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The Platform genre is not the powerhouse it once was.
During the 8- and 16-bit eras, the run-and-jump formula pioneered by
the Super Mario Bros.
franchise dominated home console videogaming and created an easy
avenue for film adaptations, which were just as numerous – if not
more so – than today. 3D worlds and realistic characterisation have
since relegated much of the genre to handheld successes, and none
more so than the Nintendo DS’s NEW Super Mario Bros. a
regressive title that remained undeniably playable despite ignoring
much of the genre convention established in the decade between
original 2D Mario outings.
CID The Dummy is Oxygen Games’ antithesis of the
modern expectations of Platform games, picking-up where the home
console blockbusters left-off. Taking place in similar 2.5D levels
to those made famous by titles such as Crash Bandicoot and
the widely underrated Wario World on GameCube, the player can
move in 360º, but only in the available area, as opposed to
free-roaming titles such as Super Mario64 and the
Banjo-Kazooie series. All the expected tricks and manoeuvres are
present – dash, wall jump, combo attacks – and most make use of the
Wii Remote’s motion-sensing capabilities in intuitive ways, though
others still rely on little more than random waggling gestures.
The levels are structured in accordance with the story,
and are both lengthy and plentiful enough as to provide longevity,
but little incentive to replay those already
completed. The design team has clearly paid attention to the
advances in Platform genre convention since the early eighties, as
CID The Dummy features more than simple timing and dexterity
challenges. Even the very first level will demand a degree of
logical thinking and combinations of the available abilities to
overcome the tasks a player is presented with, bringing into
question it’s suitability for a younger audience. Though the
aesthetic is clearly designed to appeal to youthful players, the
complexity of some of the tasks at hand may well demand input from
an adult, or more experienced gamer, at regular intervals.
CID The Dummy puts the aging Vicious Engine to
good use, with a great deal of personality injected into each and
every character and bringing each of the almost identical looking
crash test dummies distinctively to life. Most of the integral
characters are brimming with cliché, just as with any Saturday
morning cartoon. Over exaggerated gestures and cartoon-adjustment of
real-world laws such as weight and heat draw parallels between the
artistic flair of CID The Dummy and any number of Charles M.
"Chuck" Jones cartoons. The soundtrack also does well to compliment
the on-screen action, with mostly traditional amiable ditties and
the occasional irritating sound bite, and an opening theme that is
strikingly similar to Fat Boy Slim’s Weapon of Choice.
CID The Dummy is almost entirely successful at
demonstrating the best the once world-conquering Platform genre has
to offer, and those looking for the next step on a home console have
few alternatives. The chosen subject matter may deter many of those
who would otherwise find CID The Dummy an endearing prospect,
and the difficulty of the game presented could well discourage
younger players from reaping the rewards that come from progressing
through the game, but if the middle-ground can be found, they simply
couldn’t find a better third-party Platform game on Wii. |
