First Look - Shrek 2 (Preview)

Funky Zealot, GamePro

22/04/2004 11:36:01

Based on the upcoming CG movie Shrek 2, the plot will loosely follow the movie, with Shrek and Fiona returning from their honeymoon, and embarking on a journey to meet Fiona's parents.

Her parents aren't too happy with the notion of marrying with an Ogre, and Fiona hopes by this visit that they can mend rocky in-law relationships. Settings such as Fiona's hometown will be in the game in an effort to faithfully recreate the atmosphere of the movie. In addition to familiar sights of the movie, the game will have original locales as well.

Squad-based action is the name of the game, allowing characters to freely switch between the four characters on screen. A "dynamic joining" feature enables other players (up to four) to join anytime, simply by plugging in another controller and hitting start.

The character switching is not simple a gimmick, as different characters need to be used to pass specific puzzles -- Shrek's strength enables him to pickup large objects, Fiona has a bullet-time slow-mo move, and Burro has a powerful "Burro Blast" attack move that, for example, allows him to knock a tree down to help others cross. Players will need to switch characters frequently to pass through the varied obstacles that come across Shrek and team's way.

Each character also has a "Hero Time," which are character-specific mini quests that has a specific character take on a mission solo. Although the cooperative action is reminiscent of Gauntlet, players cannot hurt each other -- a prudent decision, as the game would quickly degenerate from a family fun into family feud.

Although coined as a family-oriented game, at the core Shrek 2 aspires to present challenging action and puzzles that appeal to a broad audience of gamers. Featuring the likenesses of voices from the movie, Shrek fans can look forward to that unmistakable Shrek humor, with a ditsy California valley-girl Cinderella and three bitter blind mice.