Asterix at the Olympic Games (Wii)
- Publisher:
- Atari
- Developer:
- Etranges Libellules
- Release Date:
- 29.02.2008
- Number of players:
- n/a
- Type:
- Olympic Sports
- Extra:
- Comic Style
We play Asterix at the Olympic Games...
Turgid. Mediocre. Waste of money. Dull. Boring. Tedious. Monotonous. Tripe.
They are just some of the words I was expecting to use in this review of Asterix at the Olympic Games. I wasn’t keen on putting more time into it than was absolutely necessary for what was surely going to be a poor collection of mini-games trying to ride on the success of the Mario and Sonic game. So to my surprise, I’m now writing this review after 4 hrs and 42 minutes with the game. And I’ve only stopped playing there because I’ve finished it!
Not only did Asterix surprise me with how enjoyable it ended up being, but it also surprised me with its main game not being a basic collection of mini-games replicating Olympic events. Rather than a rival to Mario and Sonic, Asterix is actually a Platform-Adventure game at heart with mini-games interspersed throughout, all of which are either takes on Olympic events (such as Javelin, Long Jump etc.) or tie in with other areas of the game and made into pseudo-Olympic events (Toadball for example has you kicking inflatable toads over a net, like a cross between football meets Volleyball).
The trouble is, rather than being fun diversions and complimenting the main game, these Olympic Events are incredibly tedious and just not worth playing for any longer than you have to in order to progress. Even youngsters will struggle to get any enjoyment out of these events. Thankfully you only need to spend about 15 minutes playing these mini-games and the rest of the time you will spend playing the main game, jumping around platforms, bashing Romans in a multitude of ways and solving basic yet fun puzzles.
There is a story to the game, which is based on the movie of the same name, but it’s so poorly implemented that it doesn’t flow smoothly and inevitably ends up being completely irrelevant to the onscreen action. In a nutshell, you as Asterix and Obelix (you can switch control between them throughout the game, or a second player can join in at any time), with your trusty companion Dogmatrix, run around Greece trying to help Lovestorix wrestle his love Princess Irina away from the evil clutches of Brutus.
The trouble is, the love interest Princess Irina is never once shown in the game. Nor is anything really explained, especially the frequent appearance of real-life actors out of the film. One early scene has a runner (again, played by an actor) running past the animated Asterix and Obelix leaving a purple mist everywhere. This purple mist is dangerous to touch and is littered throughout Greece. However its purpose is never explained and the runner is never seen again. It’s as though they had to base it on the movie as that was the license, but just couldn’t be bothered to do so (although having seen the trailer I can hardly blame them). Most of the humour throughout misses the mark if you’re older than 8 years old, probably very much like the film will, although ‘Sam Schieffer’ is quite amusing with his imitation of Sam Fisher, complete with the Splinter Cell headgear.
But what it does do right is fun, family-friendly gameplay. The platforming sections are simple but still challenging enough, and the combat is helped by a very good controller scheme that actually utilises the Wiimote and Nunchuck more than most games bother to do. Pick up a Roman with the Wiimote and then use him as a whip to stun the other Roman’s by shaking the Nunchuck back and forth. Realistic? Not a chance. Fun? Yes!
It does start to get a tad repetitive however, which when a game only lasts just under five hours really isn’t a good thing. Puzzles are used over and over again, such as the rope lifts and the ‘musical fighting’. The first time you encounter the fighting puzzle is quite enjoyable, when it’s the fifth time in 3 hours and it’s started to reproduce the same tunes (you basically hit Romans of different colours in the order that the coloured notes appear on the screen in order to reproduce the tune), it gets slightly tedious. But still, in the main, I continued to play with a smile on my face until the end. Admittedly the end isn’t far enough away and you don’t get much game for your money, but then it will most likely take the ‘target audience’ longer to complete than someone who plays games for a living.
Graphically Asterix looks quite nice, again better than you’d probably think it would, and the only issues come with lots of draw in of scenery (a field can look empty and then bushes suddenly appear right before your very eyes) and that the two characters move around at a snails pace and feel very at odds with the speed of the game. The audio however is a bit of an assault on the ears, with awful Monty Python-esque voiceovers (which all sound like they’ve been recorded in a bucket), poor sound effects and sometimes the audio just stops either mid-sentence or mid sound effect and doesn’t start again for a few seconds.
Conclusionix
Let’s get one thing straight; Asterix is not a great game, nor is it likely to win any awards of any kind. In fact at times it can get a bit repetitive and it’s so simple that a very young child should be able to play through most of the game unaided (just a few puzzles that may present a challenge that could require the assistance of an adult). But it has that ‘pick up and play’ gameplay reminiscent of the Lego Star Wars games, that doesn’t require an awful lot of thinking and is just enjoyable to play. Granted it doesn’t do it as well as Lego Star Wars, but it’s a lot better than it has any right to be and is worth picking up if you have any young ones in the house and can find it for sub-£20.
As a game for its audience, it’s a 7. As a game for avid videogames players, it’s a 5. So while it gets a 6 overall, do take that into consideration.
Top game moment: The platforming sections are really good fun to play and provide just enough challenge for players of all abilities.
They are just some of the words I was expecting to use in this review of Asterix at the Olympic Games. I wasn’t keen on putting more time into it than was absolutely necessary for what was surely going to be a poor collection of mini-games trying to ride on the success of the Mario and Sonic game. So to my surprise, I’m now writing this review after 4 hrs and 42 minutes with the game. And I’ve only stopped playing there because I’ve finished it!
 |
 |
|
| Stop, hammer time! | Obelix, stop Roman around and come and help me will ya! |
Not only did Asterix surprise me with how enjoyable it ended up being, but it also surprised me with its main game not being a basic collection of mini-games replicating Olympic events. Rather than a rival to Mario and Sonic, Asterix is actually a Platform-Adventure game at heart with mini-games interspersed throughout, all of which are either takes on Olympic events (such as Javelin, Long Jump etc.) or tie in with other areas of the game and made into pseudo-Olympic events (Toadball for example has you kicking inflatable toads over a net, like a cross between football meets Volleyball).
The trouble is, rather than being fun diversions and complimenting the main game, these Olympic Events are incredibly tedious and just not worth playing for any longer than you have to in order to progress. Even youngsters will struggle to get any enjoyment out of these events. Thankfully you only need to spend about 15 minutes playing these mini-games and the rest of the time you will spend playing the main game, jumping around platforms, bashing Romans in a multitude of ways and solving basic yet fun puzzles.
There is a story to the game, which is based on the movie of the same name, but it’s so poorly implemented that it doesn’t flow smoothly and inevitably ends up being completely irrelevant to the onscreen action. In a nutshell, you as Asterix and Obelix (you can switch control between them throughout the game, or a second player can join in at any time), with your trusty companion Dogmatrix, run around Greece trying to help Lovestorix wrestle his love Princess Irina away from the evil clutches of Brutus.
The trouble is, the love interest Princess Irina is never once shown in the game. Nor is anything really explained, especially the frequent appearance of real-life actors out of the film. One early scene has a runner (again, played by an actor) running past the animated Asterix and Obelix leaving a purple mist everywhere. This purple mist is dangerous to touch and is littered throughout Greece. However its purpose is never explained and the runner is never seen again. It’s as though they had to base it on the movie as that was the license, but just couldn’t be bothered to do so (although having seen the trailer I can hardly blame them). Most of the humour throughout misses the mark if you’re older than 8 years old, probably very much like the film will, although ‘Sam Schieffer’ is quite amusing with his imitation of Sam Fisher, complete with the Splinter Cell headgear.
 |
 |
|
| Swing low – sweet chariot. | Anyone for a game of Roman darts? |
But what it does do right is fun, family-friendly gameplay. The platforming sections are simple but still challenging enough, and the combat is helped by a very good controller scheme that actually utilises the Wiimote and Nunchuck more than most games bother to do. Pick up a Roman with the Wiimote and then use him as a whip to stun the other Roman’s by shaking the Nunchuck back and forth. Realistic? Not a chance. Fun? Yes!
It does start to get a tad repetitive however, which when a game only lasts just under five hours really isn’t a good thing. Puzzles are used over and over again, such as the rope lifts and the ‘musical fighting’. The first time you encounter the fighting puzzle is quite enjoyable, when it’s the fifth time in 3 hours and it’s started to reproduce the same tunes (you basically hit Romans of different colours in the order that the coloured notes appear on the screen in order to reproduce the tune), it gets slightly tedious. But still, in the main, I continued to play with a smile on my face until the end. Admittedly the end isn’t far enough away and you don’t get much game for your money, but then it will most likely take the ‘target audience’ longer to complete than someone who plays games for a living.
Graphically Asterix looks quite nice, again better than you’d probably think it would, and the only issues come with lots of draw in of scenery (a field can look empty and then bushes suddenly appear right before your very eyes) and that the two characters move around at a snails pace and feel very at odds with the speed of the game. The audio however is a bit of an assault on the ears, with awful Monty Python-esque voiceovers (which all sound like they’ve been recorded in a bucket), poor sound effects and sometimes the audio just stops either mid-sentence or mid sound effect and doesn’t start again for a few seconds.
Conclusionix
Let’s get one thing straight; Asterix is not a great game, nor is it likely to win any awards of any kind. In fact at times it can get a bit repetitive and it’s so simple that a very young child should be able to play through most of the game unaided (just a few puzzles that may present a challenge that could require the assistance of an adult). But it has that ‘pick up and play’ gameplay reminiscent of the Lego Star Wars games, that doesn’t require an awful lot of thinking and is just enjoyable to play. Granted it doesn’t do it as well as Lego Star Wars, but it’s a lot better than it has any right to be and is worth picking up if you have any young ones in the house and can find it for sub-£20.
As a game for its audience, it’s a 7. As a game for avid videogames players, it’s a 5. So while it gets a 6 overall, do take that into consideration.
 |
 |
|
| Noel Edmonds makes a guest appearance | He’s even got Gerard Depardieu’s nose |
Top game moment: The platforming sections are really good fun to play and provide just enough challenge for players of all abilities.
