Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Review (no fat)

by Vivendi Games Platform: Xbox Genre: Act-Adv	ESRB Rating: Everyone Release: 2006-14-03	Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Features: Multiple Maps To Play Through In Depth Story Line Quirky Cast of Characters Lots of Laughs
	Egamer's Rating: 8 / 10. Reviewed on: 2006-11-25

Game Description

Most games that are created from movies usually crash and burn, however, there is one game that stands out from the crowd. Ice Age 2: The Meltdown was a big hit with movie goers, and now it is time to try out the idea on gamers across the globe.

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Gameplay

Gamers will play as the little squirrel-rat, named Scrat. They will remember this little squirrel-rat from his odd antics of retrieving an acorn that seems to be always out of his reach. Most of the characters from the movie are including in the game, such as Manny, Sid and Diego. For those who don’t remember, Manny was a mammoth, Sid was a sloth and Diego was a smilodon. The story follows that of the movie, which means that a flood of water due to ice meltage is about to overtake the land that these animals live on, unless they do something about it.

Not only is Ice Age 2: The Meltdown fun, but it is also captivating to watch the characters as they move about the environment. Scrat has a number of moves that are done in a way that only Scrat can. Gameplay captures everything from the movie, including brilliant colors and environments. However, gamers don’t get to play as any of the other characters in the game. This addition would have giving more replay value to the game, and would have given gamers more of a choice during gameplay.

It is a very sure thing that the game is a platformer, as it doesn’t stray from this category at all. Also, it is more of a kid’s game, which means that some gamers may get turned off pretty quickly. Advanced gamers will probably tire from collecting things and mediocre puzzles from the beginning, but younger gamers are in for a real treat. It is easy for the younger generation of gamers to pick up and play through, and may provide some easy gaming for those of us who are in depth gamers. Who knows? The advanced gamers just might like the game as well, as there are many humorous and funny situations that the characters get themselves into.

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Graphics

The graphics in Ice Age 2: The Meltdown are stunning, to say the least. Colorful graphics and fluid animation bring the game to life. There are also snippets from the actual movie incorporated into gameplay, so those who liked the movie will probably like the animations in the game. The frame-rate is great, and never skips a beat. While the characters are fully detailed, some of the environments in gameplay leave more to be desired. So much so that some are not very detailed at all, and lack an enormous amount of texture in the objects. On the other hand, there are lots of environments to explore, on land and off, to keep gamers interested.

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Audio

The audio in the game is quirky, just like it was in the movie. Different situations are accented with perfectly mixed audio to give the feeling of danger or happiness. The score in the game is original, and sometimes will stick in gamer’s heads for hours after game play. The sound effects in the game aren’t very realistic, but that is what you get when you create a game from a cartoon movie. All together, the audio in the game is presented in a decent manner and compliments game play quite nicely.

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Final Verdict

While most gamers will pass this game up because it looks like too much of a kid game, those who do give it a try will enjoy the colorful graphics and the great story line. The game does provide lots of laughs for both younger gamers and advanced gamers, and isn’t too shabby a buy for $39.99.