Monday 06 Oct 2008

Wall-E for the PlayStation 2 is a throw-back to the days when collecting items and progressing through levels was considered all a game could be. In many instances, Wall-E represents a time when story and motivation were something players didn’t require - the simple act of item collection to move past a door was enough. Where Wall-E trumps these games is the way it uses its story and characters to present a backdrop to the basic gameplay mechanics, effectively injecting humour, story presence and a touch of soul into an otherwise cookie-cutter design.

Wall-E, the game, is based on the Pixar movie of the same name. You play as the titular Wall-E, a small, useful, service robot roaming around a wasteland of garbage trying to clean up, one compacted trash cube at a time. You soon find yourself very much alone, before discovering a friend from space a little way in. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t do half as good a job as the movie in conveying the story and, if you’ve never seen the film, you may even end up feeling a little confused about the series of events. You do get the general idea though, and Wall-E’s loneliness is enforced by the lack of any other characters to interact with, the barren environment and his little depressed sighs when he may ‘realise’ he’s alone, save for the company of a little cockroach that appears during cutscenes.

Wall-E plays out like an obstacle course. There are ramps, pathways, raised bars and small jumps to navigate as well as half-pipes to ramp up and off of - that last one may seem weird, but the game does a good job of taking care of the complexities of your camera and direction. In this regard, the controls are good and responsive, allowing you to duck under the bars, jump over gaps and make your way up the provided ramps with little hassle. If you make a mistake, you know it was your fault. You’re also given the task of creating pathways for yourself by raising and lowering platforms.

The collection aspect shows up when you need to pass through particular doors by finding a certain amount of items to be able to unlock the door - each door requires a different amount of these items and they can be found either lying around or just out of reach, which is where the navigation comes in, trying to find your way to the item in question by moving along ramps, under bars and over jumps. In this way, your immediate goal is always clear and progression is never more difficult than your attempts to find the last item to get to the next area.

At times, you’re put into a situation where you need to navigate an area rapidly and with as few mistakes as possible. This is where some frustrations creep in. While in a laid back, leisurely environment, the controls are perfectly suitable as you are able to take your time moving from A to B. In these ‘speed runs’, however, making a mistake will usually result in your demise, and you’re sent to the beginning of the challenge… again and again. Some challenges are long enough to warrant a checkpoint, but your progress is more often than not reset, having to make the perfect jump or trying to ensure you don’t move in just the wrong direction. When you complete these sections correctly, you’ll feel an air of exhilaration, but during the process you may find yourself gripping the controller just a little too tightly.

The checkpoint system, as demonstrated in the speed-runs, is pretty sporadic, sometimes saving your progress a few times per level and sometimes, only at the end of a long section. You’ll need to be certain that your progress is well and truly saved before exiting the game, or else you’ll find a chunk of your game time mysteriously forgotten by all but yourself. This is frustrating. Another small frustration, which you may discover by not following the above steps, is that cut-scenes cannot be skipped, a bit of a kick in the face when you’ve just discovered you have to redo a section of the game you thought was all but complete.

The humour, story presence and touch of soul reveal themselves in a variety of ways, effectively defusing any feelings of anguish that may have built up during preceding periods of gameplay. For one thing, the environment, while barren in terms of greenery and general colour, is detailed where it counts, efficiently communicating just exactly what situation you find yourself in. The game will also surprise you at times with how good it looks, which, for a PS2 game, is saying something. The limited scope of the environment accounts for this, but it’s still important to note that the visual quality is always very high… for a PS2 game.

Wall-E’s little animations and sounds are great at giving you a sense of personality. For example, hidden throughout the game are special, buried items - objects from a seemingly forgotten era, including umbrellas, dolls and toilet plungers. Not only do these items reveal something about the world, but they provide a showcase for the humour and personality of Wall-E. Upon finding and digging up a special item, Wall-E will perform a special animation with it, which is always entertaining or touching, either getting a plunger stuck on his face, or digging up a hidden plant to appreciate later. It’s these little moments, which are also present during the story-driven cut-scenes, which provide just a little bit of extra motivation to proceed and see the next bit of the story revealed to you.

While it may be true that the presence of Wall-E’s greatest asset, its story and the way that is conveyed to you, is owed to the heavy-lifting of the Pixar movie, that doesn’t make it any less of a game or any more of a forgettable gaming experience because of it. The game has taken what was great about the movie and its narrative and transformed it into an interactive experience. The actual game elements of Wall-E have been done before, for sure, but in a different context those same elements feel acceptable and in-line with something of this scope - essentially a game for children and teenagers, but still enjoyable for those seeking a few hours of distraction. With a competent multiplayer component, Wall-E will provide a bit more playtime with the addition of a friend and you may just feel the urge to watch the movie, either again or for the first time.

Pros: Great humour/personality; graphically great; responsive controls

Cons: Old-time game mechanics; frustrating failure consequences; camera and controls can work at cross purposes.

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Contributor:	Oliver

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