Wallace and Gromit Episode 3: Muzzled (Xbox 360) Review
Brutal Gamer’s review of Wallace and Gromit Episode 3 titled ‘Muzzled’.
This review was written by Mark Brown.
Another day, another rotten situation for master inventor Wallace and his right hand man, Gromit. West Wallaby Street has been overrun by homeless canines since the local dog shelter was destroyed, leaving a gang of pestering mutts to get themselves in trouble.
So to give these new dogs a home, the cast of Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventures hold a local fete on the village green with all proceeds going to the new shelter. There are fortune teller machines, a pie eating contest, fairground rides and of course, Wallace’s latest contraption; the infiniflavour ice cream truck, which can turn any object into a flavoured treat (do I sense an obscure puzzle solution brewing?)
This sets up a welcome change of pace for the penultimate episode; you spend very little time in Wallace’s house and the town centre, locations that have been thoroughly used in Episodes 1 and 2, and the game sees a more villainous and devious character in Monty Muzzle.
Muzzled is the third outing in Telltale’s Wallace and Gromit point and click series. Over the course of four episodes, Aardman Animation’s plasticine duo bumble through dialogue trees, inventories full of incongruous junk and tricky item puzzles to solve problems and mysteries that befall the residents of sleepy West Wallaby Street.
As usual the puzzles are well constructed and their solutions are communicated through subtle hints and nudges – this is a long way off the inane and unintuitive head scratchers of 90s adventures. And, if you’re really stuck, Telltale will drop hints into conversation, without beating you over the head with the solution.
Muzzled is one of the funnier Wallace and Gromit releases, with a little dark humour and some suggestive gags thrown in to keep things fresh. Malevolent scoundrel Monty Muzzle is an excellent addition to the cast, with his vile sneers and conniving plans making a welcome contrast to the quaint and unassuming villagers. There’s also a band of homeless dogs with their own personalities, despite being silent like Gromit.
This does lead to entire sections of the game that have absolutely no dialogue. Heeding the canine focus, Gromit’s play time far outweighs Wallace’s which means no witty retorts, imaginative descriptions or extraneous conversations for huge parts of the game, leaving this adventure eerily quiet.
Again, the Xbox Live Arcade port is beleaguered with framerate problems, low resolution textures, wonky controls and even a game breaking bug if you’re unlucky. Unless you’ve no other choice, boycott this shoddy console port and get the game on PC.
Final Thoughts
As the best Wallace and Gromit episode so far, Muzzled introduces a great new character, a fresh location and an extra scoop of humour in Telltale’s famous blend of clever puzzles and well paced story telling.
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Wallace and Gromit Episode 3: Muzzled (Xbox 360) Review
Brutal Gamer’s review of Wallace and Gromit Episode 3 titled ‘Muzzled’. This review was written by Mark Brown. Another day, another rotten situation for master inventor Wallace and his right hand man, Gromit. West Wallaby Street has been overrun by homeless canines since the local dog shelter was destroyed, leaving…
Wallace and Gromit Episode 2: The Last Resort (Xbox 360) Review
Review: Wallace and Gromit Episode 2: The Last Resort This review was written by Mark Brown. We Brits are often at the mercy of the fickle weather, plagued by stormy summers and nagging rain clouds. The same goes for Gromit; eager to get his tan on, with beach ball and…
19 Nov 2009, 10:55 am
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