monitorTHIS! - March 2009 - (Page 16) games new video games in stores this month by Chris Dick Monster Mash T h e t r a i l o f failed movie tie-ins is as long as the Earth is round. Atari’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial maybe the first tie-in ultra-failure, but that hasn’t stopped video game developers and publishers from pumping out tiresome console versions of Hollywood blockbusters ever since. Look at Activision’s tepid Transformers: The Game. Or Heavy Iron’s WALL-E blunder. Long understood is the fact that developers have very little time to address major details (graphics, controls, camera), let alone minor ones (story arcs, feature absence, poor online play). When deadlines are tight, games suffer. Well, Activision is crossing fingers that the tie-in malaise will end—at least this time—on action-adventure title Monsters vs. Aliens: The Game. Based off the upcoming DreamWorks Animation 3D film, Monsters vs. Aliens: The Game puts players in the place of five likable monsters from the movie. Ginormica, a 49-foot-11-inch Pick a side and wreak havoc in battle royale Monsters vs. Aliens: THE GAME tall woman, Insectosaurus, the 350-foot tall grub, the Missing Link, the macho half-ape/half-fish, B.O.B., gelatinous gourmand, and Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D. combat the evils of planetary invader Gallaxhar and his army of humongous robots. If the plot sounds familiar—a hodgepodge of Super Friends and Captain Planet—it’s because all other shopworn plots have been trademarked by Blue Sky Studios. Little has been revealed how Monsters vs. Aliens: The Game will actually play. Evidently, DreamWorks Animation and Activision want to keep a lid on things. Screens and trailers, however, have indicated that Activision won’t stray too far from typical action-adventure titles. What is known is defeating Gallaxhar requires a team effort. Players will have to figure out which configuration of Monsters, each with unique attributes, is able to best the biggest of Gallaxhar’s baddies across 12 levels from the movie. In co-op mode, Dr. Cockroach, [ 16 + monitorthis! + march 2009 ]
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