I have yet to encounter a game based on a movie that’s actually fun to play. Sierra’s The Spiderwick Chronicles is no different. Of course, it’s meant for the kids so I might be too harsh on it, but I’m not sure that kids would even like it. For those not in the know, “The Spiderwick Chronicles” is a movie…forget it. Just watch the trailer and you’ll get the gist.
As far as the game goes, it’s pretty simple to play. The initial stages of the game involve you walking around the house and noticing certain items that, when combined with other items, create potions that help ward off the nasty beasties you’ll be encountering down the road. As you progress and gather items there are intermittent slots where clips from the movie roll. It’s all very exciting, I know. Gameplay is easy and doesn’t take a whole lot of time to figure out what does what. I think there’s a total of two actions to begin with. It’s very much a kid’s game.
Actually, I got so bored with it that I stopped playing, which is why this is just a ‘first look.’ I’ll be playing a bit more over the next week and will have a review shortly. In the meantime, if anyone else has played this then feel free to leave your thoughts in comments.