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Activision follows up with another solid movie-to-game adaptation. The game is based on the movie of the same name, which stars Jim Carrey and isn’t due for another month or so. The game, like the movie, is targeted to kids, and includes rather straightforward gameplay. Along the way you’ll find that there are a number of unfortunate events that mar the characters in the story. The PC version, although pretty much identical in terms of packaging, is a bit different in terms of actual gameplay. I’m not entirely sure why since the console versions worked so well, but I digress.
The game throws you in control of a trio of orphans – Violet, Klaus and Sunny – who are forced to live with the truly mean Count Olaf after their parents inexplicably die. The story is well told, although a touch pessimistic at times. Nonetheless, it is seemingly accurate to the source material and does provide some motivation for playing the game.
The game allows you play as Violet, Klaus or Sunny throughout the adventure. As Violet, you’ll need to pick up a number of items that will later be used to construct a variety of different gadgets and apparatuses. These tasks aren’t particularly difficult as there are really no puzzles, and if you can remember where you saw the items as you travel through the environments, you’ll be at ease. Klaus was a bit more action-oriented in the console version but serves no real use in the PC version since he has access to the same weapons as Violet. Lastly, Sunny no longer has her side-scrolling levels, and is pretty much like the other two characters except that she trades the weapons use for a biting ability.
Controlling the characters in the game via the keyboard is a bit frustrating given the imprecise control it offers. The characters move sporadically, at least at first. It is easy to adjust to the control scheme, but the game could have benefited from a more fleshed-out directional system. Additional control, like selecting an item to pick up, is done via the mouse and that works admirably for the most part. There are a few parts where the selected item is blocked by the character and you are then forced to move around to remove that effect.
The game’s visuals and overall production values are quite solid. The different character models are faithful to the source and animate very fluidly. The camera is spot-on for the most part, although a few parts are annoying. Thankfully, these are few and far in between. The environments are detailed, as well. The PC version has surprisingly low system requirements; it will run on a system with a 600Mhz processor, 128MB RAM and a Nvidia TNT 2 videocard.
The sound package is less impressive but good nonetheless. The soundtrack and effects are solid, and the soundtrack helps establish the game’s atmosphere rather well. The voice acting from Jim Carrey (as Count Olaf) and Tim Curry (as Lemony Snicket, the narrator) is great.
Overall, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a good movie-to-game adaptation. The gameplay is pretty undemanding but fundamentally sound; the different characters manage the spice the game up a bit, as well. The game would be rated higher if the length was a touch longer; it clocks in at just over 5 hours. On the other hand, children should play for a considerable longer bit of time. The PC version of the game was changed for the worse; the console versions are recommended due to their more accurate control scheme and level variety. -- Jake Wilson, PGNx Media
---- Nov 19, 2004
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