The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Disney
PlayStation 2
3 stars (out of five)
Review by Hayden Meikle
My ignorance of all things Narnia is deep and almost inexplicable.
As a Lord of the Rings devotee from way back, you might have thought I would have picked up one of CS Lewis' classic tales at some stage.
But no.
It's been nothing but hobbits, orcs and ringwraiths for me, not four snobby school kids in the back of a wardrobe meeting fauns and ice queens.
It does shame me a little to admit I haven't even seen any of the made-in-New-Zealand Narnia movies and they're already up to the third one. Or the fourth?
Prince Caspian is the latest book to get the movie treatment, and Disney has released this game to capitalise on the public interest.
The game sees the pretentious Pevensie children - Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter - joining the titular Prince Caspian to help the Narnians retake their kingdom from the Telmarines (whatever they are) and the evil Miraz, Caspian's wayward uncle.
It starts, pleasingly, with an epic battle outside a castle.
No long cut-scenes or tutorials to learn to run and jump and fight, which seem to dominate so many games. (As an aside, this must be one of the very few children's or platformer games that doesn't include a jump button.)
You can control up to five characters at a time, changing between them with the press of the Triangle button.
Predictably, you often find yourself needing to work out which character to assume in order to solve a puzzle or find the route forward.
There are 20 different characters from the film, including the children, a giant, a minotaur, Trumpkin the dwarf, and Reepicheep, the noble swordsmouse.
The game supports two-player, drop-in and drop-out co-operative gameplay and includes a level that is is not part of either the novel or the film.
This level, which is set between the events of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, takes place at the castle of Cair Paravel and tells the story of how Narnia fell to the Telmarine hordes.
The graphics, particularly the scenery and buildings, are excellent - if not on a par with the very best action-adventure titles then as good as any movie tie-in aimed at a slightly younger audience.
I say slightly because there is enough violence in Prince Caspian to warrant its PG sticker.
The gameplay is not quite as smooth as, say, the Lord of the Rings games.
Characters have a tendency to get stuck awkwardly in corners, and switching between people is not always smooth.
Camera angles are also occasionally unhelpful.
That, and the fact it is a relatively short game, are only minor niggles.
Prince Caspian is an admirable accompaniment to the movie.
