Video Game Review: Doctor Who The Adventure Game – TARDIS
More often than not, we write interesting and flashy introductions to articles in the vain that aforementioned snazzy words will stoke the fiery interests of our readers; encouraging them to go forth or sometimes give a wide birth to the content that we give critique to. Then, we realise that it’s just waffle – filler designed to pad out and knock the word count up a little more. Also to show off our verbose use of the English language.
Sadly, that is what this instalment of the Adventure Games series is – filler; and not of the good, creamy kind.
“TARDIS” isn’t a necessarily a bad game, so much as nothing really happens that warrants any excitement or replay. In comparison to the previous releases, and what this episode promised, it’s just a lacklustre affair that despite its shortcomings, does manage to hold your attention just enough if only to see it through in the hopes that something will happen aside from running from one room to another.
Part and parcel of this is that there’s no real challenge – the main villain, if you can even call it that, at least tries to be a Big Bad, but like the story, is over before it feels it’s even begun. The only obstacle you’ll come across is prepping the TARDIS to dematerialise within sixty seconds, and that’s only mildly frustrating thanks to the sometimes clunky controls of having to move around the console.
In terms of gameplay, it’s very much the same, sans the watered down stealth elements, and quite cleverly brings back items from the first two games, such as the Chronon blocker and the oscilloscope. It’s good at least for continuity, and it does add some much needed depth to this episode, as well as showing that this can be a viable storytelling medium by harking back and testing players’ memories.
The main locale is the much talked about drawing room; a new set introduced in this outing, that may or may not feature as official canon in the TV series. It’s nice to finally see something of the rest of the TARDIS, but its appeal soon wanes after repeated trips and the incessant ticks from a dozen clocks adorning the walls. One of the objects found inside is a Time Lord Staff, and mentions the Rassilon seen in “The End of Time”. It says that he was “the” Rassilon that developed time travel technology, effectively making the Time Lords, well, Time Lords. Fans have debated whether it was just a name thrown out there by RTD as in canon, Rassilon has been long since dead; but hey, if they resurrected The Master…
The hook of being able to explore the TARDIS is ill-founded, as it’s the drawing room and that’s it. Any attempt to go up and down the various flights of stairs in the console room are met with you coming back into the room via one of the other staircases. There’s no explanation bar the timeloop currently affecting the internal structure of the TARDIS and the Doctor showing his age by saying that even he gets confused by the many hallways and corridors of his mammoth blue box. You’re even taken to the drawing room, so it’s not like you can even attempt to get there by yourself off of the Doctor’s directions. This definitely feels like a missed opportunity – not being able to wander and perhaps stumble across other rooms with hints to the past, such as walking through the swimming pool or Closter Room – and whether these elements were cut due to cost or effort, or even considered is unknown, but you can’t deny the fun factor of being able to explore on your own would have provided.
What “TARDIS” does do, it does well and with flare and polish. Once again, voice acting and dialogue are pitch perfect, and character models, especially Amy’s, have had their likeness improved. For a free-to-play game, you certainly couldn’t ask for anything more in the graphical department. The greatest asset this entry has going for it, is the fan service it provides. The drawing room is a veritable cove of Who lore where thought out items from not only his recent past, but his classic days, are dotted about; each providing some insight. While exploration is certainly linear, it pays to search the drawing room and read the item descriptions as these details play a part in a pop “security” quiz that Amy has to take in order to reconstitute the two timelines that her and the Doctor and separated in. Upon completion, you’re treated to line that really should have been voice acted – “Yay! Got them all right. Amy Pond for the win!”
The reward of being able to pilot the TARDIS at the end is scant, but getting a tutorial of what each lever and switch and button on the console does at least goes someway to making you feel that you’re wearing the Doctor’s tweed jacket.
I keep coming back to that the fact that, for us in the “Mother Country”, these games are free, so we shouldn’t really complain about it; but his is definitely the weakest of the outings so far, and especially disappointing considering the potential this instalment had.
“TARDIS” is free and, along with the future releases, can be downloaded from the official Doctor Who: The Adventure Games page for those so inclined Brits.
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James
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http://geek-life.com/ Rob
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