When films are adapted for release
on video-game platforms, they are often given the cold shoulder by critics.
This is unsurprising, given the game’s reliance on an established franchise in
order to sell. After all, if an animated children’s film is converted into a
game, the average six-year old isn’t going to consult online resources to
determine the game’s quality. They will simply beg and scream for it, until
the spineless parent yields to puerile pressure and purchases the game.
However, the old stereotype of awful movie-to-game adaptations appears to be
weakening in recent days. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs provides an
outstanding example of a thoughtfully constructed title that holds its own as
a solid piece of home entertainment for the family.
As the budgets for both films and
games have skyrocketed over the last decade, production values have taken
great precedence in game development. For Dawn of the Dinosaurs, no expense
was spared in gathering the film’s all-star cast to once again fill the shoes
(hooves, paws, etc.) of their digital counterparts. While some familiar
characters, such has Dennis Leary’s throaty smilodon,
are played by different actors, most of the original cast seems to be back in
action. Even Ray Romano is instantly recognizable as the appropriately
long-nosed woolly mammoth.
While some movie games seem to
rely exclusively on star power, Ice Age has taken no chances. The animation
team has done an excellent job of bringing each character to life with
cartoonish expressions and anthropomorphic antics
galore. Obviously, children playing the game aren’t likely to learn much about
prehistoric wildlife (the animals are talking, coexisting with creatures that
have been extinct for millions of years, and so forth), but it may at least
serve to spark an interest in paleontology. At its core, Ice Age utilizes
several mechanics to offer a fun gameplay experience without anything
shockingly inappropriate for young players.
Running, jumping, and exploring
are all rudimentary elements of this platformer.
Dawn of the Dinosaurs also manages to squeeze in such familiar elements as
object collection and character upgrading, without making it too complicated
for children to enjoy. Essentially, the player can collect bits of fruit found
scattered throughout the levels. This fruit is understandably valuable during
this frigid era in the planet’s history (how it even exists is a grand
mystery, nevermind how it manages to constantly
levitate above the ground). Once collected, the fruit can be used to purchase
various upgrades for a character to increase their capabilities.
Playing as a variety of characters
also helps to liven things up a bit. Manny the
mammoth can uproot tree trunks, and swat aside enemies that might be a menace
to smaller characters. Sid the sloth can make use of a fiery torch to melt
cobwebs and slabs of ice, rather like a certain green-garbed hero that older
players might be familiar with. Despite the simplicity of the mechanics, the
pace is very nicely maintained throughout the course of even a single level;
the game rarely feels too sluggish or too intense. One minute the player might
be tossing snowballs at dim-witted dodo birds, and later find himself in the
middle of a perilous prehistoric rodeo. Dawn of the Dinosaurs is surprisingly
diverse in its presentation and use of mechanics in order to present a fresh
gameplay experience.
Accomplishing various collection
tasks can also unlock bonus material, such as concept art galleries and video
clips. It is unknown whether these rewards will be sufficient motivation for
children to play through the single-player game repeatedly, as I suspect they
will be drawn to the fun gameplay itself. Since the campaign is not exactly
epic in scale, the developers have included a number of multiplayer modes.
Like the campaign, these modes are easy to pick up and play, which makes them
a nice addition for kids with visiting friends. Being similar to the campaign
also means that these modes possess little in the way of educational value;
the design concept suggests that if you’re going to have the animals talk,
there’s no need to keep anything true to life. If you don’t expect Dawn of the
Dinosaurs to teach your children anything about these animals, then perhaps
pure entertainment is acceptable. As a video-game, Ice Age: Dawn of the
Dinosaurs is still one of the best things you could pick up for your child.
It’s exciting, funny, and should provide hours of nearly guilt-free
stimulation for the family.
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Gameplay: 8.0
An
excellent variety of familiar mechanics, accessible and intelligently
implemented.
Graphics: 8.0
Some
rough spots that children won’t notice or care about, but great work on the
characters.
Sound: 8.0
Crisp and
slightly repetitive audio, but having Ray Romano makes everything better.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Nicely
paced, though some areas feel too easy, even for children.
Concept: 7.0
Nothing very new
about it, but this is certainly a better effort than similar movie-games.
Multiplayer: 8.0
Simple and fun
modes extend the replayability much further.
Overall: 8.0
Ice Age: Dawn of
the Dinosaurs is easily one of the best children’s games to come along these
days. A nice array of gameplay mechanics keeps the gameplay exciting, while
the multiplayer modes ensure hours of additional
replayability.
