Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest
by Disney
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Category: Video Games
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Product Summary
Brand: Disney Interactive StudiosAudio: English (Unknown)
Published: 2006-06
Release Date: 2006-06-27
Platform: Nintendo DS
Model: 712725002671
Publisher: Disney
Product features:
- 2-player cooperative wireless mode; 3 2-player mini games
- Experience the life of a pirate in this swashbuckling action-adventure game
- Play as Jack Sparrow, Will Turner, or Elizabeth Swann, each with signature fight move
- Fight through 19 exciting levels to defeat 29 different enemies
- 17 different weapons including swords, pistols, hatchets, throwing knives, and grenades
Video Game Reviews of Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest
Customer Review: Half-filled chest
Summary: 3 Stars
I've got to admit that I generally have low expectations of movie-adapted video games. They're often associated with rushed deadlines, broken gameplay, and a waste of time. So, when I received this copy of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest for the DS, I was dragging my fingers as I pushed the "on" trigger on my DS Lite. Five minutes into it, however, I was thinking, ok, this isn't as bad as I expected.
Yes, Pirates isn't a fantastic game. It's not even close to that. However, for a platform that's so lacking in a solid hack-and-slash action adventure (the last good one was Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrows), Pirates comes very close to filling that gap. It has all the ingredients for a classic: a smooth-frame-rate 3D engine; a reasonable menu of combos to execute; a host of weapons to use and enemies to defeat; three playable characters; and even a two player multiplayer feature. Unfortunately, the game's emphasis on having the player repeatedly fight through a wave of enemies, only to be greeted with another wave, ultimately makes the playing experience a little less enjoyable.
As mentioned, you'll get to play as three characters in this game, namely Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann. If you've watched the Pirates of the Caribbean movie, these characters won't be strangers to you. The game (supposedly) takes you through the Dead Man's Chest movie story, as you control different characters through various levels. You won't feel much of a difference though, since the rather linear levels are mostly confined to repetitive hack-and-slash sequences, and the controls for each character are basically the same.
To its credit, the game does provide some alternatives in an attempt to reduce the boredom of mere button-mashing. Basic combo moves can be executed from the onset. As you progress, you'll pick up pieces of gems that will eventually unlock an advanced combo. Some of these special combos may include the ability to perform a powerful downward swipe, an audacious upper cut, and even a cheeky "punch `em in the eye" move. Some gems are easy to find, while others may take more effort, but that's why the word "exploration" was invented. Apart from these combos, each character also has a signature move that works like a "magical attack" in a RPG. These moves require the use of the character's "Savvy", which is like a typical "MP meter" that deteriorates once you perform such a move. You can, of course, replenish lost Savvy when you fight enemies. Although the execution of these moves can be quite awkward, it's really not a bad idea.
The game also throws in a fair amount of weapons for your disposal. You'll always have a primary weapon, but defeated enemies sometimes drop weapons (some very powerful) that you can pick up for use. Strangely, the game doesn't include an opportunity for you to wield two weapons at one time. Instead, this temporary weapon has a health bar that decreases as you use it. Once its "health" depletes, you'll automatically switch back to your primary weapon again. The concept is a little silly, since it feels rather restrictive when you can't wield your primary weapon once you pick up a secondary one. A Prince of Persia-style double-weapon combos would definitely increase the playability of this game. Nevertheless, the game does allow you to interact with the environment when fighting. This is usually done in the form of throwing, and the game has a lot of "throwable" items. These include crates, bottles, coconuts and even chickens (!). Throwing aside, you can even fire a cannon and watch the minions scream in pain - without doubt, one of my favorite moments of the game.
Pirates plays over two screen, but the main action happens actually on the top screen. The touch screen is used sparingly, usually to depict your quest's information like your gold and gems count. The touch screen also shows the on-screen dialogue when required, but seriously, I'd take a voice-over any day. It's a pity, really, because the sound effects of this game are quite good, and even includes some utterances of corny one-liners from the characters. I'm not entirely sure whether these are voiced by the respective artistes, but I think not. The tracks are a little weak in comparison, and comprise mostly of predictable action-style music that feels tired and recycled. The graphics, however, are a great advertisement for the DS, especially when blasted with the brightness of the DS Lite.
Like many games in the market now, Pirates boasts a wireless multiplayer mode. By "multi", I actually mean up to two (duh!) players. This feature allows the players to play through the entire story campaign as a team. The game also has three mini-games that have a very arcade feel to them. You can kind of expect what they're about, especially when one of them is titled "Shoot the Monkey". These mini-games are also available to play in the two-player mode. However, the game doesn't have a single card support, which means that, to play the co-op and challenge modes, both players must own a copy of the game. This may turn off some potential players.
In a nutshell, Pirates feels like a lost opportunity. It has several elements that can make a game great, but it doesn't explore these elements well enough. Nevertheless, it's still one of the better movie-adapted games out there right now. It doesn't exactly provide a swashbuckling experience, but it's adequate enough for a play through because an old-fashioned beat-`em-up is just so hard to find on the DS.
Description of Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest
Based on the follow-up to the blockbuster original movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest allows players to take on the roles of Captain Jack Sparrow, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swann. Each character has his or her own signature fight move as they explore and brawl across land and sea on a memorable quest in search of the legendary Dead Man's ChestSimulation Games
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