The
Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion,
The Witch & The Wardrobe
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Good
movie adaptation |
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Great
graphics |
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Co-op
mode
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Simplistic |
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Short |
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A
game based on the movie based on the book....what
a novel idea. by
Cole Smith
December
12, 2005 -
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and
the Wardrobe does an excellent job of paying homage
to the book and movie of the same name. It's definitely
aimed at kids, but then again so is the book and the
movie. It's done so well and contains so much variety
that all gamers will find something to like about
it.
Videogame adaptations of movies are typically poor
but The Chronicles of Narnia appear to be anything
but a rushed production. The gameplay is well paced
and features a lot of variety since the playable characters
all have different abilities that you will need to
harness and exploit to achieve your objectives.

The
Chronicles of Narnia is kind of like an amalgam of
Lord of the Rinds, The Wizard of Oz and Lemony Snicket.
It's heartwarming, funny, engrossing and frightening.
It stars a gang of siblings, Peter, Susan, Lucy and
Edmond that uncover a strange and wondrous world within
their own home.
In
the back of a wardrobe closet exists the enchanted
world of Narnia, filled with all kinds of mythical
creatures such as Centaurs, Minotaurs and Cyclops
with other real-life beasts such as wolves and lions.
The land has been plunged into eternal winter by the
White Witch. With the help of the four children, the
rightful heir to the throne, Aslan the lion, will
be restored and the land of Narnia will cast its frozen
shawl.
All
four characters are playable at various times. Each
has their own distinct ability but you can pair them
up to perform some special moves. Peter is the strongest
of the bunch. He's used to move things, fight enemies
and also has the ability to melt ice. Susan has experience
throwing tennis balls but in this winter wonderland
she can throw snowballs to take out enemies. She also
is able to launch fiery arrows which can clear a path
through a thick thicket. Lucy is small and capable
of getting into tight places and can be thrown to
reach high areas. Ed is capable of scaling walls and
poles. He is used as a lookout as well as for throwing
switches.
One
of the funnier combination moves is when Peter swings
Ed over his head using his face like a hammer to smash
enemies and other objects. More moves can be purchased
with the coins that you collect on your adventure.
Some moves will allow you to kill certain enemies
with one hit. You can also purchase health potions
in addition to various ranged and melee attacks.

You
will need your puzzle solving skills for just about
every leg of the adventure. Not only will you need
to figure out ways to cross chasms and frozen rivers,
open gates and shatter barriers but you'll also need
to use your brain during combat to best utilize the
various skills of each individual character when confronted
by the different enemies. There are a lot of interesting
challenges that you will be confronted with but none
of them are particularly difficult. There are different
ways to accomplish some objectives and you never feel
particularly forced to use a certain character although
there are times when you would be foolhardy not to.
When crossing a frozen river to collect coins for
instance, it's better to let Lucy find the best path
since she's lighter and won't fall through.
At
any time during the gameplay another player can join
in on the action without having to change modes or
otherwise upset game in progress. The two players
can then play as any of the other characters in the
game, even teaming up with each other as Susan rides
piggyback on Peter, throwing projectiles while the
other player controls Peter's direction. Co-op play
can be abandoned at any time and the game will continue
with the single-player once again regaining control
of all four characters. This come-and-go feature is
an excellent one but it can only be selected by the
single player so as to eliminate needless butting
in from potentially annoying players.

You
can go back and visit other areas to look for more
items. The CPU keeps track of the ones that you've
already collected so you can't go back for more of
the same thing. There are some bits of trial and error
that will keep you playing some levels longer that
you might appreciate. Overall the game can be beat
in an afternoon and other than the co-op mode there
isn't much incentive to replay the game but you can
always try to look for more goodies and you might
want to try solving some of the puzzles differently.
This
is a very pretty looking game. The environments possess
a sense of depth that makes them appear very realistic.
They are interactive and even when covered in snow
they generate an aura of warmth. The characters are
well rendered and their personalities are revealed
through cutscenes and great voiceovers. There are
lots of background detail and animations that really
bring this fantasy world come to life. Amidst various
ice castles and frozen forests you can see what appears
to be hundreds of animals and creatures roaming about.
Some of the monsters such as the Cyclops display a
tremendous sense of scale. At times I felt like I
was playing a version of Jason and Argonauts.
Particle
effects replicate falling snow, water, fire and smoke
to a degree of realism typically reserved for computer
animated movies. Speaking of which, the games is so
well aligned with the plot of the movie I would recommend
seeing the movie first since the game is bound to
spoil the surprises for you.
Even
though there is combat in the game it's not a blood
fest. The killing is downplayed in favor of puzzle
solving. There are plenty of non-lethal techniques
at your disposal such as stealth and the ability to
incapacitate enemies such as putting them sleep and
then sneaking past them. The relative ease of the
gameplay and the downplay of violence makes this an
excellent game for kids of all ages - yet it's not
completely sucky. A first-rate adventure for everyone.

Features:
- Live
the epic adventure while playing as one of four
heroes in a team-based action adventure.
- Battle
the evil forces of the White Witch by waging war
against a huge variety of creatures, including Centaurs,
Minotaurs, Minoboars, Cyclops, Werewolves, Wraiths,
Ankleslicers, Wolves, Satyrs, Boggles and more.
- Utilize
the unique combat skills, weaponry and special moves
of each character to fight and fend off hordes of
dark mythical beasts, or solve intricate puzzles
and progress through the adventure.
- Two-player
action featuring all four characters
- Seamless
game play integration of film footage with music
and voice talent plus unlockable secrets to open
exclusive content and more.
By
Cole Smith
CCC
Reviews Editor
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