Nintendo DS - Transformers the Game

Format
Nintendo DS
Publisher
Activision
Developer
Vicarious Visions
Country of origin
US
Genre
3rd person action

Transformers the Game

By David Rasmussen
27th Aug 07

This year it seems the only quality movie to game translation we’ve seen come out is a game port from the PS2 to the PSP based on a movie from 1979... Mainly The Warriors for the PSP from Rockstar Games.
This doesn’t bode well to the endless glut of games based on movies we’ve seen roll out this year, moreso if you happen to be owning a Nintendo DS only to find out your movie to game translations don‘t even get a 3 out of 5 for being even more mediocre and unplayable than, say, the PSP versions of the same game.
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Sure, just try to find a quality 3 out of 5, heaven forbid 4 out of 5 game worth tying your lucky star onto from this year’s bumper crop of games based on movies for the DS. Stick to the original quirky stuff like Final Fantasy Fables : Chocobo Tales (which I’m reviewing soon for an impressively good score).
Really. Can movie to game based stuff on the DS continuously be this bad?

With that being said, here’s yet ANOTHER movie to game conversion for you to mill over, the many many versions of Transformers the Movie from Activision! Transformers the Game for the Nintendo DS, based more on an alternate storyline roughly paralelling the movie plot (split into two versions, depending on which side you are on). In this version we have the Autobots fighting to stop the Decepticons (led for a good part of the game by tempoary leader Shockwave) as you must stop them from gaining the AllSpark (don’t need to stop them from using Earth’s technology to create a new Decepticon army (with shades of the Decepticlones from that Minicon laden Transformers game of years past, for the PS2/Xbox) because they‘re already all over the place. Here’s a twist, how about a game of Transformers set with a “Freeform” gameplay mode ala Spider-Man 3 or GTA? Really. This game has a type of freeform gameplay… sorta.

It’s not pretty. Far from it. Nor is it all that deep. But at least it’s there, and provides some bit of content that is missing from the PSP version (which is straightforward point A to B wandering). There are a smathering of mission types of side variety to go with storymode, all marked with telltale GTA style tall pillars of light that can be seen at a not too far distance (since the graphics is not fine enough so you can see one of these pillar of lights from a long distance), though abit more depth and variety of modes would have been nice.

Voice acting is nice, and I’m sure it’s the same talent from the other games (though for some reason Optimus Prime’s voice sound like it’s been pieced together from pre recordered soundtracks and bits from other versions of this game. So once again to answer VG Cats, does Transformers the Game suck? Well… I guess it’s OK but it lacks the flash and beauty of other versions of this game. Still… it’s average. Sure, while other movie to game translations sucked out at 2 out of 5 at least this got a slightly better score.
Not going to be perfect, and games like the kid friendly Final Fantasy Fable : Chocobo Tales score higher than Transformers, but at least if you own a DS and want to play Transformers… well… here you go.

But then again what did you expect? This year it seems a whole lot of the movie to game based titles have been either scraping by on low 2 out of 5’s or managing to even out at 3 out of 5’s. Nothing leaping out as the next Chronicles of Riddick : Escape from Butcher’s Bay (Xbox) or the next classic Spider-Man 1 or 2 movie game releases, which is kinda sad especially for Spider-Man since it’s supposed to be the last Spider-Man movie game release (not counting the alternate reality Spider-Man Friend or Foe release this Fall) and they only manage to scrape even or below even on their game releases.

Sure, I haven’t reviewed 100% of the movie to game titles this year, but yet I have not seen a game worthy of real hype. Shrek the Third? Not received so well by reviewers (and apparently Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz couldn’t be bothered to be in this game). Ratatoille? Looks like a platformer title, which is strange in a title about cooking which should have spawned off quite a few Cooking Mama style cooking mini-games, which this game seemingly doesn’t have from what I’ve seen of it.
300? Hack and slash waste of time and space. Frank Miller should really quality control his own video games more often (then again maybe he made the mistake of listening to the game developer, ala the mistake Mr. Gossett did with The Red Star The Game which (if we’re lucky) never sees the light of day).

Transformers the Game is much the same way, average as all let out, but for different reasons than why the PSP version averaged out at 3 out of 5. Graphics are kinda poor and lackluster, gameplay is abit wider in variety though it lacks (again) a good lock on and it seems you mostly flail about punching and haphazardly shooting at things than do anything really spectacular. The freeform gameplay format provides some depth, but still it could have been abit deeper all the same.

On the plus side the game fixes the problem with driving in vechicular mode that was present in the last Transformers game… and getting ahold of piloting is abit easier than in the PSP version, though it still is abit of a work to get the hang of it all the same. Still, why is it no matter what version of the game we’re talking about (two so far) there has yet to be a totally 100% fixed auto/manual locking system?!? And what’s with the flailing about in sloppy hand to hand combat this game has?!? That sucks!! Also the camera work could have used some work, and why is it you seem to lumber about awkwardly while all your main Decepticon enemies seem to be light on their metal feet and quicker than you?

Another plus is the depth of transformations. With an ability to scan vechiles you can store away designs for many different vechiles which provide a depth of transformable forms (each with their own Midnight Club GBA style bar stats marking the differences with each form used) this game packs quite abit of original Transformers modes into one Autobot bod… too bad the graphics isn’t up to the challenge of letting you enjoy the sheer amount of forms you can use in this game.

Oh, and for all the freeform content why does this game have ZERO unlockable content? I mean in a game like this where there is tons of space to explore, and things to unlock why isn’t there any unlockable content?!? That just makes zero sense to me. And yes, once again there is zero movie content in this game. What is with game makers being so allergic to actually putting the movie the game is based on into the game itself! Is it a crime to show us cutscenes and behind the scenes interviews from the movie?!?

Maybe over a dozen or so hours of gameplay, but lacking in bonus content.
Multiplayer (for those playing either Autobot or Decepticon) to go head to head… and not much on that.
Freeform gameplay, yes, but it could have had abit more depth.
So with that all said? Transformers the Game is par for the course it seems (which seems to be an actual plus since most of the other movie to game DS translations seem to suck majorly), with another movie to video game game that falls short of expectations for another 3 out of 5.
Well, like I said at least it’s not another sucky 2 out of 5.

-- David Rasmussen 27th Aug 07

Nintendo DS Transformers the Game Images