Phineas & Ferb: Across the Second Dimension

 Phineas & Ferb: Across The 2nd Dimension Review

Kid Safe: Very High (9.5  / 10)                             Game Quality: Very High 8.5 / 10)

Genre: Action/Adventure

-          This game is identified by its action-based tone of gameplay that focuses on one or more characters being faced with a challenge and going on an adventure to solve it through puzzle solving, avoiding obstacles, and battling enemies with multiple forms of weapons and attacks.

Internet Requirements: None

-          Phineas & Ferb, to the best of the reviewer's knowledge, does not feature any kind of internet-based service. It does not feature any online multiplayer, "score keeping"/leaderboard, or downloadable content services.

Story Summary: Phineas & Ferb: Across The 2nd Dimension is a direct pick-up after the film, Phineas

& Ferb: The 2nd Dimension. The title is meant to be a tie in and picks up with the characters of the Phineas & Ferb television show; including Phineas, Ferb, Agent P, Dr. D, and many more...plus an exclusive character "Agent T", a turtle-type character. From there, players will lead the team through a diverse set of "other dimensions" as they work to defeat the Evil Dr. Doofenshimirtz and his legion of robot minions.

Kid Safe: Very High (9.5 / 10)

-          Foul Language: None

o   While I'm sure that the chatters and mutters that the Platypus Perry make are something horrible in the Platypus language, to the best of the reviewer's knowledge , Phineas & Ferb does not contain any kind of foul language.

-          Violence and Gore: Very Low

o   Phineas & Ferb features a very low amount of violence with no gore what-so-ever. Using a wide range of inventive and unrecognized weaponry, players will fight a variety of enemies including a number of different robots, farm animals, and gelatinous beings. These weapons include the Carbonator, a weapon that shoots a spray of orange soda, the Baseball Launcher that, as the name implies, shoots baseballs at the enemy, the Anti-Gravity Gun, that can pick up and hurl enemies at each other, and more. Enemies, when attacked and defeated, will often fall apart or simply disappear within a ball of smoke.

             

-          Sexually-Related Content: None

o   To the best of the reviewer's knowledge, Phineas & Ferb does not contain any kind of sexually related content, reference, or nudity.

-          Use of Drugs and Alcohol: None

o   To the best of the reviewer's knowledge, Phineas & Ferb does not contain any kind of drug, cigarette, or alcohol usage.

             

Game Quality: Very High (8.5 / 10)

-          Graphics / Visuals: High

o   Despite what you might have presumed, Phineas & Ferb actually delivers in the graphics and visuals. For anyone that is familiar with the cartoon, you may suffer a couple of annoyances, however these are far and few between. The developers did an excellent job in moving a 2-Dimensional cartoon into a 3-Dimension video-game representation, allowing players to move around accurate representations of all their favorite characters from the Phineas & Ferb cartoon show. Generally, the game feels very much like you are controlling the cartoon and the only real dilemma comes during cutscenes when characters are talking and interacting without your control. Sadly, these scenes offer some slightly broken details and fuzzy visuals, making it regrettable that the developers didn't decide to simply animate these scenes versus using the computer animations.

o   On the contrary, the level and "dimension" design are absolutely superb. While playing through the levels, I never once felt like something had been forgotten or "left out"; the developers generally considered everything about the overarching world. It's not often that you or your child get a chance to explore a world that has been overrun by gelatinous monsters, made up entirely of balloons, or converted into a 1950's era cartoon. Each level and dimension felt as real as the next and I must commend the developers for the thought that was put into them.

   

-          Audio: High

o   For Phineas & Ferb, I both can and can't claim that the audio is "top notch" like I do many other games for one sole reason: the game utilizes its original voice actors. While this is all well and good, you don't need to be a fan of the game's original show to really appreciate their work. The actors really help in just about every aspect of this title. Not only do they assist in playability by helping players know what they should and should not do, they also constantly keep the dialogue running and witty and up-tone beat as well as adding their own commentary here and there. There was more than once that the game's simple puns and childish humor had me laughing right along with them, reminding me much of a Looney Toons cartoons that uses humor that appeals to all rather than something that "only kids will get".

o   Secondly, the music in this game is simple and well-done, but not used enough. Most levels tend to be either silent or music tends to be re-used from prior situations, really negating from the overall enjoyment. Nonetheless, those pieces that are present here and there deserve praise for their simplistic yet enjoyable beats.

-          Gameplay / Playability: Very High

o   Much like the show that the game stems from, Phineas & Ferb and features an INCREDIBLY high amount of both gameplay and playability. Starting off, as always, with playability. This game does EVERYTHING it can to adhere to just about every player. Any veteran player that is familiar with most action/adventure games won't even have to blink an eye; they know almost instantly both how to handle the character and use the majority of the moves and attacks. However, for those players that don't know how to play the game or how to play games in general, Phineas & Ferb helps them along every step. Not to mention that this game will generally display almost any button that a player needs to push in order to use an item, Phineas & Ferb also highlights any section that players need to interact with and, should a gamer take too long, will prompt them with an auditory/subtitle cue to inform them of what or how they need to act to continue through the level.

o   As for gameplay, I have to say that I was blown away. I expected the simple, yet solid gameplay that featured players running around fighting a wide-variety of cartoony enemies. What I didn't expect was the sheer depth of it all; making it akin to other games of a much higher caliber. As players fight their way through Dr. Doofenshimirtz's legions of monsters and robots, their weapons will actually level up; progressively becoming more powerful. As these weapons become more powerful, players will be able to work on them at a "workbench": literally opening them up and improving things like their damage output, rate of fire, available ammunition, and even sound effects and colors. These factors are all reminiscent of very famous and very adult games like Mass Effect or Borderlands.

o   Not even counting weapons or fighting, the game also caters to its audience by constantly breaking up gameplay and offering more than one might expect. While the game generally keeps a linear path, following the Phineas & Ferb group as they explore through dimensions and battle Dr. Doofenshimirtz, it will always have something to do for those players that might not have the longest attention span. Every level is broken up by little mini-games like "Perry-Ball" (also known as Skee-Ball) and the Claw Machine that allow players to use special gold-tokens that they found throughout the levels, win prizes, collect tickets, and even buy a variety of special items like extra playable characters, exclusive sounds and colors for their weaponry, and even trophies and statues that the players can admire when they aren't fighting the Doofenshimirtz Legions.

o   Finally, if all of this isn't enough, players will be able to unlock and play a wide variety of different characters that all have their own specializations and favored weapons. Utilizing these characters will provide very different gameplay experiences as each one will handle a little bit differently and, without a doubt, your little gamer will prefer one over the other.

          

-          Dollar-Value: High

o   Overall, Phineas & Ferb: Across The 2nd Dimension actually has a pretty high dollar-value. While it does not have anything to offer in the way of additional content or multiplayer, the gameplay itself is very enjoyable; especially for younger gamers that are just getting into gaming. The game will offer the majority of players somewhere between 8 to 11 hours of gameplay; which is on par with the majority of adult-titles that are released to date. Even then, if you have a PlayStation 3 console, you will also be able to enjoy 4 episodes of the Phineas & Ferb cartoon show right off of the game-disc. I will admit that I had never seen Phineas & Ferb and I loved it. All in all, especially if your child is a fan of Phineas & Ferb, this is a solid choice.

Recommendations

-          As a highly child-friendly title, we do not have any other recommendations.

Disney's Epic Mickey

Disney's Epic Mickey Review

Kid Safe: Very High                     Game Quality: Moderate

Genre: Action/Adventure Platformer

-          This game is identified by its action-based tone of gameplay that focuses on one or more characters being faced with a challenge and going on an adventure to solve it. As a "platformer", this title is characterized by the character having to traverse a complex obstacle course consisting of deadly pits and high cliffs that they must reach.

Internet Requirements: Very Low

-          This game features no internet gameplay and is solely restricted to the single-player story.

Story Summary: In Disney's Epic Mickey, player's take the roll of Disney's iconic mouse as he goes on

    one of his biggest adventures yet. After a small accident with paint thinner, Mickey

    creates a monstrous creature of ink called "The Phantom Blot" that drags him into the

    "Wasteland". The Wasteland is a twisted, alternate reality version of Disney's classic

    theme park "Disneyland" that has been created and populated by the forgotten

    remnants of ancient cartoons and is led by Walt Disney's first iconic creation: Oswald

    the Lucky Rabbit. As you play as Mickey, you adventure through the Wasteland,

    meeting and playing through cartoons dating all the way back to the 1920's as you

    attempt to find escape from this twisted world. Your actions will also dictate what

    happens; will you become a hero and free those from the torment of the Wasteland or

    will you fight and brawl your way to the top?

Kid Safe: Very High

-          Foul Language: Very Low

o   Disney's Epic Mickey does not contain any foul or coarse language.

-          Violence and Gore: Low

o   Disney's Epic Mickey contains a low amount of violence. Players are able to jump on enemy's heads and use a "spin move" where they spin quickly and knock enemies back. Players are also able to use Paint and Thinner to either befriend enemies or destroy enemies. The only questionable depiction of violence in this game is when using Thinner against enemies, which results in Thinner acting like acid and causing enemies to slowly dissolve and melt into a bubbling puddle of green goo.

             

-          Sexually-Related Content: Very Low

o   Disney's Epic Mickey does not contain any sexually related content.

-          Use of Drugs and Alcohol: Very Low

o   Disney's Epic Mickey does not contain any usage of drugs or alcohol.

             

Game Quality: Moderate

-          Graphics / Visuals: Moderate

o   The quality of visuals and graphics in Disney's Epic Mickey are of a generally moderate quality. To begin with the good, this title has very imaginative level design and rather impressive visuals. One of the highlights of gameplay is the ability to teleport to other areas in the world by traveling entering a projector playing a certain cartoon, playing through said cartoon, and exiting a projector in another location. This is very interesting for the fact that these levels actually take you through the timeline of the cartoon from beginning to end; a perfect example being Mickey's classic cartoon "Through the Looking Glass" where he steps through his mirror only to adventure across his room that has grown enormous and enchanted with playing cards shuffling themselves and flying about the room. Likewise, the Wasteland is a pleasure for anyone who has ever been to Disneyland as they will recognize the highly animated and twisted versions of some of their favorite attractions including It's a Small World or Main St. (known as Mean St.). Lastly, the cutscenes are truly enchanting due to their hand-drawn nature and beautiful coloring that helps to push the story along.

o   On the other side of the coin, Epic Mickey suffers from some pretty severe graphical problems as well. To begin, while adventuring through cartoons can be extremely fun the first time around; it quickly becomes tedious after the second or third time that you have to play through them because a lot of the cartoon levels are simply rehashes and you will be forced to play the same level over and over and over again. Aside from that, while the visuals are imaginative, they are also very poorly defined. Disney's Epic Mickey suffers from low resolution textures in the game that detract from the enchantment due to a painful presentation that is simply embarrassing compared to the visually stunning titles being released today.

           

-          Audio: High

o   Disney's Epic Mickey features a rather high quality of audio and sound in game. To start, this game truly captures the classic sounds of Walt Disney's Magical Melodies but setting the mood by placing a very heavy emphasis music and ambient sounds. Characters let out happy "Aha's", thoughtful "Hmm's", shocked gasps, or scared squeaks portray characters thoughts and emotions without dialogue. Masterfully orchestrated tunes will gently coax along the story or add shock and splendor to a sudden event, much like the older cartoons.

o   While the audio quality is clear and enjoyable and the lack of dialogue is charming in a nostalgic sense, it is also a problem. Spoken dialogue developed into gameplay (and cartoons for that matter) as it helped carry the story along better. While Epic Mickey has written dialogue to do this, any younger players that do not have a strong reading ability will be left completely in the dust.

-          Gameplay / Playability: Low

o   Sadly, Disney's Epic suffers from a low level of gameplay and playability. This is due to monstrous camera and controller flaws along with very poor instructions on what players need to do. To begin, the camera angle and camera control is absolutely atrocious; what this means is that players are unable to easily redirect the camera so that they can see what they need in order to properly complete challenges and levels.

o   If the camera angles don't utterly frustrate the player, the controls will. Players are ONLY able to use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers while a large majority of Wii games today are providing multiple controller options due to the extreme difficulty of controlling adventure games with these two controllers. Aside from that, the actual game controls are generally sluggish and can be a bit unresponsive, making it all the more difficult to complete some of the more difficult sections. One notable problem is how the paint and thinner will often not go where you tell it to and instead you must mess with the controls for a while before you get to go where you need it.

o   Lastly, the complete lack of proper instruction is absolutely infuriating. Most of the controls are explained quickly and then left alone without any further tutorial, with some of the controls not being explained at all; a perfect example being "how to pause the game". After getting playing the title for some time, players will also begin to find that a fair number of levels are provided minimal, if any, explanation on how to beat them. One example that comes to mind is when you must help a phone restore the telephone network by painting in all of the telephone boxes; and that is literally all the explanation you get. There are no hints as to where these boxes are or how to find them and some of them are ridiculously hidden; like one that is literally hidden underground, a place that previously you were unaware you could even go to.
          

-          Dollar-Value: Moderate

o   Disney's Epic Mickey has a moderate dollar value. So long as you can get around the atrocious gameplay problems, you will get a decent amount of playtime for your gaming dollar with roughly 10 to 15 hours of time taken to complete a full playthrough of the story.

o   While you will get a decent amount of play time from Epic Mickey's single player story, that is all you will have available as the game offers no online or multiplayer options. On top of that, while the gameplay is certainly kid friendly, it seems like it's more focused towards an older audience. The game's appeal seems to be bit largely upon nostalgic value and being able to play through what is essentially a massive Disney history lesson rather than anything current that a young audience might be able to identify with. Current characters that children know and love are almost completely devoid from this title and many of the older cartoons lack their original charm due to being seen outside of their humorous context and instead as a more realistic soul wanting pity for being long forgotten.

Recommendations

-          As Disney's Epic Mickey is very Kid Friendly, there is little need for alternate recommendations. However, if you feel uncomfortable due to the technical issues that this title has, Super Mario Galaxy or Legend of Zelda might be better made and more enjoyable alternatives.