Up!

Up! The movie, cannot be praised highly enough: the charm of the characters juxtapositioned  against the bizarre circumstances they encounter is nothing short of genius. The journey is incredible, landscapes are impressive and the concept of a floating house does genuinely lift your soul.

Thus there is a lot to expect of Up! The game. Charm, wittism, and breath-taking scenes. Unfortunately it fails to remain true to the films beautiful ideas – the game strips the characters to a basic level, repeats backdrops constantly and disappoints with story line. It is safe to say the game does not pay homage to the movie.

As for the characters, sweet Carl has become dithery, and relies on Russel for help from the beginning: disappointing as the movie plays on this relationship brilliantly. Dug has become even more hyperactive, randomly disappearing and appearing and don’t get me started on the multicoloured ostrich bird that is as helpful as a chocolate teapot.  

The plot is redesigned by the game, it starts with a scene that makes no sense nor appears in the movie – Ariel dog fighting. Now Dug (a big bouncy lovable Labrador) flying a plane via bone shaped controls, is adorable, but few children I know can control a flight simulation, and the over sensitive flying controls are not helpful.

Perhaps this reviewer is expecting too much for a movie tie in game, and after all it does have a lot to offer kids not least attainable trophies/achievements. Attainable because the collectables are not hidden by any concept and in fact glow like a shiny beacon as if to say “I’m here, collect me!”. However the game has delt with this by adding the concept of bug collecting, which only Russel can do.

If “adventure is out there”, adventure is not challenging as the game play is a simple platform, with simple repetitive puzzles.  Puzzles are solved by switching characters; Carl can do some things, Russel others, its co-operative teamwork at its plainest. In case you forget what these few skills are, the game flashes the head of the character needed at you, switching characters done by a button push, which is good because the AI is stupid and cannot do anything for itself.

The game boasts drop-in/drop-out play meaning player two can play the second character for five minutes here and there between cooking dinner and doing housework. Yes, parents, this is a useful quality. It teaches children how to co-operate with a partner, allowing them to show you their work. But player two can not unlock any achievements/trophies whilst playing in cooperative, a daft programming decision – likely to cause fights between siblings.

Another issue, the constant fixed camera which renders blank spots that cannot be explored because you simply cannot see where your character went. This is incredibly irritating  when two of you are playing together, and even the most stress free parent will get annoyed by a disappearing character.

You would not be wrong in assessing this game as a poor man’s LEGO, it is similar in style but lack the finesse that LEGO achieves. The game, although overall clever in design, lacks the originality children have come to expect .   

This game is brilliant for learner gamers, old and young alike due to the user friendly controls, thorough tutorial and the simplified “introductory” level collectables. A child well versed in their console is likely to tire quickly but one new to a control pad may just find it engages them on the right level. Subsequent hours of enjoyment (and peace and quiet) will follow.