Crime Lab: Body of Evidence is a DS game that’s rated T for Teen and asks you to assume the role of Detective Nicole Bonnet as she solves a series of seek and find puzzles and mini-games.  The game makes use of many DS features, such as the microphone, and also supports the DSi camera.

Parents should definitely heed the game’s T rating, as there are definitely mature themes involved in Crime Lab: Body of Evidence.  As a detective, you’re solving murders and tracking serial killers, and many of the game’s “fun facts” involve facts about the patterns of serial killers.  Since the game sort of reminds us of an episode of Law & Order, that seems like a good rule of thumb:  If you’d let your kid watch Law & Order, you can let them play Body of Evidence.

The game’s Seek and Find puzzles consist of a detailed drawing in which players manipulate a zoomed-in camera view to find hidden objects.  Some of them are hidden in the details (like a trumpet in a table leg), but others are tools that you’ll need to use to help solve crimes or investigate other parts of the scene.

Crime Lab: Body of Evidence also features a number of other puzzles, that will have you examining fingerprints, dusting off and collecting evidence and more.

The game also offers an interesting selection of difficulties.  On Relaxed setting, there are no time pressures.  Normal setting lets you get hints when you need them, and the Hard setting takes away the ability to get hints.  Since there’s no way to switch difficulty level without starting over completely, we recommend playing on Normal or Relaxed so you don’t get stuck somewhere.

Crime Lab: Body of Evidence is a game that’s really only able to be enjoyed by a single player.  We liken it to actively participating in a TV crime drama such as Law & Order, and think that if you’re comfortable letting your kids watch shows like that, then you’d be okay letting them take Crime Lab on your family’s next road trip.