Eragon

Movie to video-game conversions used to be the worst games on the shelves until recently. It seemed like the developers were out to make a quick buck and really rushed the development cycle and gamers were left with a half-finished game with shoddy controls and graphics. Lately that trend has been dissipating but it is still not extinct yet. The latest (book-to-) movie-to-video-game conversion is Eragon.

As stated earlier this game is based off the movie with the same name. The story begins when a young farm boy finds a dragon egg deep within the forest of the Spine Mountains. When the dragon, Saphira, hatches from its egg the destiny of the dragon and the farm boy, Eragon become intertwined. As time goes on Eragon is put into new and dangerous situations as he goes throughout the world. It is up to you to take control of Eragon and Saphria to become a Dragon Rider and vanquish the evil that lies before you.

The gameplay is uncomplicated and easy to get the hang of because it is so repetitious. You go throughout each level defeating enemies in elaborate combos (that will get boring after seeing them for the umpteenth time). You have a couple of ways of defeating your enemies; either use your sword or your bow. If you are controlling Eragon you will be able to use magic, which is really helpful with defeating some of the harder enemies.

The drawn for this game is that not only will you be able to control Eragon but also his pet dragon Saphira. In these levels your goal is to destroy or get to a certain location before your enemies does. The dragon-flying levels are pretty fun but the problem is that there are not enough of them. It is strange that this is the case sine the game revolves around Eragon becoming a dragon rider and yet there is not enough dragon-centered levels.

If you are looking for games that offer co-op this holiday season then you will be pleased to know that Eragon does. All you have to do is press start during the game and then you can play as Brom, Murtagh, or Saphira during the various missions. This adds in some fun for your friends, because if you are like me, you would rather play a game than watch someone else play it.

The biggest problem with the game is how the story is told, or lack thereof. There story for this game is really non-existent and when it does appear that there is going to be something story related the game quickly flashes by it with no real consequence to the gamer. This is due to the developer’s fault of not making the story coherent with the game. Another problem comes up with the cutscenes that are really bad and look really bad, and you will almost laugh that you are seeing this on the Xbox 360.

The graphics for Eragon is palatable but could have been a lot better. The level design and texture use is decent but could have definitely used some sprucing up to take advantage of the Xbox 360's graphical power. The most underwhelming part of the game is when you see some of the spell effects and how “boring” they look. Also the lack of camera control was really unfortunate as I think that this hampers the game when you are only allowed to look in one direction as it is easy to miss some of the hidden eggs in certain levels.

What does help out is the musical score, which will take you from each level and help give you adrenaline during certain moments to keep on the fight. The sound effects that you will hear throughout the game are decent but not nearly as good as the soundtrack. Lastly the voice acting could definitely use some work. Some of the actors from the movie decided to lend their voices to their respective characters, while others did not, which is fine but will be weird once you see the movie. The main problem with the acting is that the characters do not give the necessary emotion needed during certain parts of the story which made it seem to bog down.

Eragon is rated Teen and contains blood, violence, and mild language.

Gameplay: 5.6
The gameplay to Eragon is as straightforward as you can get. You go though each level defeating all the enemies you see on the screen creating big combos till you get to the next level. In the dragon levels you fly and try to destroy something before your enemies, these levels are the best that the game offers but there are not enough to satisfy your thirst.

Graphics: 5.9
The graphics aren’t horrible but you can tell that the game does not take advantage of the Xbox 360 full graphical capabilities. I also hate the fact that you can’t manipulate the camera; you are stuck in a fixed perspective, which feels like it hampers the action.

Sound: 7.0
The musical score for this game is really well done and will have you captivated while playing this game. The voice acing could use some work though.

Difficulty: Easy
Once you pick of this game for the first time you will feel at home with the controls as it is the same as almost any action-adventure game that has come before it. Plus the giant icons that tell you what to do next really dumbs the game down for players.

Concept: 5.0
To be honest this game really doesn’t do anything to the action-adventure genre that makes it go forward. The lack of camera control makes it step backwards though.

Multiplayer 6.4
Playing with another friend though this game is fun, but I think that the developers could have better implemented the co-op to make it even more enjoyable for players.

Overall: 5.7
Eragon is a game that could have been a lot better but falls apart due to a most likely rushed development cycle to have this game released the same time the movie comes out. Even though the Xbox 360 version contains two additional levels and boss fight this is not really worth the price of admission since there are so many better games already out on the market.