Time For A Game

There should be an old adage in the world of videogames, that goes along the lines of ‘beware the game that's dumped solely on Nintendo platforms'. Because increasingly, particularly where movie tie-ins are concerned, this seems to indicate a game with the casual market in mind. And that then increasingly seems to indicate a game that no gamer worth their salt would, with some justification, give the passing of time to.


So where does Disney's Alice In Wonderland tie-in game fall? Actually, it doesn't fare too badly at all. In fact, as an antidote to the movie tie-in shovelware that infests gaming, it's really quite refreshing. And if it's any consolation, that's taken us by surprise too.

It follows the storyline of the movie, which itself is set after the events of the original story. And while Alice is very much a central part of the game, the interesting choice here is that you don't actually take control of her. Instead, you take charge of the supporting cast of characters, and a delightful bunch they are. They weren't really given much screentime in the movie, so it's fun to spend some added time with the likes of the Cheshire Cat, The White Rabbit and the Mad Hatter, all of whom are well realised here.

Each, as you might expect, has particular skills, and you need to change between characters as and when the game demands to solve the conundrum that's placed in front of you. Not that those conundrums are particularly taxing: this is very much a kids' game (in marked contrast to a previous Alice title), and even if you ‘die', you just get put back where you were to carry on anyway. That, of course, makes Alice quite a simple game to work through, but it's nonetheless still an interesting one.


Throughout the game, as you basically guide Alice towards her ultimate showdown with the Red Queen, there's the usual collection of pick-ups and diversions to discover. And, in spite of taking a slightly different approach to the game itself, the ideas within it - once you get down to the game proper - tread a familiar path, serving up a variety of gaming conventions.

Yet Alice In Wonderland still works. It still hangs together, and it presents engaging characters in a world that's actually quite good fun to explore. It's certainly not going to take that long before you see the final screen, and nor will it be in contention for any awards.

But it is what it is: a quite charming, diverting and surprisingly interesting movie tie-in game. That's not enough to give the notion of such games a better reputation, but there's nonetheless been some solid thought applied here, and the game is all the better for it. A modest treat