Trine 2

DLC Review from Tom - Tuesday, 17 January 2012 @ 8:34pm

The Trine is a thing of awesome power. It can teleport you to far-off places. It can merge three bodies into one. It can also glow brightly and fly. Yes, the Trine is a truly mystical piece of metal that may or may not have sentience, and it has returned for a sequel that bears it's name.

For those not aware, Trine was an indie platformer from a few years back that gathered quite a few fans. Frozenbyte, the developers of Shadowgrounds, released the sequel last year right in the middle of titles like Modern Warfare 3 and Skyrim (genius or unfortunate, you decide). Now the Christmas rush is over you may want to check Trine 2 out.

Again our three heroes are called upon by the Trine to Save The Lands. By merging the bodies of Zoya, the thief, Pontius, the knight, and Amadeus, the wizard, the Trine allows the individual skills of each to complement the others. Simple enough, right? The story involves a goblin king, two once-loving sisters, and a dragon. What more could you want? Witty banter and an amiable narrator? Check and check. While the humour isn't exactly top notch, I can definitely see this appealing to young boys and girls, with a perfect mix of fairy tale and action. But enough about that; it's the puzzling and platforming that really matters.

Obligatory Lovecraft reference.

Trine 2 follows much in the steps of the first. You still gain experience from bottles and orbs (some from slain enemies, and some that require thought to reach) that is shared among the three heroes. Again a rudimentary skill tree is provided, allowing you to unlock skills and improve the abilities of whomever you choose, though it's more streamlined second time around. I certainly didn't have access to everything by end game, but resetting skills is free, which allows you to experiment. However, it also makes solutions somewhat cheapened. Rather than being stuck to certain choices, being able to take whatever talents you desire means less thought is needed. And while there is now a greater need to use all three personalities at various stages, many puzzles simply require the use of the wizard. His abilities of manipulating objects and conjuring boxes/platforms mean that most obstacles can be jumped over witgh a bit of manoeuvring. The energy bar of the first game has been removed, as well as the knight's ability to pick up objects— a big loss indeed. Using one hero over and over again can make it boring and repetitive, but thankfully Trine 2 does a better job of promoting experimentation and playfulness. After all, a good puzzler makes the player feel smart.

It's the expertly constructed puzzle progression that makes Trine 2 stand out. There is never a huge jump in difficulty, nor will you be stuck for ages. At the same time, it takes a little thought before you have that 'eureka' moment, making it all the more satisfying. There are not only multiple methods for completing many of the tasks, but there are areas of higher difficulty for those in need of a challenge. While I hate the idea of collectibles (in this case poems and paintings), most of them can only be reached by intricate planning and timing. The developers have made sure that most puzzles can be solved in a variety of ways, and it's when you start quickly swapping the wizard for the thief that you see the brilliance behind the design. Even the combat sections are merely a puzzle in disguise: instead of letting the knight do all the hacking and slashing, why not use the wizard to drop goblins off ledges, or have the thief freeze enemies in place? It's these oblique strategies that mean the game never gets static. New features like pipe problems and portal play are just some of the interactions to overcome, but the language of the game is never foreign. All the tools you need are right there on screen, and all that is required of the player is lateral thinking. Any chance of annoyance is nullified because Frozenbyte have done such a darn good job of making a seamless singleplayer saga.

When in doubt, more boxes. Always more boxes....

But the co-op is another story. While I understand that playing with friends can be enjoyable, neither Trine nor Trine 2 needed co-op. What is balanced in singleplayer quickly becomes ruined when others join the fray. The fact that it can be completed solo means that with other players it becomes super easy. It can still be fun messing around with the physics and working out alternative solutions, so there is some value to be had (especially with Unlimited mode that lets all three players use any hero at any time). Lag can be a grave annoyance with the new online play, so playing in a LAN situation with your house mate would be ideal. Now, it is true that some of the experience bottles and collectibles are easier to gather as a team, but unless you have a real case of OCD or have no other games/books/movies/jobs there isn't much point. It's certainly more balanced than the co-op in the first game, but that's not much of an achievement. As far as I am concerned the uniqueness of Trine comes from the three-in-one package, and co-op removes that. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

For those who want more than devilishly clever puzzles, Trine 2 is also gorgeous. And I mean really damn beautiful. The art direction and aesthetic are breath-taking, though not necessarily inspired. The vistas and animations that have been perfectly rendered will catch your eye for more than a moment. Trine 2 is a game that deserves to be stared at, but also to be listened to. Again, it's typical fantasy fanfare, but after playing through the story you may want to purchase the soundtrack to listen to in your spare time, maybe even as a replacement for the sounds of another game. The setting is a little generic, but Trine 2 does it with style.

Sometimes you'll just want to stop and stare.

Pros

• Better puzzles and more solutions. A whole new gamut of mechanics and features (such as portals and giant plants) means a greater variety of problems to overcome.
• The art direction is superb. A lot of effort has gone into making a fantastic looking and sounding game.
• The sheer foolishness of three wizards and their combined conjuring skills.

Cons

• Co-op is largely unnecessary, and takes away from what makes Trine 2 fun to play in singleplayer.
• The physics are a little haphazard, making the actual platforming tedious at times.
• The story is probably on par with a good fairy tale. Perfect for older children/young teenagers.