the gameplay is bug-free, even though it could be seen as outdated. The controls need getting used to, as they follow an early Resident Evil game layout. The game is very story-centric, but it is in an open-world environment. You can follow up with the main quest or you can decide to do side mission for the people of Greenvale. The inhabitants (the NPCs) have their own schedules, so certain side mission are only available during certain times of the day. I highly recommend completing the side missions as they are very rewarding – you can get some cool weapons and items. You can also drive cars, play mini-games (like darts or fishing) and many other side activities, which add to the overall experience. The longevity of the game is pretty good, depending on how much you want to complete – in the region of 20-40 hours to complete on a 100%. Shooting mechanics are not very strong, but are there and could be improved depending on your weapons of choice. 7.5/10

Overall
Deadly Premonition has reached a cult following. It is an unique game in a sense – you witness a superb story in an open-world, where side missions add to it in a strong manner. The graphics and controls might be a bit dated, but the game provides us with such strong characters and plot, that it is a must try for any fan of psychological, mystery thrillers. Thank you Swery 65! 8.5/10

EvilSelf