9:00am Saturday 8th August 2009
By Colin Miller
I'll be honest – I’m not a fan of Disney films and come to think of it, I am not much of a fan of guinea pigs either. So when G-Force landed on my desk I was half tempted to sling it out the window. Then, when I was told I had to review it, I considered slinging myself out of the window. Fortunately I didn't, as rather surprisingly G-Force is quite a remarkable game.
For those of you unfamiliar with the film, G-Force is a special FBI organisation of trained guinea pigs and cockroaches equipped with advanced technology.
For the most part of the game you control Darwin (the guinea pig, voiced by Sam Rockwell) and Mooch (his surveillance cockroach) in their fight against evil billionaire Leonard Saber and his robot army of “household appliances”. Being a special FBI organisation, Darwin is equipped with a number of gadgets, including a jetpack and a variety of weapons.
Remarkably, G-Force is quite a enjoyable game- something which is a refreshing change from all the other movie cash-ins I have played recently. The levels do a good job in mixing combat and puzzle solving, a nice little touch which can keep both adult gamers and the younger audience entertained. At times you will find yourself fighting against household appliances like irons, microwaves and desktop computers, and then you will find yourself having to sneak around ala-Metal Gear Solid – except you are a guinea pig.
The sound is pretty solid and the voice acting is suitable for this sort of game – especially since it features Sam Rockwell providing the voice of Darwin. The instrumental music plays neatly in the background without becoming too repetitive or intrusive and the general sound design is pretty good all round.
Easily one of the best features of the game are the controls. They are simple and don't try to do anything too complicated. Movement is controlled with the analog sticks and weaponary controlled with the trigger buttons, everything is pretty standard – as it should be.
Graphically, however, the game is nothing amazing. That's not to say its bad, it’s just not groundbreaking. One minor snag is that most of the levels retain the same sortsof environment – a little bit of variety would have been nice.
Since the film is released in 3D (at selected cinemas), the developers have obviously tried to cash in on this gimmick and have given the game a 3D setting. However, unlike the modern technology used on the feature film, the developers have opted for the old-school method of 3D cinema by handing out those red and green tinted glasses. As a result, when playing the game in 3D, you not only look stupid but you are also likely to get a headache. Thankfully this setting can be turned off
I seriously wanted to hate this game. I had a feeling that I would find myself knee deep in guinea-pig poop from the moment the disc was inserted, but for a licensed title G-Force is an entertaining little game and genuine surprise.
- Solid graphics
- Nice controls
- Good voice work
- 3d glasses likely to give you a headache
- Environments get repetitive
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