Most of today’s titles see release primarily through one of two investment efforts on the part of a publisher. Most games receive the make-it or break-it effort of high-end production, such as Naughty Dog’s Uncharted franchise and the second group consists of the low budget shout-outs to homebrew programming that are made widely available for download — Pom Pom Game’s Astro Tripper for example.
More often than not, the smaller downloads appeal to the retro-gamer as most other gamers look for the immersive experience. Publisher Nobilis is aiming to dispel this tradition of the low production game with its newest PS Network offering, Trine.
Trine is a charming game that harkens back to the days of the simple platformer. The gameplay is basic: Run, jump, hack and slash in a side-scrolling environment with real-time physics and varied characters. Each character will receive upgrades and abilities as you progress as well. Of course, the upgrades aren’t as in-depth as a game like the classic Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but Trine yields enough potion searching and item equipping to make even the most cynical retro-gamer smile.
The 3 playable characters are varied in abilities and can be cycled through on the fly to solve side scrolling puzzles, or to dispatch enemies as you see fit. The Knight with his sword and shield, the Thief with her bow and arrow, and the Wizard with his charming spell craft are your protagonists throughout the game. Each is beautifully rendered, yielding the charm of an 8-bit sprite, but the detail of a big production 3-D experience. The graphics are fantastic and the side scrolling nature of the game is well served here, laying down lush and ridiculously colorful backdrops. Visually, this apparent throw back to the 8-bit side scrolling days is a graphical masterpiece.
Trine also features some great story narration using voiceover and cut-out style animation (think those old Marvel cartoons from the 60’s, but not as corny) that make for fun breaks in between each level’s game play. The Trine story is just as charming and, will appeal to anyone who enjoyed movies like The Princess Bride or older fun-loving games like Blazing Dragons. Gameplay-wise, Trine is as encompassing as LittleBigPlanet, but intended for the more discerning audience. Think of it as a well married combination of the PSOne era Odd-World, and SNES era Broken Sword.
Trine is available for download now through the Playstation Network or through any number of online PC Outlets as indicated at the Trine website. If you are on the fence on this one, try downloading the demo from the PSN or the game’s homepage, and then let us know what you think in discussion below!
