Capcom's Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective is one of those special games that flew under the radar until its E3 2010 appearance. From the lead developer behind the Ace Attorney games, Ghost Trick features a quirky murder mystery, as well as a clever way to go about solving it. It's easily one of the most unique games I saw at the show. If you've been aching for a good point-and-click adventure, but want to see some innovation in the long-dormant genre, Ghost Trick promises to satisfy that craving.

Your name is Sissel. You've lost your memory. And you're dead, too. More specifically, you've been murdered. Yet, you remain in the land of the living as a spirit. Why were you killed? Why are you still here when all of the other spirits seem to have crossed over? These questions will be answered when Ghost Trick releases, provided you can discover the answers before Sissel's time in the supernatural world comes to an end.

Sissel initially doesn't know what to do, but he's almost immediately assisted by a talking desk lamp. He is taught the titular Ghost Trick, which is the cornerstone of the entire gameplay experience. It's a mechanic that has two phases. The first is the Ghost phase: Sissel's spirit can jaunt between inanimate objects. He can only do this when the objects are relatively close, and corpses don't count. Why? Because that would be just creepy. The second phase is where the Trick part comes into play. While possessing objects, Sissel can unleash a burst of energy that causes the possessed object to carry out some function. For example, possessing a window allows him to perform the Trick that causes it to slam shut. The Ghost Trick mechanic will get Sissel (and a number of other people) out of sticky situations. For example, I thwarted a mysterious gunman named Nearsighted Jeego by possessing a bicycle bell behind him. Hitting the Trick button caused the bell to ring, startling the would-be assassin and giving his prey a chance to escape. Long story short, the possibilities leave me excited.

Ghost Trick looks like a clear evolution of the adventure genre, and it's definitely something I'm looking forward to. Provided the developers can keep surprising gamers with ways to manipulate the environment, it should find success. It's hard to tell if the intriguing premise can carry the entire game, but if it does, Capcom just might have a breakout hit on their hands. At the very least, this game looks destined to become a cult classic. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective will possess many a DS this Winter.