Reviews// Feel The Magic

Of course, not all of the components are quite that entertaining. One of them involves you blowing a candle out. Admittedly, we'd never used a microphone to control a game like that before, but after the very first go, all novelty, and the candles, were entirely extinguished. A candle appears on the top screen. You blow. It goes out. Hoo-rubbing-ray. And although once each task has been unlocked it can be re-played in a slightly longer, harder form in ‘Memories‘ mode; repeatedly blowing out candles, liberally spraying your brand new machine with specks of spittle, is hardly any more entertaining. Although admittedly, by the delightful nature of oxygen starvation and the hyper-ventilating that this game requires, the subsequent dizzy spells add significantly to the surreal feel of the presentation; but we do believe that's a bit of a cheap trick.

Similarly the shouting game failed to register itself as even a remotely good idea. You have to shout into the microphone, loudly, to attract the attention of the shadowy object of your affections. Quite apart form the practical issues that stem from shouting as loud as you can at a small machine whilst sat on the bus, or perhaps in the back-row of an auction hall during the latter stage of a PSP bidding war, the entertainment value is inherently questionable. For a DIY review, feel free to shout as loud as you can at your monitor while you’re reading this… Did you enjoy it? Exactly.

Luckily, these two examples are by far and away the weakest on offer. Most of the games, particularly the boss battles, offer considerably more entertainment value. There’s a great car-chase level which, more so than any other single part, highlights some great and surprisingly sensible ideas for the system. There’s a steering-wheel on the lower screen, which we chose to control using the strap on the left thumb, and a catapult firing mechanism presented as a lever, which we chose to control with a stylus in the right hand - all kept clear of the action ensuing on the upper screen. Whilst the same controls could be similarly achieved using a standard D-pad setup, the more creative options available make the experience seem considerably richer.

The same could be said of the various levels that require you to control your character on the lower screen simply by touching him and dragging him around, either to avoid fire-bombs being hurled at you by a giant Venus fly -trap or in order to unicycle along a tight-rope strung above shark-infested waters. The control is so direct that it feels instantly appropriate, and it turns a game that would be indisputably insipid with a joypad into one that helps define the potential of the DS. And again, the foolproof simplicity of the idea makes it as accessible as a video-game can be.