I once read a book titled DisneyWar, an insightful
non-fiction tale about the inner-workings of the Walt Disney Company. In it,
the author illustrates an event where former Disney chief Michael Eisner tried
to squash a pirate movie idea, dismissing it as a certain box office
failure. Currently, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
has grossed over $655 million dollars worldwide with it’s sequel, Dead
Man’s Chest, breaking box office records (Eisner has since taken credit
for the film’s overwhelming success, but I digress). It would seem, at least
to a studio executive, that releasing a video game to coincide with a film’s
premiere could guarantee added revenue from the license by cashing in on the
craze. Thus is the case with The Legend of Jack Sparrow, developed by
Seven Studios (Legend of Excalibur and Defender), the game has
everything you would expect out of a game based on the high seas. The
crippling problem, however, is the lack of depth in every part of the game. It
feels as if it was rushed through development without any QA or bug testing,
and the game fails because of it.
The game’s title would have you believe that this is a prequel
to the first movie, living the life of Jack Sparrow and his many
adventures. In actuality, The Legend of Jack Sparrow is set between the
first two movies with periodic flashbacks as Jack awaits execution. Our
favorite drunken pirate sails the seven seas visiting exotic destinations and
fighting enemies along the way. The storyline features strange twists and
exaggerations courtesy of Captain Jack’s insobriety (such as creating a
makeshift raft out of sea turtles and back hair). The developers spin the
plot to poke fun at the so-called “Legend” that is Jack Sparrow.
Unfortunately, the plot couldn’t save the game from its stale gameplay.
You take on the role of Captain Jack and occasionally have the
option of playing as Will Turner or Elizabeth Swann. At anytime, you can
switch and play as the other characters previously controlled by AI. Sadly,
this option only becomes useful when the AI-controlled player gets stuck in an
area and you must switch to set them free. The gameplay consists of
hack-and-slash sword fighting and other melee combat. Jack’s skills with a
sword improve with earned upgrades as you progress. He will also pick up
special attacks and the ability to throw objects. The enemies you will fight
in game are riddled with a poor AI engine and gameplay bugs. They can’t
navigate through barrels in the way and on numerous occasions they were
pathetically slow to attack (you will rarely need to defend yourself against
incoming strikes). The boss fights are also plagued with bugs and lack
gameplay depth.
The Legend of Jack Sparrow
also offers a few objective-based puzzles, which include pulling levers to
open doors and placing barrels of gunpowder around building pillars to crash
it to the ground. The puzzles are minor nuisances between the real “action” of
the game and were nothing to look forward to. There is a co-op feature where
you and a friend can share in the “adventure,” but it is also poorly designed.
Graphically, the game is Ok. I really enjoyed the environmental
interactivity but the animation was subpar and the character models didn’t
look much like the actor’s they portrayed. The enemy’s also looked identical
and lack detail. The music, on the other hand, comes out strong and sounds
just like the movies. Just like Kingdom Hearts II, Johnny Depp has lent
his voice to this project with great results. You will enjoy his comical
narration wherever Captain Sparrow voyages. Other voice over work is less
enthralling.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
has all the makings of a good video game. But the lack of entertaining
gameplay and polish sinks this title. Had the developers not rushed its
release to coincide with the movie, there could have been much more to talk
about. For $39.99, you best stay away and save your hard-earned
treasure. Savvy?
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Gameplay: 5.3
Besides being infested with glitches and bugs that ruin the
appeal, the hack-and-slash gameplay is boring and hard to sit through.
Graphics: 6.5
The interactivity with the environment was a plus, but the
character models and animation lacked detail.
Sound: 8.5
The soundtrack makes you believe you really are apart of
Captain Jack Sparrow’s world … until you grab the control and begin to
play. Johnny Depp’s talents are not lost on only a microphone; his unique
voice transitions nicely from film to video game.
Difficulty: Easy
Concept: 7.0
The idea of putting Jack Sparrow in a video game to control is
very appealing (if executed correctly, of course). It’s a shame that the
developers didn’t take advantage of the characters that were given to them.
Overall: 5.4
The Curse of the Black Pearl,
the movie, was surprisingly delightful and created a very lucrative franchise
for Disney. The Legend of Jack Sparrow was very disappointing as a game
and hurt the franchise’s appeal as a consequence.
