TRON: Evolution — I Gotta Have More Lightcycles! » 30ninjas

TRON: Evolution — I Gotta Have More Lightcycles!

Share on Facebook posted 12-10-10 by Angelo D'Argenio

TRON: Evolution is Disney’s attempt to make a game that is true to the TRON universe. I’ll tell you this right now: they succeeded. In terms of story I can’t complain about TRON: Evolution. I’m a massive TRON fanboy and the story pretty much pleased me, so kudos Disney, your story delivered an authentic Tron experience. Now if only your gameplay could do the same.

TRON: Evolution spans the gap between TRON 1 and TRON Legacy. It’s kind of hard to talk much about TRON: Evolution without spoiling its plot or the plot of the upcoming movie, but I’ll give it a shot. You play as an anonymous faceless nameless system monitor program protagonist. A conspiracy is going down in the TRON world, and you are trying to get to the bottom of it. Over the course of the plot, the game will explain the events that lead to Kevin Flynn’s imprisonment in the grid while also detailing the events that lead Clu 2 to rise to power and become the main antagonist of TRON Legacy.

As I said before, I give major props to Disney for the TRON: Evolution storyline. It isn’t just a throw away side plot that we are used to seeing in most major motion picture game tie-ins. It actively expands on the TRON universe, and answers questions that plot fanatics were probably asking anyway. In fact, the plot is what will keep you playing more so than any gameplay element. One downside to the plot is that it expects you to be somewhat familiar with the TRON universe before the game even starts, but … I honestly can’t believe anyone but hardcore TRON fans will even touch this game so that shouldn’t be a problem.

The plot does, at points, get ahead of itself, and if you put down the game too long you might lose track of what you were supposed to do and how the whole thing connects with the original movie, but it’s not that big a deal. It does take some effort to discern why the things you are doing even matter, but in the end they DO matter. This game is important to the TRON metaplot, and regardless of possible pacing issues I can’t really argue that that’s basically what a movie tie-in game should be. I guess what I am trying to say is that TRON: Evolution’s plot is good … for a movie-based game … and that’s at least saying something.

The major problem with TRON: Evolution is that it isn’t sure what kind of game it wants to be. I mean, it’s basically a game about a movie about a game, right? Wouldn’t you expect the game to kind of play like the game featured in the actual movie?

Well, it doesn’t. Instead TRON: Evolution is kind of like a sci-fi Prince of Persia knockoff. You spend most of the game leaping from platform to platform, shimmying across edges, wall running, grappling with your identity disk, and much more. Since the environment is all dark and neon blue, your destination is actually pretty easy to see so you rarely get lost, but even if you do you can summon a Navi Bit to show you the way. It’s noob friendly, which is par for the course for Disney games.

The platforming is kind of fun, but it does have its downsides. A lot of people complain about how the environments in TRON are repetitive neon blue landscapes, but that’s what TRON is, so I won’t complain about that. What I will complain about is the fact that they chose to make this game heavy on platforming when the neon blue landscape makes it kind of hard to tell what areas are safe to land on and what areas aren’t. In addition, the controls are a little stiff, and you will routinely find yourself overshooting your target platform, especially when using the Mag Pull grapple ability.

The other half of the game is the combat engine which has also inherited its flaws from Prince of Persia. You have your basic melee attacks, special moves, grabs, and so forth that you would find in a contemporary action game, and there’s also an experience system that lets you level up and gain new abilities, though you will find yourself spamming on the attack button and doing little else. There is an emphasis on ranged combat with multiple throwing disks to choose from, but the whole thing suffers from horrible difficulty swing, which at times makes the game unfair. It’s really hard to appreciate what Disney tried to do with a TRON-based battle system when you are either blowing through the game with no thought or dying horribly.

If you are only encountering a couple enemies, combat is far too easy and button mashy. There were points where I went to the bathroom while carrying my wireless controller and mashing buttons and I survived just fine. However, when large groups of enemies get the drop on you, you are basically going to die. See, everyone in the TRON universe has a throwing disc, like you, and when a lot of enemies swarm you, some with special unblockable discs, it almost feels like you are in a bullet hell shooter rather than an action platformer.

However, the biggest downfall of the combat is that it’s just not fun. It doesn’t feel good to beat the crap out of ludicrously easy or horribly difficult enemy swarms. It sort of feels like they are just there to block your process and make the game feel longer, and that’s never a good thing.

All of this isn’t my biggest issue with the game, however. You see, mediocre action games are a dime a dozen out there so I’m not gonna take off major points just because TRON doesn’t have the same platforming as Mario or the same action as God of War. No, my big question is, what the hell does this have to do with TRON? Maybe I missed the part of the original movie where everyone ran parkour style through the virtual world, but this isn’t what I think of when I think, “what should TRON play like?” Maybe TRON: Legacy will have more of a Prince of Persia vibe to it, but I honestly thought of something a little more light-cycle centric or at the very least something less combat and platforming centric.

There are points in the game that put you in control of a light cycle, and these are by far the best parts of the game. The light cycle is AWESOME, and this is what a TRON game is supposed to feel like. You are zipping around the world at breakneck speeds, while things around you explode and enemies meet horrible ends by running into your light trial. It’s a nerdy adrenaline rush, the best kind of adrenaline rush! The game also puts you in control of a light tank but it’s nearly impossible to control, which basically sucks all the fun right out of these segments. Stick to the light cycle, you will be happy that you did.

The game’s multiplayer mode is actually far more well done than its single-player campaign. There aren’t very many modes, and they are all basically variants of death match, control points, and capture the flag, but playing with other people really makes the game feel like the movie. Why? LIGHT CYCLE BATTLES! Who DOESN’T want to re-enact the classic TRON light cycle scenes with someone else’s face. Take that digital kid from Arizona I don’t know!

Also, one thing that this game got right, was persistent leveling between the multiplayer and single-player modes. This is something other games really need to start doing! It makes it feel as if your effort in one mode isn’t wasted in another. I guess it opens the gates up to cheating, but I have to assume there is some way to do it well. If you remember, there was one other hit game that did this, and it was called BORDERLANDS! It’s a good idea guys! Start using it!

The largest downside to TRON: Evolution’s multiplayer is there just isn’t a community to take advantage of it. Reviewers everywhere are blasting TRON’s multiplayer for being barebones but it’s really not that bad. It’s simple, I’ll give you that, but it’s actually kind of enjoyable. But who in their right mind is sitting online waiting for other to join them in a game of TRON? I mean, look at the other options people have right now: Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and any number of popular fighting games. Unfortunately, TRON: Evolution is not the new Goldeneye of our time. Hell Goldeneye, wasn’t the new Goldeneye of our time.

One thing I can’t complain about are the graphics. This game gets the TRON environment down. It’s filled with dark corridors strung about with neon lights. The animations are a little stiff, but they are so exaggerated in combat that they are still fun to watch. The visual aesthetic is pleasing to the eye, especially for a sci-fi fan like me.

The game does have a 3-D mode, but it’s garbage. The frame rate noticeably drops, and I think Disney actually used an algorithm or something to generate the 3D effects. You never get the feeling that there is depth to the TRON world. It just feels as if the characters are popping off screen, which is strange considering that this is a third person game where the camera is mostly positioned BEHIND the character you are controlling. The cutscenes aren’t in 3D at all, and that just feels cheap. You’re better than this Disney.

So where do I stand on TRON: Evolution. It certainly isn’t the worst game I have played. Hell, I wouldn’t even call it a bad game. It’s just, I don’t know why we need a TRON video game in all honesty. I like the story but it could have just as well have been a graphic novel or mini-series and it probably would have been better received. Hell, it might have even made more money.

I also understand why the game needed to come out now, to coincide with the movie release, but look at the game environment we are in. It’s holiday time, and we are saturated with high profile releases from every game studio out there. Hell, Disney Is actually competing with itself, what with the release of Epic Mickey! Gamers don’t have the income to buy every game they want, and the idea of shelling out full price for TRON: Evolution, regardless of its high points, is not exactly the most appealing idea. Die-hard TRON fans will love this game, and you know, I’d actually suggest playing it if you are a big fan of the franchise, but beyond its story and its light cycle game play, it’s basically just a mash of generic platforming and combat that’s been done better by other games that came before it.

Like I said before, I give Disney credit. They did what they said they would do. They created a game that was very true to the TRON story and setting with a good plot and an enjoyable multiplayer suite. However, this just isn’t enough to make a game “good.” The single-player leaves a lot to be desired, and there isn’t a large enough community to keep multiplayer alive. You were so close Disney, but so far. Try again with your next big movie release, and this time remember that your game doesn’t come with a multiplayer community pre-packaged.