Game: Trauma Center: New Blood
Genre: Medical Simulation
Platform: Wii



For those unfamiliar with the Trauma Center series, it originated on the Nintendo DS with the game Trauma Center: Under the Knife, which was later remade as a Wii launch title subtitled Second Opinion. The unique controls of both Nintendo systems were a perfect match for the gameplay of the series, which mainly included performing various operations on sick patients. The first two games did well critically, and Second Opinion was one of the best-selling Wii games of 2006. It seemed only natural for Atlus to make another installment in the popular series, which once again found a home on the Wii.

Trauma Center: New Blood introduces the player to a new cast of characters, with the familiar faces of the last game nowhere to be found. Instead of having one main character, like the last games had with young doctor Derek Stiles, there are two doctors playable from the start, with the player choosing which one to perform each operation with. Dr. Vaughn and Dr. Blaylock are both experienced doctors working at a remote Alaskan clinic, and early on we discover that they both possess the Healing Touch, Derek’s supernatural life-saving ability from the first two games.



Those who have played Second Opinion will find the control scheme in New Blood very familiar. Not a lot has changed as far as those go; the players use the nunchuk to quickly switch operating tools, and the remote to apply them. This usually works very well. However, it does take a steady hand at times, which can be a little frustrating. Cutting patients open and drawing stars in the air worked brilliantly on the DS’s touch screen, but the translation to motion-sensitive controls has always been slightly awkward. Still, a little bit of patience goes a long way.



In addition to the standard operations of the last game, which include removing tumors and fixing up accident victims, there are a slew of new missions to play through. Like in the previous games, the player is graded on each operation and can go back and perform it again to try and improve his or her score. There’s also a new and exciting co-op mode in which two players can perform operations together, which requires teamwork and timing to be successful.

I found this game to be much more difficult than the previous installments. I’m not afraid of a challenge, but there’s a big difference between “challenging” and “frustrating”. Several missions in I switched to easy mode, which made me feel pretty lame, but was necessary in order to progress in a timely fashion. Even on easy, I had trouble getting good grades on some of the operations the first time around. Although a few of them did irritate me, I kept wanting to go back and improve my score. I feel like the scoring system is a great idea, because it even further extends the replay value of the game.



Other than the characters and some different operations, not a whole lot is new; it’s the same world as the last game, and the medical field remains pretty much the same. Still, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Trauma Center has done a lot of things right with its unique gameplay, and after two Wii titles in under a year, I’m still having a lot of fun with it. As always, the story is secondary to the actual operations, which are where the game shines. I could go back and redo those operations over and over, and there’s nothing quite as satisfying as putting back together a shattered leg bone or removing glass shards from a patient’s chest.

Trauma Center: New Blood is not for everyone; it’s understandable that some gamers won’t get on board with the cheesy dialogue, sometimes lackluster voice acting, and motion-sensitive gameplay. If you are a fan of the Trauma Center series, then this installment will not disappoint. Although it’s not entirely different, the fresh story, addition of some new procedures, and cooperative play will have you hooked.