Max and the Magic Marker
SCORE: 87
I read the intriguing press releases concerning Max and the Magic Marker. They piqued my curiosity. All kinds of tears and sadness ensued when I realized Family Friendly Gaming was not receiving a reviewable copy. No need to fear though because I scraped together the money to purchase it myself. Players control Max, along with a Magic Marker. Things that are drawn immediately interact with the environment. So lets say there is a teeter totter and you need to launch Max up high. Draw a circle and let it fall from a height to hit the other side. Max goes flying up. There is a chasm that Max can not cross. Draw yourself a little bridge, and walk across.
I appreciate how the good guys are done in approachable colors, and the bad guys are in darker colors. The animation in Max and the Magic Marker is decent, and the Magic Marker interaction is fantastic. The main drawback to the graphics section is the player rarely has a lot of extra ink to play with. There is some cartoon violence as the bad characters can be squashed by thing like giant rolling balls. The details could have been a little bit better in this WiiWare game, but it take a trained eye to notice.
Max and the Magic Marker has some fun music that made me enjoy this game. In fact the music is one of the few things that brought me back when I ran into difficult levels. The special effect sounds are generally good. The one irritating sound I found was the bad guy laughing when he would steal my ink. I understand this is a part of the gameplay mechanic, but it limits creativity.
Press Press (how cool of a company name is that?) included various unlockables that are fun to unlock. The farther you get in Max and the Magic Marker the more you get to unlock. For 1000 points (or ten dollars) I feel like there can be enough to make this worth the money. I pull shy of just saying so because I would have liked a little lower price personally.
I really enjoy video games that allow us to express our creative sides. Max and the Magic Marker is one such video game. I am not the greatest artist out there. In fact I got a ‘C’ in Art class because I tried really hard. Getting to draw shapes that are used in the game includes a layer of game play that helps this Wii game shine. I know this is not the first game to do this, nor is it the best. It is a fun game to play that one family members at a time can enjoy.
The cartoon violence
is the biggest concern families will have with Max and the Magic Marker.
Thankfully interacting with enemies is at a low rate. The majority of
Max and the Magic Marker is about solving the puzzles of how to get to
the end of the level. I would like to see sequels to this franchise in
the near future. I will be recommending Max and the Magic Marker to
friends and family members.
- Paul
Graphics: 81%
Sound: 86%
Replay/Extras: 85%
Gameplay: 93%
Family Friendly Factor: 89%
System: Wii
Publisher: Press Play
Rating: 'E' for Everyone
{Comic Mischief}
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