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 James Wallis
WDS Article Author, Frontiers Nerd, Star Trek Geek, Console Inventer Wannabee...
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Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs for the PC PS3 Wii DS AND Microsoft XBox 360 Walkthrough.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs reunites fans with Scrat, Sid, Manny and Diego in an all-new quest based on the upcoming film from Twentieth Century Fox. As the unlikely herd travels across the tundra and beyond, they stumble upon another world - a lush Dinosaur World teeming with jungles, mysterious plants, fierce dinosaurs, wild new adventures and several new friends. Taking on the role of more than six playable characters, including everyone's favorite Ice Age friends and newly introduced characters, players master their unique skills and abilities across more than 15 action-packed levels. In addition to the expanded features of the single-player gameplay, for the first time in an Ice Age game, players can team up with friends and family in eight competitive multiplayer mini-games. Experience continuously changing gameplay through more than 15 levels - Every level presents new and exciting challenges as players learn and master each character's abilities in order to defeat enemies, traverse dangerous landscapes, avoid obstacles and escape from perilous situations. [Activision]Nintendo Wii & DS PS3 Walkthrough for Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs comes at the same time as the animated movie and having watched the previous Ice Age movies can agree that they are witty, well produced and perfect light entertainment for youngsters and adults alike. We're not here to talk about animated movies but more the dreaded movie tie in games that go with them. Sure, there's always a feeling that movie tie-in games have a limited budget and rely perhaps too heavily on the movie itself to help shift the games from the stores; but as gamers and judging them on their own merits against similar titles that don't have a movie backup is what we have to look at. So, as a game which offers familiarity (for those who have seen the movies) and adventure for gamers looking to while away the hours, how well does Dawn of the Dinosaurs stack up?
Gameplay:
As far as graphics are concerned, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs fares pretty well. The character models do a good job of recreating the look of the familiar faces from the movie, and I was surprised at the level of detail on some of the characters. The animation was also very impressive, and the game's cutscenes featured a consistent framerate and smooth textures. However, even though these aspects looked good, I couldn't help notice that the background visuals were a little bit lacking, and the environments didn't have much variation. Still, the game does look decent overall, especially considering it is based on a kids' movie.
One aspect of this title that was quite surprising was the quality of the sound. Anyone who has played a number of movie-inspired titles knows that voiceovers generally consist of a number of sound-alikes standing in for the actors from the original movie. However, I was impressed to learn that many of the actors from the actual film, including Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, and John Leguizamo reprised their roles for the game. However, even though the voiceover is nice, the background music is a little lacking and very repetitive.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, like the movie of the same name, it won't win any awards for breaking the mold or taking any gameplay risks. But the game accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do, and I can't really complain about that. There are plenty of fun movie-inspired platforming levels, and the unlockable multiplayer modes certainly add some replay value. If you or someone you know loves the Ice Age franchise, then this game will certainly please fans without giving them too much of a challenge.
Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Walkthrough Strategy Guides
Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs isn't the most visually stunning of games, but in general is vibrant and colourful enough to capture the essence of the movies it is based on. The characters are well animated and resemble their on-screen counterparts suitably and therefore makes the game do what it says on the tin, or box in this case. There are some odd moments with the camera, but due to the relaxing pacing shouldn't pose much of a problem. The game runs smoothly, with no issues plaguing the game from start to finish so that gameplay remains largely uninterrupted.
The sound features voice overs from the movie, which adds credibility to the characters during the cut scenes and as you play. The sound bites are entertaining, and with a narrative between levels paints the story for you in an easy to understand manner. The music is non intrusive and well scored, and like the graphics there really isn't much to fault here especially as there's lots of variation and flawless performances throughout.
A number of levels, some lasting more than others and with collectibles to hunt down, the option to replay any level and a number of challenges; not forgetting a local multiplayer component. For younger gamers there's enough here (and challenge) to keep them well occupied for some time. For older gamers, you're most likely to breeze through the game very quickly gaining those 1000 points with relative ease - although some challenges might get the better of you for a while.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is the third movie in the Ice Age franchise. While reviews have not exactly been generous for the movie, it can be assumed that families that enjoy the series at-large will probably show up to watch it anyway, and they will probably get a few laughs out of it as well. The same is true for the game. Though it isn't likely to wow anyone who plays it, the game based on this popular movie franchise is a perfectly adept platforming experience that will surely delight fans who enjoyed the movie.
The game opens with Diego and Sid telling a mystery character a story about their most recent adventures. Of course, they both crack some jokes, but as they get into the story, you'll be launched into the gameplay through flashbacks. Each level allows you to play as a different member of the Ice Age cast, including Sid, Manny, Diego, and new friend Buck. Each of these characters has their own special skills, resulting in several specialized levels tailored around each character.
For instance, the character Diego, who is a saber-toothed tiger, is very adept at running, so levels featuring him involve high-speed chases. However, Sid the Sloth's levels focus more on exploring and platforming, and Manny's levels feature top-down objective-based gameplay. The result is a nicely varied experience that is sure to entertain players of all ages.
The game places you in the familiar shoes of the movie's main characters but rather than simply offer your basic platforming/adventure painting by numbers type approach, actually attempts (and quite successfully) to mix things up a little. There are moments where you'll be hopping from rock to rock, jumping perilous gaps and swinging from vines, but ultimately when you take a step back and look at all the facets which make up the game in its entirety and you've got a veritable slice of diversity - which isn't a bad thing.
You'll be controlling the likes of Sid the sloth, Scrat the squirrel amongst others from the original movie, as well as newcomers like Buck. They are all here and remarkably play very different from each other. The game opts to provide a fairly linear path through the levels, although on occasion you're able to deviate to a degree or choose which aspects of a level you'll tackle first. Like all games of this ilk, you'll be collecting items galore such as food stuffs so you can purchase upgrades and unlock more goodies. This is a perfect excuse to use the game's attack moves not only against those dinosaurs, bats, spiders etc. but the stationary objects like mushrooms and ice blocks.
Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Walkthrough The game does present some mild puzzles which for most adult gamers will prove to be a breeze, although for very young gamers shouldn't pose too many problems after one or two attempts. They mostly revolve around navigation, such as with Sid you'll need to make use of fire to illuminate your path whilst avoiding water and wind (which extinguishes your flame). It's all very tame and for adult gamers should prove fairly relaxing (no shouting at the TV and smashing controllers here). There are some clever uses of the level design and not only lots of elements borrowed from other games, but several moments that go beyond cute and offer some nostalgic moments. The 'Scramble' like level being one that stood out and was a surprising entry and admittedly very fun (even for this reviewer).
Younger gamers will surely find much enjoyment from this game as the developers have really made sure that with waning attention spans, keeping the action well paced and ever changing is the best course of action for capturing the imagination.
However, even though each level has a character-specific format, there are also collection quests that are consistent through all the different levels, and they can be completed no matter who you are playing as. There are two types of items that you can find: fruit and crystals. The fruit in the game acts as currency, and as you gather more fruit, you will be able to purchase health and weapons upgrades as well as unlock multiplayer modes. The crystals, on the other hand, can be gathered to unlock more technical features like background music and vocal tracks.
Control in the game is very easy, as it should be, considering this is a kid-targeted game. You can run around the various levels using the left stick, and use the face buttons to jump and attack. Many levels also involve interacting with items, and you'll be prompted to press a certain button in order to light a fire or pick up a stick. In addition to these basic mechanics, the game also has a weapons aiming system that uses the right bumper to initiate first-person mode and the attack button to fire. The controls here aren't especially complex, and they are definitely simple enough for even the youngest of players to be able to use.
The only thing that I really found complaint-worthy about the game was how much it stuck to the animated movie-game formula. If you've played the games based on Monsters vs. Aliens or Up, then this should feel very familiar. I'm all for sticking with what works, but I felt like there was a lot more that could have been done with the Ice Age franchise than just business-as-usual platforming.
On top of the single-player platforming mode, there are also quite a few mini-game style multiplayer modes as well. Although they aren't incredibly deep, there are some fun competitive modes like Sloth Says (which is a variation on Simon Says) and Sloth Barge, which challenges you to knock off a small iceberg using snowballs. In addition to these, there are six other multiplayer modes (each limited to two players). However, the game does not give you these multiplayer modes automatically, and you will have to purchase them in-game, or unlock them by completing advanced levels.
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Posted by GameGuideDog.com Member on December 26, 2009