LAGWAR | GAMING'S BEST IN TOP NOTCH MEDIOCRITY

Normally, platformers aren’t really my preferred genre but I will certainly be making an exception for Frozenbyte’s latest creation, Trine. Trine is a very physics-based platformer that’s paving the way to creating a whole new way of thinking when it comes to side-scrolling platform games on the PC.

To give you the basic concept of the game, you play as one of three characters at any given time who are magically joined together by a mystical crystal called: the Trine. You are able to switch from character to character by using the 1, 2, and 3 keys on your keyboard. Each character offers their own tactics and abilities to help you maneuver through the environment as well as dominate any enemies that get in your way.

The first character is your basic thief, who really reminds of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time gameplay. The thief bears a grappling hook for climbing over obstacles and a crossbow for shooting skeletons in the face. The second is a lazy wizard who’s main objective in life is to charm women with his magic skills. The wizard is able to levitate and create objects. Last but not least, you have a standard knight in shining armor. The knight is the muscle of the three and is able to plow through enemies with his sword as well as defend himself from falling objects and enemy attacks with his 180 degree shield mechanics, which is a really nice twist.

Trine really brings something new and innovative to the platform genre. On top of the extremely beautiful and lush artwork, there’s some very compelling story-telling that occurs throughout the game. The story-telling really sets a mystical mood and makes it very easy for you to place yourself in this fantastical fairy tale.

The various tactics and mechanics that make each character totally different but reliant on each other to survive really makes this game stand out amongst others. It’s done so well that it almost gives Trine a roleplaying feel. Your characters even gain experience!

The biggest fear that I have when I think about playing a platform title on PC is the controls. Well, have no fear, Trine is here. Frozenbyte has done a tremendous job at making sure the controls are easy to use and actually work with a keyboard and mouse. The physics of the wizards levitation and summoning spells to the knight’s multi-directional shielding abilities play out in extremely smooth motion. The developers have really taken advantage of the mouse and it’s mobility by implementing so many abilities that work off of the mouse’s full-range movement. For example, if your playing the wizard, you can simply hold left-click while moving the mouse in shape of a square on your mouse pad and he will summon a box for you to use to climb over obstacles or to smash other objects in the environment.

Here’s what Lagwar’s Wrewdinge had to say about Trine:

Imagine an old wise wizard telling you a tale, his voice gently guiding you through the story as you sit entranced by his every word. That is what Trine feels like, a book of story that you get to act out. As you go through the somewhat challenging labyrinths of the game the wizard, or the narrator, continues to read to you about the story of the three character’s journeys as you act them out. Now some of you may be thinking that this is the type of game where you follow the narrator’s speeches word for word, that is not the case in Trine. The narrator is more of a behind the scenes of the three characters, telling you of their intentions explaining the reasoning behind your travels. Trine is not the type of game where the narrator states “The knight entered the house” and then you are forced to enter the house, it has a wonderful flow between the narrator and the actors.

My overall experience with the demo of Trine lead me craving the rest of the game whether it’s for the puzzle aspect of the game or just listening to the narrator’s voice, I need to play more of it.