|
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and
the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is the
game based on the film of the same name, which is, in turn, based on the
classic book series from C.S. Lewis. It’s pretty much the expected romp
into the realm of most fantasy adventure games out there. A fare mix of
adventure and that ever so used to make a game longer than it actually
is trick…the puzzle solving. Combat here is light, so nothing to over
the top that the kids did not see if the saw the film. Speaking of
which, the game follows the film pretty close and also uses a lot of the
film as cut scenes to open a sequence of game play and also to close
game play sequences.
Levels are varied enough to keep gamers some semblance of interest even
if they are not a major fan of the books or film. To get along in the
game the player has to utilize the playable characters, switching
between them since they each have some special abilities not possessed
by the other. There are four playable characters to switch back and
forth from and not all of the game is a hack and slash dungeon crawl as
one may expect. Too true you start feeling like maybe you should be
guarding a special ring from the all seeing eye, oh wait that’s another
game and another story. But the game similarity is enough to make you
feel that way. Now this is not necessarily a bad thing mind you, and
don’t let that turn you away from the game. There is a bit more to the
game in respects to getting from one level to the next. You have to
think about the situation and decide on who of the four siblings would
be best suited for the task at hand.
For the hard core action gamers who want to vanquish the enemy, they may
be turned off a bit since there are puzzles to vanquish
There are 15 levels to slog through and at any time you are able to use
the characters abilities… Peter has strength and he comes in real handy
in battles. Edmund is the athletic type and can climb and is very fast,
Susan can throw stuff…yea, that’s what I said throw stuff. Like
snowballs, she can also use a bow and arrow though, So she comes in
handy too. Always interesting how a movie turns into a game, with
characters having some abilities that no one would think could come in
use, but in the game world they are just what is needed to get by. Now
then there is Lucy. she is the cute one with her charm she convinces
other creatures and critters to not only help them, but fight for her.
Lucy can also climb into small places that the others cannot. There are
times that the family members can combine their abilities for pretty
powerful attacks.
Now as with most adventure puzzle games on the market that have that
formula, there are items to collect and bonus items to be found. All
items are helpful in the game and the ultimate goals are upgrading the
characters abilities and or health or even new nifty attacks. You can
also use items to unlock bonus content such as movie clips, that’s
pretty cool I guess.
While the game may not hold an adults interest for too long, Pre teens
and fans of the film and books may find that crucial hook to keep them
going with this game.
Those who really like it may find themselves finishing the game in 8 to
10 hours. A friend of mine did it in three days on normal.
One of the more fun bonus levels is “Follow Aslan” it gets pretty
difficult near the end with werewolves and all… and I for one have never
been a fan of beating the clock tasks in a game. On that same token
though, it is always a jolt when you do beat the clock.
In the end it does some justice to the film, but adult may not find the
game worth the time to play. Fans and pre teens will enjoy the game for
what it is and the humor sprinkled through out will be cause for some
chuckles here and there.
The Chronicles of Narnia is out for PS2, PC, DS and GBA and Xbox.
Have fun, play games
Edwin and Shael Millheim
 |
