50 Games in 2012 - #20 Trine 2 [PSN]

Default_picture
Monday, August 27, 2012

50 Games in 2012 - #20 Trine 2 [PSN] (Completed June 1st)

My time with Trine 2 and Playstation Plus go hand in hand. I sat on the fence a long time about Plus memberships ever since they were announced and was very much against the idea. Seeing free games that I wanted be a part of the program intrigued me and Trine 2 was my breaking point. Being $15 on the Playstation network I wanted to play Trine 2 but never committed to picking the game up due to my backload of titles. Finally seeing it on Playstation Plus made me sign up for the program and in loo of this also download Trine 2.

 

Trines world is charming and the art style is largely what makes this game stand out. As a classic 2D style adventure game Trine doesn't offer a lot of originality in it's basis but makes up for that in it's character, art style and puzzling mechanics. Being able to control 3 different characters whenever you please also leads to a large quantity of ways to assess and accomplish game situations which also proved to be quite intriguing. These are all strong suits that Trine 2 has going for it a long with a fun story narrated by a man with quintessential british accent.

Besides my qualms with my game interaction the gameplay that Trine 2 has in store is also quite fun. As I referenced above the ability to interchange between 3 characters becomes extremely helpful as you manoeuvre puzzles and enemies trying to concoct a way through a section of the game. Enemies are largely run of the mill for the area of the game but they offer different types for different sections to keep repetition low. As a puzzler Trine 2 excels in making great opportunities to use a bit of brain power to figure out a vast base of scenarios which range from moving items to defeating enemies and creating paths for your characters.

 

All of this leads to a well rounded downloadable title that has a lot to offer but unfortunately for myself it also lead to lack of interest as the game continued. Playing Trine 2 proved to be fun but more often then not as the game progressed I grew less interested in the actual gameplay and more interested in the games gold trophies. It's sad to say as in most cases I almost always put gameplay first but Trine 2 lost my interest at many points and it's all gold trophy set was one of the few dangling carrots that kept me moving onward with the game.

It's tough to rag on a well built game simply because of lack of interest but that was where I was left with Trine 2. Through my experience I enjoyed the game at large points but found myself often disinterested by the story and more interested with completing fun puzzles and unlocking the games trophies. Putting that aside Trine 2 still delivers a fun adventure game that is worth your time if your in the mood for a fun downloadable title.

Game Summary:

Date Finished: 6/1 | Trine 2 (PSN)

Pros: Whimsical atmosphere mixed with beautiful graphics supplemented by solid puzzling.

Cons: Interest for both the story and gameplay waned father into the game.

Conclusion: Trine 2 offers a great adventure minus a few stumbling points

[8/10]

{Previous Entry #19: http://bitmob.com/articles/50-games-in-2012-19-mass-effect-3-ps3}

 
Problem? Report this post
BITMOB'S SPONSOR
Adsense-placeholder
Comments (2)
100media_imag0065
September 01, 2012

Great game, and great read. I never got to finish the first, I had a wicked bug that I jus couldn't get rid of. The game kept doing a reset of my characters progression, it was wiping everything every single time I launched the game. Then it eventually stopped letting me swing my sword or draw platforms and boxes, etc. I eventually got fed up with it. Needless to say, when the sequel came out I donwloaded it on the PS3 and ignored the PC version, if there is one. And you won't regret signing up for PS Plus. I've been a member for 2 years, and my $50 a year subscription has gotten me over $1000 of free games. Good games to boot, not bottom of the barrel nonsense. And this month we get Borderlands for free. SWEET! I've put over 200 hours into that game on the 360.

Anyway, I agree with your review for the most part, although I completely disagree about the Trophies. A games achievements/trohpies should never, ever affect your enjoyment of the game and especially not a review. They are not tied to the actual gameplay in a way that could negatively affect it in any meaningful way. They aren't just optional, they aren't part of the actual game. They aren't tied to progression, they aren't required to complete missions, they have no substance inside of the actual game.

It would be like lowering a games score because the font in the manual was too small and hard to read. Just like the coming attractions to a movie should never affect your enjoyment of the actual movie, trohpies should never affect your enjoyment of the actual game. I myslef am a trophy/achievement whore. I've spent many a day unlocking everything that I can.

However, I would never let them affect my opinion of a game in any way. And the way I do that is simple. I play the game first, and don't bother looking at any of the trophies. If by the end of the game I find that I had such a good time that I want to spend more time with the game, I then look at the list and go on a quest to unlock as much as I can. The second you let that passion get in the way of your first playthrough is the second the game will be tainted in a minor or major way, depending on the game. Hence, I ignore them completely until the second playthrough.

Default_picture
September 02, 2012

Thanks for the response and read!

Most games I've played this year have inspired me in some way to write about them but Trine 2 did not. As I've gone through quite a few this year I've let that inspiration go to good use shortly after a playthrough in animating my article with an opinion of my experience. I've dropped a couple games from the list before even writing because of lack of inspiration but with Trine 2 I wrote anyway even though I wasn't enthused about my experience with the game.Unfortunately that's where I think the Trophy end of the article arrised as I was left wondering where this sour taste in my mouth came from while playing the game. With that said I'm very much in agreeance with what trophies mean to me. In cases of a great game I let them pop but don't "hunt" for them til after a games main story is completed. If I really enjoyed the game it then gives me extra things to accomplish and a reason to dive deeper into what that specific game has to offer. I do believe though that trophies are more then just trailers because in a lot of ways they can help add to a games experience and make you try and accomplish things you may have never attempted otherwise. 

On another note I've had PlayStation Plus for about 3 months now and I completely agree. In that short amount of time I can confidently say I've already gotten my moneys worth!

You must log in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.