If you're the type of person who skips cutscenes or nods off during long bits of exposition between explosions then steer clear of 999. If you want to try something new, though, I would suggest giving the game a look. Aksys has taken a huge risk in bringing something like this to America, and it may just be the necessary ice-breaker to bring a whole new genre to our shores.
Closer to a novel than to gaming itself, it's suited more to an eastern oriented public. Narration is superb, characters simply unforgettable. On the other hand, if you don't like text heavy experiences, this is not the game for you.
It might be a pain to get hold of but this engrossing visual novel has more mystery and tension in its simple text screens than a hundred CGI cut scenes.
999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors is a good experience, and in parts it can be quite clever-I particularly enjoyed that the game made the existence of its multiple endings an explicit part of its plot. Unfortunately, the weak prose doesn't justify the time investment, and the puzzles don't hold up through the mandatory replays.