Another issue that affects both combat and puzzle solving is the camera, which often blocks your view, and in a game about item collecting this can prove infuriating when a piece you require is blocked by an object that the camera wouldn’t allow you to see around.

There is an offline cooperative component in the game that allows another player to join at any time, but only a few puzzles require more than one person to solve, and each player must remain in the same screen space. Personally I’ve always been under the impression that co-op was supposed to endorse friendship, not providing the motivation to smack your buddy over the head for preventing you from reaching the next area. One element from the first Narnia game that will be sorely missed are team attacks, which let characters set each other up for a devastating blow. This would have made for a great addition to co-op but, like every other area of the game, the multiplayer is very bare bones.

As far as the length of the title goes, Caspian will only last about 5-6 hours, especially for more seasoned gamers that can see right through the transparent puzzles and meager fighting mechanics. There are no additional difficulties to be found, making the collecting of keys that unlock some bonus levels, footage, and concept art the only tangible reason to go back and do it all again. If collecting content isn’t your thing you might be happy hear that the 360 version is pretty easy on the Achievements compared to most games, with about 500 points coming from simply playing through the title. So if you have a kid that might be interested in Narnia, you can always think about setting up an Achievement sweat shop.

Caspian manages to be incredibly underwhelming in the graphics department as well, with rugged environments and character models that look embarrassingly outdated. The game does have some better moments during the large battle scenes that feature an impressive amount of characters on screen, but keep in mind that these are a lot of poorly rendered characters. Even for a rushed licensed game Caspian exhibits visuals that, in this generation of games for the Xbox 360 and PS3, are just plain unacceptable.

One area that cannot be criticized to as much of an extent as the rest is the sound, which thanks to Harry Gregson-Williams’ score from the film brings an epic orchestral feel to the game that, when mixed with the more climactic points, does make for a somewhat adventurous affair. When it comes to voice acting it’s hard to rate due to the fact that all the characters are surprisingly mute. In true Traveller’s Tales fashion most of the dialogue comes through as a series of grunts and yelps, which doesn’t exactly make the plot any less confusing to those not familiar with the series.


Regardless of the point I make about confusion for those not in the loop when it comes to the tales of Narnia, the reality is that anyone unfamiliar with it probably won’t be playing this game. With its bland puzzles and soulless combat, Narnia carries all the markings of yet another movie tie-in that is meant to only stir up excitement towards a younger audience by taking them through all the same set pieces and characters that have already been seen in the theatre the night before. The way the story is told certainly shows this, and anyone looking for actual gameplay aside from reliving the events of the movie will find a very one-dimensional robotic experience that should only be reserved for younger fans of the films who aren’t as likely to notice.