Review | Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures
Format: Xbox360/PC | Genre: Adventure | Publisher: Telltale | Developer: Telltale | Release date: 03/11/09 (360) / episodic (PC)| RRP: 800 MS Points / $8.95 each
By Lewis Denby
Some happy returns are in order, as it’s 20 years today since Wallace & Gromit first appeared on our television screens.
1989’s A Grand Day Out, the first film to star the duo, proved to be a hugely significant masterpiece of animation. So it seems quite the disservice to Nick Park’s creations that Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures manifests as something of a crushing bore, one that only loses its appeal the further you get into it.
The PC version of the series wrapped up some time ago, and Episode One arrived on the 360 back in May. It’s nice to finally see the series concluded on Microsoft’s console, but having three further episodes to play through in one go only serves to highlight its failings even more so.
Mainly, it’s down to the pacing, and a narrative that stubbornly refuses to budge from its seat on the mediocrity bus. Telltale have proved time and time again that they’re capable of delivering consistently amusing stories that flow effortlessly towards their conclusion, so it’s particularly baffling why – in a series based on an existing, brilliant franchise – they’ve failed so absolutely here.
Episode One, The Fright of the Bumblebees, kicks things off reasonably, though it still meanders around for far too long at the start. The problem here is that each of the four games tells its own, self-contained story, with only superficial links between the third and fourth releases bucking that trend. The result: slow, sluggish openings to every single game, when really, all you want to do is experience more of the Mancunian duo’s wacky goings-on.
//The wrong trousers
On the surface, Telltale have entirely nailed the Wallace & Gromit vibe. Characters are rendered with convincing clay effects, with detail that stems as far as fingerprint textures on the surface of the models. While Peter Sallis passes on voice duties for madcap inventor Wallace, replacement Ben Whitehead does an admirable job of capturing Sallis ‘ excellent portrayal. The environments might as well have been ripped directly out of the TV show, while the music plods along in just the right style to convey Wallace & Gromit’s northern British charm.
Yet at the same time, it’s all plagued by problems that grate over the course of the series. A few graphical glitches rear their heads. Wallace often doesn’t sound quite right. The environments are constantly recycled. The music doesn’t flow as well as you’d hope.
They’re all issues that would be easily overlooked, if you hadn’t been swept over by inescapable boredom in the meantime. Grand Adventures’ story progression is so achingly slow, so abominably judged, that it frequently takes hours for each game to do anything remotely interesting.
Episode Three comes the closest to escaping the tiresome formula, with a welcome early change of scenery and a villain that becomes apparent early on. And Episode Two, to its credit, at least has a go at shaking the puzzles up with some clever social interactions. But it’s the vast sluggish sections that stick in mind, combined with puzzles that are often so unremarkable that they’re actually not worth remarking on.
//Feathers McBore
It’s never bad. There are occasional sparks of intelligence that suggest Telltale had a solid idea of what they were doing. The dialogue in particular is frequently brilliant, with fantastic characterisations and voice work that sit right at home within the Wallace & Gromit world. And there’s little escaping the aesthetic quality that shines through in spite of the odd glitch. In terms of merely replicatingAardman Animations’ universe, Grand Adventures gets it spot on.
Each episode in isolation provides a decent diversion. None last for more than a few hours, so even though their introductions are invariably a low point, it’s never too hard to stick them out and hit the better stuff towards the end. And in the moments when Grand Adventures does hit its stride, it’s funny, charming, and properly reminiscent of the seminal TV shows.
That’s how best to experience the series – with each episode played in isolation. Without the month’s gap in between each release, without that much-needed breathing space, things grow stale far too quickly. Bundled together, Grand Adventures is a chore to play through.
5/10
