Reviewed: March 21, 2008
Reviewed by: John DeWeese

Publisher
Sierra

Developer
Stormfront

Released: February 5, 2008
Genre: Adventure
Players: 1

6
6
6
4
5.7

System Requirements

What I absolutely hate though are lackluster video games made solely to cash in box office success. While Spiderwick Chronicles certainly isn't the worst movie-based game that I've played, at the same time it's a run-of-the-mill kid's adventure game. Much of the gameplay involves figuring out easy puzzles, fetching items, jumping over obstacles, and mashing the right buttons to smack mean little goblins. Also, the controls seem better suited to consoles rather than the PC.

On the plus side, the game does capture the look and feel of the movie. Adult players will find the gameplay too easy, but it's probably perfect for Spiderwick fans ages 9-12.

Much of the early game involves exploring your surroundings and trying to find the Spiderwick book. Don't expect complex brainteasers because this game spoon feeds you everything you need to know. In fact, the hardest part is remembering where certain items are located throughout the house. You'll see quest items highlighted from the beginning, but you won't be able to pick them up until you unlock a given quest. As an adventure game fan, I missed the freedom to collect everything in sight and see what works. The jumping puzzles are also ridiculously easy. Push forward and your character will automatically climb over an obstacle or hop to the next ledge.

Eventually you'll find the book and run into the evil ogre Mulgarath and his legion of goblins. Suddenly the simple adventure game becomes a somewhat challenging combat game. This is the one area where the game seems better suited for an Xbox 360, as you must keep mashing buttons to evade hits or launch combo attacks. For example, you have to shake goblins off your back by moving the mouse around like crazy. While this might be fun to do with a gamepad, it feels awkward with a mouse. Finally, Spiderwick Chronicles offers a little third-person shooter action as some characters have ranged attacks. The shooting aspect of the game feels just right – not too easy like the jumping puzzles, but also not too frustrating like the melee combat.

The final mini-game involves capturing fairies with your magical net. Once you catch a fairy, you have to record it in your field guide by moving your mouse back and forth on a blank page before the timer runs out. This reveals a drawing of the creature and a list of its abilities. Fairies provide bonuses such as extra health, speed, or temporary invulnerability, but you can only trap three at a time. My only complaint about the field guide is that no matter how many health or speed fairies you've caught in the past, you still have to record each new one you add to your inventory.

I don't want to give the impression that the game has no fun surprises. My favorite parts include tricking a water troll into eating a group of goblins that were hot on my trail, watching Simon create cool gadgets, and fencing goblin bosses with Mallory's saber. The mash-up of adventure puzzles and hack-and-slash works to a certain degree, but none of the gameplay features truly stand out. I debated about giving Spiderwick Chronicles a 5 or 6 for gameplay, but decided on the higher score because the game does cater to a younger audience.

The cut-scenes are taken from the movie and are well done if a little too short. You may not know what's going on if you haven't seen the film version first.