Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian – WII – Review

It must be incredibly difficult to
create a game using a movie license. Stand-alone games are hard enough, but when
you throw a license into the mix, you add a thick layer of expectations that, if
not fulfilled by the slightest margin, could disappoint the very audience you’re
trying to please.

You would think that a movie like
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian would be much harder to turn into
a great game than, say, Pirates of the Caribbean or The Fast and the Furious.
After all, those last two were action flicks – the Night at the Museum series is
more of a comedic adventure. But it’s the Museum that proved to be the better
game with an exploration-heavy, scavenger hunt-based adventure that will
enthrall the movie’s younger viewers.

The Battle Begins

Without giving away the story (which
seems to mirror the upcoming film), Battle of the Smithsonian takes you back to
the museum where history-inspired exhibits come to life. Before the first hour
is up, you’ll travel to new locations and uncover new exhibits that add another
dimension to the familiar (and unusually amusing) experience.

When you’re not distracted by a
skeletal T-Rex – you can play catch with him or ride on his back – primary and
secondary objectives are very easy to locate. Tap the minus button to pull up
the map screen and look for the glowing marker, which shows exactly where you
need to be. Head in that direction and you’ll find something to interact with or
the game will load a real-time movie sequence. In either case, the journey is
clearly laid out so that players of all ages can follow along.

Ben Stiller reprises his role as
Larry Daley, the goofy museum security guard. His dialogue is typical Stiller –
nothing out of the ordinary, but amusing enough to earn a few chuckles. As a
game character, Larry has been infused with the power of the Tablet of Ahkmenrah.
Nine ingots (special gold pieces) can fit within the tablet, and each provides
Larry with a different ability. Now his flashlight is more than just a
flashlight – it can be used to reveal hidden items, to attack enemies with
lightning bolt magic, and to animate statutes and other objects that are
blocking his path. Additionally, the tablet has the power to turn Larry’s
keychain into somewhat of a grappling hook. Use it to swing from ledges, to form
a protective shield, or to grab items off the ground. It can also be used to
pull switches and interact with other faraway objects – a feature that’s really
helpful when dealing with enemies that won’t succumb to conventional attacks.

Larry’s controls are about what
you’d expect. Push the thumbstick to walk and run, tap the B button to jump and
climb objects (mostly of the square, box-shaped kind), and push the A button to
interact with objects. The C and Z buttons are used as well; hit them to turn on
the flashlight and to utilize Larry’s keychain powers.

The camera is fully movable – a
blessing and somewhat of a shock, considering how many Wii games forgo this
element. To move it, push the D pad left or right. This feature works pretty
well, so you won’t find yourself in a battle against walls and other
view-blocking objects.

Musically and vocally, Battle of the
Smithsonian is fairly high in quality. Even the non-actor voice-overs are
passable, and the music is uproariously epic. The graphics, however, are below
where we were eight years ago on PlayStation 2. It’s not that the characters and
backgrounds look bad, they just feel incomplete. There is no polish to them –
nothing that makes the game leap out at you. The colors are plain, the
animations are a little stiff, and Larry Daley’s face is not at all the Ben
Stiller lookalike it should have been. Kids are going to play the game thinking,
“I hear him, but I don’t see him.”

But that shouldn’t matter too much.
Battle of the Smithsonian is one of those rare games that takes a movie – one
that most couldn’t imagine playing as a video game – and turns it into something
that’s lighthearted and fun. There are many surprises to uncover, and not just
in the form of returning characters. As you’ll soon discover, Larry Daley isn’t
the only one you’ll control.

Gameplay: 7.7
An amusing, easy-to-follow adventure game with inspired movie elements.

Graphics: 5.0
A little too plain (perhaps a better way to describe it is, It looks too
generic) for Wii hardware.

Sound: 8.0
Solid voice-acting and a great soundtrack.

Difficulty: Easy
Follow the map and mission info and you’re all set.

Concept: 7.5
Battle of the Smithsonian didn’t come out of nowhere. There are definitely
bits of other adventure games held within this title. But it is certainly a
different kind of movie game, and it is cool to play it for the first time and
see that it actually works.

Overall: 7.7
The game can be repetitive at times, and it certainly wasn’t made for the
action-hungry crowd. But if you to spend a night with the world’s most
interactive museum, Battle of the Smithsonian is a fun ride.