So let me start off by saying I am not amazing at puzzle platformers nor am I a huge fan of them. They entertain for a while but they can never hold my attention for too long. I usually end up getting frustrated and playing a different game. That being said, Trine isn’t really one of those games.
In Trine you play as three different characters; a mage, a warrior, and a thief. They all have their own special skills to help solve the problems you will face. Switching between them is literally as easy as 1, 2, 3 (pressing the buttons at least). The mage moves boxes with magic, the warrior fights, and the thief has a grappling hook to get to hard to reach places.
As you go through the game you collect vials of experience which allow your characters to level up (which they all do at the same time. You don’t have to get experience for each one separately). You also come across chests which contain either items or new skills for your characters. You can improve these skills as you level up.
This game offers a great puzzle experience and the combat is nice and doesn’t just feel like a filler between puzzles. At some points the game throws skeletons at you while you’re trying to solve the puzzles making you solve them under pressure and think on your feet. I really like this as it forces you to do the puzzle instead of sitting there pondering it for 5 minutes and then doing it. That’s just a personal preference though.
The puzzles are, often times, not too hard. Sometimes I wish that the puzzles were harder, but there are plenty of puzzles in each level of varying difficulties. Luckily you don’t die right away when you mess up and you can regenerate your health with potions that sometimes drop off the baddies. Don’t take this the wrong way though, the puzzles were challenging. I didn’t find any that I was just like “This is way too easy…” nor did I find any that made me say “F$&% this game I’m playing a different one!” There are also frequent checkpoints in case one of your characters dies which doesn’t happen too often unless you aren’t being careful.
The system with the three heroes is certainly a fun feature. You have to switch back and forth all the time to solve the puzzles. It also allows for different playstyles. You could like to use the thief to grapple everywhere to solve problems or maybe you like to use the wizard to move all the boxes around. Some puzzles, however, force you to use a certain character. This doesn’t really strike me as a negative but I could see how someone might not want to play one of the characters. I feel it is required, if you have a system like this, to force the player to think out of the box and say “which guy should I use here, I wonder.” The three characters also feel very different. It’s not just like one guy has a sword, one has a bow, and one has a staff. The way they help solve the puzzles is unique and they all have their own specialties.
I don’t have very many negative things to say about this game. One thing I will say that bothered me is the camera. I don’t mind sidescrollers but sometimes in this game there are points where a rock or something in the foreground will get in the way. This isn’t really gamebreaking, as it doesn’t happen often and usually it wont block much of the screen. However, I really don’t like how the camera will sometimes move on to focus on a different area when you need to grab a box or something in the last. This doesn’t happen often however, and they’ve done a fine job of keeping everything you need in one area. That pretty much sums up the negatives.
9/10
TL;DR
Trine is a pretty awesome game utilizing three different characters to solve fairly challenging puzzles. The only thing I had a slight issue with was the camera at some points. Overall though I would strongly recommend picking this up.
Pros:
+Great puzzles
+The three character system adds to the complexity of the puzzles rather than being a silly gimick
+Characters feel very different
+Not a bad looking game either
+Only $2!! Great price for the amount of entertainment you will get from it even if you don’t like puzzle games. It’s only $2!
Cons:
-Sometimes the camera is a little wonky
-Sometimes I find myself clearly jumping onto a platform only to slide off. This is possibly just my own fault though…
If there’s anything that you think will make these reviews better leave a comment. Thanks!
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