Disney Universe is a virtual world containing six different Disney and Pixar lands.  Your guide is an AI cube named VIC and has been “hacked” by his evil alter ego named HEX, who loves chaos and destruction.  HEX has hacked into the Disney Universe and summoned evil programs to wreak havoc.  It is your job to rid the Universe of his evil doings.  You play as a funny, little, big-headed being who dons a suit of one of over 40 different Disney and Pixar characters.  Only a handful of the suits are unlocked to start, the rest to be unlocked whilst progressing through the game.  Pirates of the Caribbean and Alice in Wonderland are two of the six worlds are available to you at the start.  You must collect Golden Mickeys in order to open up the other worlds.

The Pirates world is based on the most recent film, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.  The areas within the levels are pretty small and claustrophobic however they are filled with puzzles that need to be solved in order for you to advance.  The game defaults with guide arrows to help you along, great for just casual, fun play or for young and inexperienced gamers.  You have the option to turn these off if you want a little more of a challenge.  You collect golden Mickey’s that will allow you to unlock worlds and purchase costumes.  These can be found throughout the levels as well as dropped by enemies and appear when items get destroyed.  Each level also has a collection item specific to that world that will unlock either character art, music, or a new costume.  Once you get to a certain point in a level, a challenge arcade will open.  The challenges are optional and range from running from explosions to defeating a set amount of enemies.  Completing challenges will win you gold.

Each character suit can be leveled up to four stars and they do get stronger with each advancement.  I played through with the Cheshire Cat suit for a while before I realized that no matter how many level up stars I collected, it didn’t do anything so when I unlocked the Alice suit, I changed over to her.  It’s a nice way to get you to play with all the different characters.  There didn’t seem to be any difference with any of the characters other than the look so choosing a character is really just player preference.  There are a lot of costumes, art, and music to unlock and, for added replay value, certain things can only be obtained by replaying levels so multiple playthroughs will be required for completionists.  Other costumes will be available as DLC for the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions.

The game also allows for up to four players in local co-op to battle it out against the evil bots or against each other.  While the game is mostly aimed to be co-operative, you can mix it up by messing with your friends in the game.  The game can be played in single player mode as easily as it can be played in multiplayer mode.  At the end of each level, the game tallies up your experience which is determined by how many enemies you kill, how much gold you collect, and how many times you respawn.  You can respawn an infinite amount of times in a level but the more you die the less experience you will earn.

This review is based on the Nintendo Wii version and graphically, the game looks decent.  The worlds are more reminiscent of the films as opposed to exact replicas as is the music.  I was a little disappointed to see that the Alice in Wonderland world was based on the recent Tim Burton film, but that’s because I am a die hard fan of the original animated film.  The music is also more reminiscent of the themes from the film.  They are definitely recognizable but are more based on the music than the actual pieces themselves. The games controls pretty well.  There were no Wii specific controls.  Nothing about the game is super difficult, although I had some issues with platform jumping but I seem to have this issue with all games of this type.

Gamers that have played any of the LEGO series games and/or Little Big Planet will feel right at home with Disney Universe.  Overall, Disney Universe is a great game for players of all ages and skill level and can serve as a fun game to pass the time in single player mode as well as a fun party game with multiple players.  You may not blow hours and hours of your time at once, but it’s a great game to pop in and play for a bit either by yourself or with a friend or two.

Disney Universe is rated E10+ for Everyone 10 years and up and is available now for the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, and PC.  A Mac version will be available but no release date has been announced yet.

A review copy of the game was provided and did not affect the outcome of this review.  This review is based on the Wii version of the game.

They do this through their new controller. It features a standard set of buttons, which includes two analog circle-pads, a d-pad, a four-button layout, two shoulder buttons, and two triggers. All these buttons surround a 6.2″ resistive* touch screen. The demo they showed featured several interesting ways that developers might use the new controller.

First they showed that you can switch the game display from the TV to the new 6.2″ controller screen. The controller, while not a portable device, can work independently of the television because it is receiving a wireless video signal directly from the console. This allows you to use the controller while the TV is on another channel or even while the TV is off.

Next they showed someone using the controller as a drawing tablet to draw a picture of Link. As he drew, the full-color picture was shown both on the controller and on the television screen. This demonstration also showed that the the controller monitor will have a 16:9 aspect ratio that is standard with all HD televisions.

Then they showed the controller on a tabletop with two players playing Othello on the controller monitor. One player was shown clearing the game pieces from the controller screen by tilting the controller on its side. The pieces just fell right off the screen. This shows that the controller can be used to stream two-player board games from the console directly to the tablet so you can use the tablet as a game board.

In a neat little demonstration, they showed that playing defense in baseball can be redefined with the new controller. On the TV was the normal view you might see in a baseball game, with the camera over the shoulder of the pitcher. The controller showed a different view: the catcher’s mitt with crosshairs to indicate where the pitch would travel. Once the hitter hit the ball, the screen switched to an outfielders view where you “aim” the controller at the ball to catch it. Before we get too excited at this though, it is important to point out that this particular demo only featured one controller being passed from one player to the next.

Next up was one of the more unique uses for the controller. The controller was placed on the ground in front of the TV and it showed a golf ball lying in a sand trap. The player stood to the side of the controller with a WiiMote and when she swung, you could see sand fly up on the new controller as the ball flew on the big TV screen.

Then the demo focused on how the controller can work both for casual gamers and hardcore gamers. For casual gamers, they showed that you can use Wii Fit without even turning the TV on. Just grab the Wii U controller and stand on the Wii Fit board. For the hardcore crowd, you can use the controller in conjuntion with a special gun peripheral that allows you to use the screen as an aiming device, like looking through a sniper scope or down a gun’s crosshairs. In the demo, the Wii U screen showed a close-up view of the virtual world displayed on the TV, and the player simply looked around the screen until he found his target: Shigeru Miyamoto.

Then they showed how the controller can be used to send data directly to the TV with no latency issues. Holding the controller vertically, the player was able to send ninja stars flying to the screen by swiping his hand across the controller screen.

You may also be able to make video calls and send data from websites on the controller to the TV screen. You can use the controller to find a website and then swipe the screen towards the TV and it pops up on the television for all to see.

Last, they showed how you can use the controller screen to display an inventory screen, clearing up visual space on the TV. They did this by showing off Link in HD, fighting a gigantic spider in a beautifully rendered cathedral.

During the entire video presentation of the new console, not once did they show a picture of the actual console. Everything was focused on the new controller. They also didn’t mention any of the specifications on which the hardware will be built. We just don’t really know how powerful it will be compared to the current generation of consoles.

Here is what we know so far about the console:

• The new console can wirelessly transmit data to the new controller without latency issues.
• The console will support HDMI, Component, Composite, and S-video input/output, and will feature HD video which will support 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 480p and 480i.
• It will have some sort of connection with the 3DS.
• They are trying hard to get major 3rd-party support as shown in the Announced Games below.
• It’s backwards compatible with all Wii software, controllers and peripherals.
• It uses optical disc media that has 25GB storage (although not Blu-ray).
• It will have internal flash memory and will support SD memory cards and USB mass storage devices.
• It has four USB 2.0 slots.
• It will include Mii Support as found on the 3DS system.
• It will not play Blu-Rays or DVDs.

Here’s what we know about the controller:

• 6.2″ 16:9 resistive* touchscreen that will transmit video data streamed from the console, independent of any television.
• Rumble feature, microphone, accelerometer, gyroscope, stylus, and an inward-facing camera.
• Two analog circle-pads, D-Pad, Four-Button layout, two shoulder buttons (L & R), and two triggers (ZL & ZR).
• Full games can be streamed from the console to the controller, but it has to be in range of the console and the console has to be on.
• The Wii U controller is NOT a portable gaming device.

Here are the games that have been announced:

Third Party

• Lego City Stories (TellTale Games)
• Darksiders 2 (THQ)
• Metro: Last Light (THQ)
• Tekken (Namco Bandai Games)
• Batman: Arkham City (WB Interactive)
• Assassin’s Creed (Ubisoft)
• Ghost Recon Online (Ubisoft)
• Killer Freaks From Outer Space (Ubisoft)
• Raving Rabbids (Ubisoft)
• Dirt (Codemasters)
• Aliens Colonial Marines (Sega)
• Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge (Tecmo Koei)

First Party

• Super Smash Bros.
• Pikmin 3

Here’s what we don’t know:

• Technical Specs, although we know it runs on some IBM quad-core chipset that will be able to support full 1080p HD.
• What Nintendo’s online strategy will be (Friend Codes?).
• Launch Date and Titles.
• Prices for the console/controllers.
• Whether you can use more than one tablet controller at a time.
• Exactly what disc media they will be using.
• If it will have a media center like PSN or Xbox Live.
• What will be included with the system (pack-in game?/controller?)

There is still a lot to be discussed, and from what I have read and heard from those in development, the development kit is not complete and the demos you have seen are not really what you are going to get. Not only that, but those few teams that were lucky enough to get development kits have only had them for a very short time.

My thoughts:
The announcement for this console reminds me of the Wii reveal. They focused so much on the new controller that some people didn’t even get that it was a new console. Nintendo’s President, Satoru Iwata, stated

“Because we put so much emphasis on the controller, there appeared to be some misunderstanding”.

Of course, if you ever read any video game websites you would have known they were announcing a console, not a controller.

The general response from gamers in forums and on websites on the Wii U is mixed at best. While it’s hard to argue that there is an innovative factor with the new controller, some are fearful that developers will not fully explore the functionality and it will just end up being a gimmicky controller.  Others state that even though it would be great to have Nintendo games in HD, there are still so many questions and some of the answers to those questions would be deal-breakers when deciding to purchase a new system.

The fact that Nintendo refuses to spend the money to include Blu-Ray or DVD playback is frustrating for some. For me, I agree with the statement from Iwata who said:

“Wii U does not have DVD or Blu-ray playback capabilities. The reason for that is that we feel that enough people already have devices that are capable of playing DVDs and Blu-ray, such that it didn’t warrant the cost involved to build that functionality into the Wii U console because of the patents related to those technologies.”

Don’t think that Nintendo could include Blu-Ray playback for cheap. Blu-Ray is a Sony entity and they would most likely charge a pretty penny for Nintendo to include that technology. Besides, you can now get decent Blu-Ray players on the cheap these days. While nothing official has been stated, I’m sure they will include a Netflix application that will feature movies in HD. It just wouldn’t be worth the extra cost that it would take to include Blu-Ray playback.

It is also undecided whether or not multiple tablet controllers will be supported. I have done a ton of research, and as it turns out, the chipset they are most likely using has the capability to stream 1 HD signal and 4 SD signals at the same time. Here is the kicker: how much could one of these new controllers cost to make? Iwata has stated that they are focusing on one controller for now because to make games that feature multiple controllers forces people to buy extra controllers. He seems to be alluding that these controllers are expensive to make. However, they really aren’t.

Since they are using a standard size, 16:9 ratio, standard definition, resistive touchscreen, the cost of the screen itself is actually less than $50 retail. With a lot of digging and a ton of calls, I found that you can get one of these screens for less than $20 in bulk! Add the casing, the buttons, and the electronics, and you can manufacture these in mass for around $60 each. Research has shown that people would be willing to pay around $80 to have the experience that multiple controllers would give. That is a $20 markup for Nintendo!

Finally, there is the question of their long-term online plans. It stands to reason that this will be the make or break feature of the system. If the online experience is anything like the Wii’s, it could be doomed. I think Nintendo realizes this, and from the rumors I have heard and some of the “slips” from developers, Nintendo has ditched the friend codes and has made the online experience possibly better than the competition by using the controller as your online presence (which can be used with the console off).

Much like the year prior to the Wii launch, there are a ton of things for Nintendo to iron out before official announcements are made. Fortunately for us, the longer they wait to decide, the cheaper the technology will become and that will benefit us in the long run. While Iwata doubts that they can release this console for less than $250 retail (and I’m sure they won’t), it could definitely be produced for less than $300. Of course, the value of the console will be determined when all the answers to the big questions come in.

Thank you for reading!!

* A resistive touchscreen senses contact from virtually any object. The other type of touchscreen is a capacitive touchscreen, which senses objects that can pass through an electric signal, such as a finger. Resistive touchscreens typically do not support multi-touch and are less expensive to manufacture.

One of the things that the Lego movie games have done really well is tell a brief version of a story through humorous cutscenes without any dialogue. With Pirates being such a complicated story, re-telling this story without any spoken words is no small task. They do as good a job as possible, but the story, especially the last two movies: At World’s End and On Stranger Tides, are just too convoluted to follow. You really have to know the story already to get anything but an occasional chuckle out of it.

Still, you have to hand it to Traveller’s Tales for even attempting such a daunting set of movies, and giving them all to us in one game is a great value. There is truly a lot of collecting and gameplay for two players. But what is the true value of all that gameplay if it isn’t any good? Fortunately, the tried and true formula works really well for this franchise.

These games are about exploring, solving puzzles, and bashing things to Lego bits. You go from one locale to the next putting the sword to anything and everything. Most things are destructible and if you spend enough time on a level, you will discover some pretty devious puzzles to solve. Solving these puzzles require you to use different characters that are available to you. Some characters carry a gun, some hunt for treasure, and others can fix things. For the majority of the puzzles that you have to solve in order move the story along, they will give you a hint as to what character to use if you are trying to do something that requires another character. Other puzzles leave you to your wits, and sometimes this poses a challenge that makes you wonder if this game was for kids or adults, which in my opinion is a good thing.

Getting around is simple enough. You can run, jump and attack. There isn’t any major combos to learn, and only certain characters can do a double-jump, and only in specially  marked spots. This keeps the game from becoming overly complicated which makes it kind of a mindless romp through a great pirate adventure.

The locales are all very well done. You will travel through taverns, villas, ports, pirate ships, coves, caves swamps, deserts, forests, and to the World’s End. The graphics, even on the Wii, look great and the characters feature subtle detail such as Jack Sparrow’s drunken swagger. Most everything is made out of digital legos, which really adds to the charm and humor of the game.

If you have played other Lego games, you are going to find that the same problems with control still exist. Countless and pointless deaths await you at every corner as you try to jump to areas that look like you should be able to reach, only to find out that you just jumped a little off target. This frustration only increases when you add a second player that is struggling with the same issue. More deaths are in store during combat, when you accidentally lock on to your partner and start wailing on them with your sword while they are yelling “That’s me! That’s me!”. The punishment for such deaths is truly minimal in the scope of things, still it’s just a little frustrating, especially when falling means having to retread a large portion of a level over and over again because you keep missing a simple jump.

Lego Pirates of the Caribbean uses a unique split-screen that is created as your two characters move apart from each other. This is really cool because it allows you to know exactly where you partner is in relation to you, and at the same time gives you maximum view for your character. This is a vast improvement from having both players share the same screen. However, sometimes the view created cuts off your view where you need it most. It is also very disorienting, and you may or may not ever get used to it.

Then there is the scene transitions. If one of your characters moves into a new area, the scene shifts automatically to the new area. It doesn’t give the other player time to leave as well. While this keeps the game moving, it would have been nice for them to at least give the other player a countdown to get to the door before switching scenes. This is most irritating when you are just about to collect something and your partner accidentally exits the level.

Overall, the game does a great job at capturing the universe, translating it into gameplay mechanics, and stays true to the Traveller’s Tales/Lego game formula. Using the unique aspects of different key characters, solving puzzles that are sometimes a little devious in their simplicity, and bashing everything is sight all have a basic charm that keeps you busy for hours at a time. Bringing a friend along is the way to enjoy this game, although, going back through levels on Free Play to collect hidden items can be fun on your own. I can easily recommend this game to fans of the other Lego games and for anyone that loves the Pirates movies and is looking for another way to enjoy the adventures of Jack Sparrow and company.

LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game is rated E10+ for Everyone 10 years and older and is available now for the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, PS3, PSP, Mac, and PC.

You play the game using the Wii remote and Nunchuk configuration and as you progress through the game, you can unlock different combos, increase your health, and buff your character through the use of Runes.  Runes, when equipped, grant Thor special abilities such as regenerating health and Odinforce, the game’s version of mana. You can find Runes scattered throughout each level along with concept art pieces that you may view in the game’s art gallery.

The game starts out kind of fun as you learn the moves and fight off hordes of enemies,  but it quickly becomes mundane and repetitive. The designers attempt to mix things up by giving enemies slight variations such as fire and ice alignments, however all you need to do is equip the required element and the battle becomes exactly the same as the last. You enter a room, clear it out, rinse, repeat. The only thing that mixes things up are the boss battles and the flight levels.

However, even the flight levels get old really fast. It just becomes an on-rails version of the ground-based levels. You can dodge enemy attacks, but all you are doing is pointing the Wii remote at the screen to aim and shoot at enemies. So, the boss battles must be really good then, right? Not really.

You fight massive boss battles at the end of each level, but by the time you reach the final fight you have already faced off with several mini-bosses that are defeated the exactly the same way, with the last boss throwing in more hordes of enemies just to up the difficulty and frustrate you. You run around in a circle avoiding attacks and mashing buttons to attack. It doesn’t help that the in-game camera is fixed which sometimes makes it difficult to see important areas that are off-screen. This was especially annoying during boss battles, however it was prevalent throughout the whole game.

The camera issues only served to magnify the loose control of Thor. Jumping and switching directions during combat works well, however the dash move and pulling off combo moves are difficult to control. With the fixed camera, you may end up just dashing right to the side of the camera and it takes a second for it to catch up with you. Also, the Wii just doesn’t always track your motion control the way you expect it to, and you end up just shaking it around in hopes you pull off a combo or special attack.

Fortunately, you don’t have to rely on combos too much as most of the game can be played through by button mashing. Although it does help to learn some of the combo moves, you can get through the game just as easy with out them.  Boss battles generally require you to use a newly learned move in order to defeat them and the hardest part of the game is pulling off some of these moves. The game uses quick time elements that have you flailing the Wii remote and nunchuk, rapidly pressing buttons, as well as waving the Wii remote in the directions indicated.  This also got old and felt entirely overused throughout the game.

I didn’t really notice the music too much which is fine, but some of the sound effects are annoying.  One level, in particular, had an alarm buzzing the entire time I was in the level.  Thank goodness the options menu grants you the ability to adjust the volume of everything, including the sound effects. The game features Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Tom Hiddleston as Loki, but the voice acting was atrocious.  It almost felt like a joke.

The graphics are presented in a comic book style and at first I didn’t mind, but I think that there could have been more detail. It captures the comic book feel, but the game could have just as well been a GameCube title. The story cutscenes are more of a camera panning over what looks like concept art, which is an interesting way to work with the Wii’s graphical shortcomings,  but the Wii has more power than they are using. Unfortunately, this also made the story harder to follow.

Thor: God of Thunder ends up being a bad God of War “light”. I can’t really recommend this game to anyone but children that might be Thor fanatics.  I am not at all familiar with the comic book, so I’m not really sure if this would please or irritate long-time Thor fans.  And yet while this game does seemed suited for younger kids, the difficulty may prove to be frustrating for them. You can select your difficulty at any point in the game, however even the easy setting had some moments where you were fighting the control more than the enemy.

Thor: God of Thunder is rated T for Teen and is available now for the Wii, Xbox 360, PS3, and the Nintendo DS.

A review copy of the game was provided and did not affect the outcome of this review.

Check out our review Thor God of Thunder Nintendo DS review and the Xbox 360 version.

After a brief introduction, the game picks up when Rapunzel leaves her tower and starts her adventure with Flynn Rider.  They must work together to get to the castle.  The game can be played as a single player game, with AI controlling the second character, Flynn.  You can switch back and forth between Rapunzel and Flynn on the fly and you will have to do this a lot in order to advance through the game.  You can also play the game in co-op mode, where the second player takes that role, making the game a little less frustrating.

The game is styled as a 2D/3D platformer. The camera moves left and right as you move, like a side-scrolling platformer, but you can move into the background, kind of like the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game. Depth perception can be tricky when trying to make particular jumps, so you will have to make several attempts to make what looks like a very simple jump.  The controls can be spotty. You must shake the Wii remote to do certain actions in the game and I felt like I had to shake the crap out of the controller just to get it to do something in the game. This could have been me trying too hard or just bad recognition by the game.

Levels consisted of little tasks to complete in order to advance.  Within each level, you collect pictures for Rapunzel’s memory book by blooming flowers as well as finding and collecting new pallatte colors.  The pictures and colors collected are then used to paint pictures for particular characters to complete tasks.  While you can finish a level without collecting all of the items, certain pictures call for the use of particular colors, so you may as well collect them.  Most of the items are easy to find.

The level design was not over complicated although it felt like most levels began in the middle with you having to go all the way to the right, complete some tasks, then retrace your steps all the way over to the left of the level, complete some more tasks, then retrace your steps back to the beginning of the level to end it.  This sometimes caused some confusion as to where to go next but if that happens, Pascale, Rapunzel’s chameleon friend, points you in the right direction.

The game also features little mini-games like racing, collecting, and working together to do particular tasks like breaking certain colored barrels or keeping lanterns from touching the ground.  The AI wasn’t particularly intelligent and during some mini-games, the AI character often gets in your way.  But since the game isn’t terribly difficult to play, this doesn’t cause any issues except general frustration.

Tangled works slightly better as a co-op game but still functions well as a single player game.  The inclusion of co-op is a nice addition especially for families with more than one child.  This can also allow a parent and child to play the game together.

Combat is rather simple in the game with Rapunzel wielding her trusty frying pan and Flynn a sword.  A fun fact is that no one actually dies in the game.  Rapunzel can whack guards with her frying pan which only knocks them back.  Only Flynn can knock them out.  Zzzz’s appear when the enemy is KO’d and after a short time, they disappear.  The game’s focus is less on combat and really more about Rapunzel and Flynn working together to get through the levels and to the castle.

Despite the beauty of Disney animation, the graphics aren’t very impressive.  There are a lot of jaggy lines and not a lot of detail.  The cutscenes steal the show as they use a painterly style to move the story along.  This works well within the Wii’s graphics capabilities and were fun to watch.  The voice acting was also a little disappointing which took me by surprise.  The dialog seemed cut from the film as opposed to recorded specifically for the game.  It felt choppy and lacked emotion in some portions.  During dialog cutscenes there is an annoying little chime after each character spoke.  That was especially annoying and I’m not entirely sure why it was there.  The music, however, is another highlight of the game, taken from the film’s score, it worked well and never got old.

There are some minor differences between the film and the game like Flynn’s nose for treasure.  In the game, he can pretty much sniff it out and when it’s found, he then digs it up like a dog.  Some levels feature more of the characters than seen in the film but it’s a nice opportunity to get into the story and get to know some of these characters.  Rapunzel wields a frying pan and Flynn wields a sword, although he rarely, if ever, used a sword in the film.  There is a missed opportunity to build a level featuring the dam scene from the film.  I watched that part thinking the whole time how awesome that would’ve been to play in the game.

Kids and fans of the film will probably get the most enjoyment out of this game. It promotes working together to achieve your goal. It’s also paced well for children as it is a rather short game and can be completed in about 5-7 hours depending on the skill of the player. There is some moderate replay value if you want to collect everything in the levels and complete all of the mini-game objectives.

Tangled is rated E for Everyone and is available now for the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS.

A review copy of the game was provided but did not affect the outcome of this review.

The new movie is due out on December 17, 2010 and continues the story of Flynn, who has gone missing. His son has to enter the computer world to find him, and we get to see what a decades of upgrades can do to the computer world. It goes without saying that Tron and video games go hand-in-hand.

I was really excited to get to review Tron Evolution Battle Grids for the Wii. I grew up with Tron and it holds a special place in my heart that sits alongside Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars. I dumped so many quarters into the original Tron arcade game that I could have bought a cabinet of my own. With the new movie coming out, I couldn’t think of a better way to warm up to the movie than playing through Tron Evolution Battle Grids. I was wrong.

The game starts with little fanfare. Considering its a video game based on a movie about video games, I kind of expected the game to start with me getting sucked into a computer! Instead I got kind of a plain title screen with the standard “Press A” to start. If that was the worst of it all, I would be pretty happy. Instead, the whole game is kind of a rushed mess.

There are three modes: Grid Games, Championship, and Story Mode. Grid games introduces you to the various games you will be competing in.  You can choose Team Battle or have a Free-For-All. You then pick a game, set the options, and then play. Championship Mode has you pick a set of events to compete in with an overall points winner at the end. Story Mode puts you in the role of a new ISO (rookie) on the game grid as you work your way up the Leaderboards while meeting characters along the way.

Let me talk about the good things first, since there are fewer of those. It’s good that they give you a ton of options when picking a game. You can tweak the gameplay to offer lots of flexibility. Your character can level up, and you can buy upgraded equipment by spending “Bits” that you pick up in Story Mode. It’s also cool that you can create and name your own avatar.

However, even creating your avatar is not very much fun. It’s like making a Mii only not fun. Most of the facial shapes look the same with an animation style that reminds me of the Star Wars Clone Wars animated series: long and sharp chins, but without any hint of a CG look to it. You can’t import your Mii, which would make it much more fun (can you imagine some of your Miis with the Tron suit on!). You can customize every part of your suit, but really it’s just for show and not much else. Since you can’t play online, there is no identity to be had with your avatar.

The game offers no real tutorial or hints. When you first start a game, it explains the controls and the basics of the game, but never HOW to play the game. You just kind of have to get killed hundreds of times to even figure out what your supposed to do in each round. You might win a round or two by pure luck, but until you upgrade your equipment, you are pretty much fodder. You can set the AI to easy, but then they are so dumb that you don’t really learn anything. It makes me wonder if this game was even play tested.

The control is absolutely terrible. Most of the games you can play holding the controller on its side, but you have use the pointer to select things on the menu. Some games are best holding the controller on its side, and others are better with the analog stick and nunchuck, but there is no real great way since you will have problems either way.

If you hold it on its side, which is best for light cycles and light discs, you miss out on the precision of the analog stick. If you use the nunchuck combination, the mapping of the buttons makes it awkward. The jump button is mapped to the C Button on the nunchuck? Really? This is especially painful because the game features a double jump. Trying to do a double jump with your forefinger and move the analog stick with your thumb is harder than patting your head and rubbing your tummy at the same time.

The game could still be recommended if the mini games were any good. The games are Light Cycle Arena, Light Discs, Light Cycle Race, Grid Tanks, Runner Arena, Runner Race, and Hyper Ball. Sadly, I really couldn’t find a standout in the game. It was more like trying to find the game that sucked the least. I would have to say that the Light Cycles fit that bill.

In Light Cycles, you have to get other players to run into the trail that your cycle leaves in its wake. In the original game of Tron, your trail stayed on the screen until you were destroyed (Derezzed in Tron speak) and you could only turn in 90 degrees. In this version, your trail dissipates after a short distance and you can make full turns as well as make sharp 90 degree turns. The game also gives you a split second to turn AFTER you hit a wall. This is nice because the game is so frenetic, you need a moment to react. However, the control is really loose, the map is impossible to use, the view makes it really tough to find the enemy, even with the backwards view the game provides, that it just isn’t any fun.

Runner Race is a close second, but that’s only because it is almost exactly like the Light Cycles only you have weapons and you can’t make 90 degree turns. It’s hard enough to control your vehicle, but you also have to fire weapons? It’s all possible, but it’s just not worth the time and effort it takes to learn the controls.

Believe it or not, the rest of the games go downhill from there. Light Discs is complete chaos where you could be winning one second, and then get killed right when you respawn and end up losing without ever knowing why. You have bomb discs, but it never really explains when and how to use them other than by pressing 1 and 2 at the same time. Hyper Ball seems OK, but the mechanic in it is so far removed from what you onscreen character is doing, that it is completely counter-intuitive. Reacting to a shot from the opponent is a waste, because their shot will change direction when it hits the ceiling (I know that makes no sense to you, but honestly, it doesn’t matter). Tanks is embarrassing. You have to point at the screen to aim and use the analog stick to move…sounds great. Then when it starts, your tank moves like crap, other tanks are flying around the screen shooting at break-neck speed and you are left to dust. Then, out of nowhere, you end up destroying an enemy tank, and you are not sure how.

The game also features a local Leaderboard, which means nothing to me because there is no way I would spend enough time with the game for it to ever matter.

The Tron franchise is a bit of an anomaly. The fan-driven 80′s computer geek romp was not critically acclaimed, but it had some of the most amazing effects for its time, not to mention an amazing music score by Wendy Carlos. It suffered from being way ahead of its time, so it seems to me that a reboot in this decade would make it a perfect fit for video games. Judging by this first effort, maybe I’m wrong. Sorry Disney, I really wanted to love this game, it just wouldn’t let me.

TRON Evolution Battle Grids is rated E10+ for Everyone 10 years old and up and is available now for the Nintendo Wii.  TRON Evolution is available for the Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo DS, PC, and PSP.

A review copy was provided and did not affect the outcome of this review.  This review is based solely on the Nintendo Wii version.

Scooby-Doo and the Spooky Swamp is a sequel to Torus Game’s First Frights, which was released in conjunction with the DVD release of Scooby-Doo! the Mystery Begins, a live-action movie. Spooky Swamp uses the same unique animation style featured in the first game and follows Mystery Inc. as they solve a mystery that all starts with an empty stomach.

Shaggy and Scooby are at the Mystery Inc. clubhouse that was introduced in the feature film Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. They catch a whiff of something delicious coming from the swamp outside, and decide to follow their noses to see if they can get a taste of whatever is responsible for the delectable aroma. What they find is a witch brewing a potion that is missing some key ingredients, and the mystery begins from their. The plot starts out simplistic but gets much more convoluted as you progress through the game.

The gameplay consists mostly of controlling on of the members of Mystery Inc. and combating various enemies, while searching for clues and collectibles. To help, each character has a different ability: Shaggy can use his yo-yo to swing from certain areas, Scooby-Doo can utilize the various doggy doors throughout each location, Velma can use her intellect to operate devices, Daphne can climb poles, and Fred can push heavy objects. You also have access in certain areas to a magnifying glass and a camera to help collect clues. Using a pin board to organize the clues you find on your adventure, you get a chance to identify the villain of the adventure.

The combat is pretty straight forward. You have a single attack, which varies depending on your character. Both Velma and Shaggy have ranged attacks, and Scooby, Fred and Daphne are melee fighters. In addition, each character can jump and perform a ground-pound attack. To keep things a little varied, there are certain enemies that require you to use items to defeat, such as the wrestler who is vulnerable to water that you can find in buckets. Overall, there isn’t that much strategy to it.

The game tries to mix it up a bit with some sleuthing sections and chase scenes, however most of the game will be running around three main areas and collecting various objects such as keys, clues, masks, Scooby Snacks, dog collars and letters to spell S-C-O-O-B-Y. While the game is a little repetitive and boring for the older fans of the franchise, the younger crowd will appreciate some of the nice little touches that are added to make the game more accessible. For example, you will never die if you fall into the swamp or off a cliff. This is a really good idea since you will probably fall a lot as you get used to the camera angles in the game. Also, you can switch between characters on the fly. If you lose all your health, you will respawn quickly, but you will lose some of the Scooby Snacks you have collected.

One downside to the game is a lot of backtracking with no map. The game isn’t too difficult that this poses a serious problem, but if you put the game down for awhile there is only a little snippet that tells you what you are supposed to be doing, so you will have to wander a bit as you get your bearings. The enemies respawn each time you enter an area, and they get a little more menacing as you progress through the story and your character’s abilities never grow in strength. However, even with the added challenge, there will be times where you are going back through the same area just to get a little bit of information, then it’s back again to find more. It can get a little tedious if you are used to rich level design, but it’s fine for the younger audience.

The game features drop-in/drop out co-op so if you need a little help in a section, a friend can easily jump into the game with you and just as easily drop out.  It is not split-screened co-op, so you may battle with your buddy when trying to explore certain areas in the game but the easy co-op is a really nice feature of the game.

The character design is a departure from the animation from the series, but the characters all have the look and feel of their television counterparts. The voice acting of the Mystery Inc. characters is really good. They all have the nuances of the characters they are imitating, and if you are a real fan of the series, you will notice only slight differences.

The music is decent, if not forgettable. It captures the essence of each area you are exploring, but doesn’t use any of the familiar themes associated with Scooby Doo. Some of the sound effects are there, but they are not abundant or accurate enough to make you feel like you are truly inside a Scooby-Doo mystery. There is a laugh track to accompany some of the bad jokes made during the game, however the comic timing of the game itself is a little off.

The design of the game as a whole is a hit or miss affair. There is little pressure or consequence, which I find a nice change of pace from the games I’ve been playing lately. I can recommend this game for younger audiences that enjoy the cartoon, but there just isn’t enough in the game to hook anyone else. A parent or guardian may be able to get into the mix with the children, but I don’t think you will find too many adults playing this on their own. To be fair though, it’s not a bad game, it’s just a little shallow to suggest it to experienced gamers, even if you love the show.

Scooby-Doo and the Spooky Swamp is rated E10+ for everyone 10 years and up and is available now for the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and PlayStation 2.

A review copy of the game was provided but did not affect the outcome of this review. This review was based on the Wii version of the game.

Now, I’ve played pretty much every karaoke video game on the market (US market, anyways) from the PS2 versions of Karaoke Revolution to Lips, SingStar, and of course, Rock Band and Guitar Hero.  Funny enough, I had never tried the Disney Sing It series.  There are two main modes to play – Sing It (solo) and Party Play (1-8 players).  There is also a Vocal Coach trainer featuring Demi Lovato as your vocal coach.  You can view your trophy status in Trophies, view the high scores in High Score, change the game options in the Options menu, and access the online store and worldwide Leaderboards in the Online Play menu.  It should be noted that there is no online multiplayer featured in this game.  The game comes bundled with one USB mic and will work with any USB mic you have from other games like Rock Band or Guitar Hero.

Surprisingly, the Vocal Coach mode has some pretty decent pointers and is a great place for beginners to start.  Demi goes through proper posture and breathing to riffs and power singing.  If you have never played a karaoke style video game, this will get you up to speed by the time you finish the training.  You can go back to it at any time and it serves as a nice little warm up before you start.  The Vocal Coach is only good for one player at a time so if you have friends over, you will have to run through the training separate for accurate scoring.  I had a friend over to help me review the game since I really didn’t know any of the songs featured on the disc!  Our only issue with the Vocal Coach was that is was a little confusing as to when we were supposed to come in and since we didn’t know what Demi was singing, it was hard to follow along.  To fully take advantage of the Vocal Coach, you will need to do it a few times to really learn the training melodies she is using.

Sing It is the quick drop in mode, you just select a song and start singing!  At the beginning, you choose your difficulty – Easy, Medium, Hard – and Normal or Karaoke Mode.  In Karaoke Mode, the artist’s vocals are turned down.  This is the single player mode and only features the one singing line.  The game is scored using pitch detection.  The closer you are to the correct pith, the higher your score will be.  The game gives you feedback as you sing.  As you sing correct notes and pitch, your style meter will begin to fill.  Once completely filled, your Style level will increase and you earn more and more points.  At the end of the song, you will receive your score.  A fun bonus is the Encore button appears and will allow you to playback your last performance.  During the Encore, you will have access to effects that you can toggle on or off during the performance.

Party Play is where things really heat up.  You can choose the following modes: Duet, Competition, Performance, Team Play, Pass the Mic, Sing-Off, and Karaoke.  Duet allows you to play with another player by singing alternate parts and even harmonies depending on the song and the difficulty.  You can choose to pass the mic or have one mic per player.  In Competition, you can play against friends where each of you sings the same song and the one with the highest score wins.  If you have two mics, you can sing together and the one with the highest score wins.  Performance mode can be played with one or more players where you sing along with the videos – with no on-screen help or scoring!  This is for those who really know the songs!  Team Play allows you to compete in separate teams; Pass the Mic is for up to six players to sing a part then pass it the mic to the next player; Sing-Off is the head to head mode for up to eight players .  You can even split into two teams and compete.  And last is the Karaoke mode with the artist’s vocals turned down.

Overall, the Disney Sing It: Party Hits is an accurate and fun karaoke video game.  Our only complaint was that the actual sing screen was hard to follow, especially with two or more players.  We had a hard time figuring out which mic was Player 1 or 2 and the song lyrics were set up so they were above the pitch board.  The lyrics were more like a teleprompter than karaoke.  If you don’t know the songs very well (like me), it made it difficult to “read” the music and get the words right.  It would’ve been great to be able to modify that set up in the game’s options to have the lyrics appear on the pitch board.  Other than that, the pitch detection was pretty spot on and I had no issues with vocal lag.  This particular game is definitely aimed at the tween Disney crowd with a few extra songs like Owl City’s Fireflies and Paramore’s Ignorance and Brick by Boring Brick thrown into the mix.   If you have the PS3 version, you will be able to download more songs in the future including the free Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus) track – Ordinary Girl.

Disney Sing It: Party Hits is rated E for Everyone and is available now for the Nintendo Wii and the PlayStation 3 for $39.99.

A review copy of the game was provided and did not affect the outcome of this review.  This is a review of the PS3 version.