Synopsis:
You are Albert Macdgul, a reporter for a small newspaper called Social News Time Network (SNT). For some reason, you are the first journalist who is ever granted access to Desire -- a mysterious research institute located on a remote island. Your girlfriend Makoto is Desire's chief technician to boot. But mysterious deaths suddenly abound during your stay... and you find a little girl named Tina washed up on the island's shores. What deep and dark secrets lurk within Desire? You just have to find out.

Review:
The first time you play Desire, you are given the role of news reporter Albert Macdgul. As Albert, your job is to get as much information as possible about the mysterious research facility called Desire. You are to find out exactly what's being studied, experimented on, and so forth. But doing so won't be easy, because the people (mostly pretty ladies by the way) on the island are determinedly tight-lipped about Desire. After playing Albert for a while, you can start a new game as Makoto, Albert's girlfriend. As Makoto, you are given more of an insider's perspective on the research proceedings (since you are the chief technician).

Putting Albert's and Makoto's scenarios together is the key to understanding the whole story. But after finishing the two perspectives, a third one becomes playable -- Martina's. Martina is the scientist in charge of Desire, and her point of view will make everything much clearer. Martina's scenario is shorter than Albert's and Makoto's, only filling in lapses in the first two perspectives. After playing as Martina, a fourth and final option with a question mark appears. This last scenario is actually the epilogue to everything that transpired. It's very hard to elaborate on Desire's plot without giving away spoilers. It's primarily a "click-and-click" game, with a linear story that simply requires clicking every option and going to every possible locale in order to advance. What sets it apart from the pack is the multiple perspectives from which the events unfold. After finishing Albert's role, you are given an idea of what Desire is all about. But it is only after playing as Makoto and Martina that you get the deeper implications of what had taken place... and they are all tied together nicely by the epilogue.

Another thing that distinguishes Desire from other titles is the visual presentation. Not only are the images crisp and vibrantly rendered, some are animated as well. The transitions from stills to moving scenes are very smooth, and at times it almost feels as if you are watching an anime. The character designs are quite exceptional, with a bevy of beautiful girls and a handsome hero -- as opposed to the usual "hidden" faces of male protagonists in most bishoujo games. With regards to the sexual content, Desire goes all out. Every act and every part of the anatomy are shown in their full uncensored glory. The game also features the original Japanese voices.

Desire is altogether an above average title for its unique, intricate plot and gorgeous visuals, but falls short of a higher rating due to zero replayability. There's only one path to take, even if there are multiple perspectives. I also wasn't too sure about how things ended since the epilogue movie sequence did not have any dialogues.

Miscellanies:
Game extras include a CG mode, movie mode, and music mode. Beautiful desktop wallpapers in different resolutions are also available as an additional bonus.

Screenshots:

Shopping - click on title to purchase: Out of Print

Distributor: J-List / PCR Distributing Co.

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