Reviewed: January 8, 2011
Reviewed by: Mahamari Tsukitaka

Publisher
Disney Interactive Studios

Developer
Planet Moon Studios

Released: November 23, 2010
Genre: Adventure
Players: 1-4

7
7
8
6
7.0

Supported Features:

Disney Tangled is an adventure platform game designed for kids ages 6-11 and allows them to relive Rapunzel and Flynn’s adventure from the movie. Although film-inspired games typically have a bad rap, this game has the animated movie’s charm and would probably appeal to its target audience. Even as an adult with different gaming tastes, I found it decently playable, if simple, and it’s no Splinter Cell, but the co-op mode is kind of fun. For those of you who have played the LEGO games, Tangled is similar in many ways.

In single-player mode, the player controls both the naively sweet Rapunzel and the amusingly materialistic Flynn Rider, switching between them as necessary for different tasks, through levels very loosely based on major scenes from the movie. In between scenes, the game retells the story from the film in simplistic but attractive storybook-style illustrations that are narrated from the perspectives of the two main characters, authentically voiced by the original actors, Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi. The platformer-style levels are also interspersed with replayable mini-games (like a goat race or using the Wii remote to draw someone a picture) that provide some variety.

As I mentioned, Rapunzel and Flynn have different strengths and abilities. Rapunzel can, with a wiggle of the Wii controller, twirl her magic hair to heal and grow the plants around her. The plants release sun drops that are collected for points at the end of each level. She also uses her hair like a grappling hook to swing across chasms and pull items toward her. Her frying pan can also come in handy for temporarily dazing enemies that come their way, though it seems (appropriately enough, based on the movie) that she can only hit people from behind.

Even though Rapunzel is capable of helping, players will have to use Flynn to permanently defeat enemies and clear away breakable obstacles with his sword, again by waggling the controller. Instead of sun drops, Flynn greedily collects coins, many of which are found in hidden chests that can be detected using his “Flynntuition” – kind of a radar for secret treasure.

Many areas of the game require the two characters to work together to progress. For instance, Rapunzel might be able to swing across a gap that Flynn can’t jump, but she needs his help to clear out enemies or bushes. In these cases, Rapunzel’s hair comes in handy again, as she can let it down to help Flynn climb up, or she can toss her hair up to have Flynn pull her up.

These tasks are much more fun if you play the co-op mode, which (and I think this is a great idea) allows families to play together. Single-player mode can be instantly changed to a co-op mode by just turning on another Wii controller and pressing A; conveniently, there’s no need to restart a level to add players. While third and fourth players can also join in to invisibly and mysterious aid in breaking objects and stun enemies, they don’t control additional characters on the screen, which is a bummer, since Pascal or Maximus would have been great additions if the game had been designed to accommodate them.

In co-op mode, the screen splits when Rapunzel and Flynn wander farther apart from each other and can be a little disorienting. It’s no worse than split-screen play in any other game, but I would have preferred the camera to zoom out instead, since each area is modestly sized, anyway. There’s also a “Hold My Hand” feature that allows one character to take the other character’s hand so that only one person needs to do the walking—this was designed with younger or newer players in mind so that parents or siblings can more easily help them navigate the game world.

The controls, in general, are simple and easy to learn, though it might not always be immediately obvious what the game wants the player to do. Difficulty-wise, a seasoned gamer will obviously find Tangled to be much too easy, and newer gamers and kids with a bit of game experience—especially platforming experience—will probably do just fine. For a non-gamer (child or adult), however, the somewhat meandering level design could potentially be a bit confusing, especially since there is no level map function.

Additionally, the game provides enough of a tutorial to get players started at the beginning, but later on, there is no instruction at all, except at the beginning of occasional mini-games. Even I hit a few hiccups because continuing onward at times required using abilities that the game never introduced before. Something like that isn’t off-putting for someone who often plays games that don’t provide instructions for every action, but I can see how it could be frustrating for a non-gaming parent or very young child within the game’s actual target audience.

Tangled gets props for its audio and visual presentation, though. The graphics may not be the absolute best I’ve seen on the Wii, but they’re colorful, lush, and beautiful. The characters are all instantly recognizable and move smoothly. Rapunzel’s crazy long hair, especially, is surprisingly well animated and generally manages not to do anything wonkier than going through the occasional wall or object. I honestly don’t remember if the game’s background music is actually from the movie, but it’s pleasant enough. The voiceovers, as I’ve mentioned, are done by the original movie talent and are true to the characters.

Retailing for roughly $40, Tangled is a fairly short game that took me only a handful of hours, if even that, to finish, including collecting everything there is to collect in the game. From the perspective of the typical gamer, that’s not a great value, but Tangled isn’t designed for the typical gamer. Children who love the movie may very well enjoy the game for many more hours, and gamer parents should have no problem teaching their kids how to play and helping them through tougher spots. If you’re a non-gamer parent planning to buy this game for a very young child with no gaming experience, however, I’m guessing that you may encounter some frustration. In short, Tangled is probably best suited for younger players independent enough not to require handholding through every aspect of a game, as well as parents who might game at least a little and enjoy playing video games with their children.

Overall, Tangled on the Wii is one of the better movie-based games I’ve tried, and except for a few minor design issues, it’s really a very playable spin-off of the film. I thought it was an enjoyable supplement to the movie, especially given that the story is retold from a different perspective and isn’t simply a carbon copy of the film with some mini-games and interactive portions thrown in. Watching the movie isn’t a prerequisite to playing the game, but if you haven’t watched Tangled yet, I’d definitely recommend watching the movie first before playing the game.