Asterix at the Olympic Games

Carrying the torch...

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Contrary to what it may seem, Asterix at the Olympic Games does not actually involve a whole lot of sporting activity. Certainly, our pint-sized hero does throw a few javelins here and there, but it's certainly not Sonic & Mario at the Olympics with an Asterix skin thrown on.

Instead, it is closely linked to the story of the up-coming film. No, wait! Don't go! It's actually not that bad...

Our heroes have to go to the Olympics to help their fellow tribesman Lovestorix win the heart of his lady-friend. Apparently she will kiss the winner of the Olympic chariot race. But Brutus, son of Julius Caesar, also has his eye on her and will do anything to stop our friends getting to that race.

Brutus is also doing some sort of wizardry with a stone that involves showing live-action clips from the film, but there wasn't a whole lot of explanation what was going on. I expect you have to see the film to find out more. Anyway, Asterix and Obelix have to emerge victorious from each event to qualify for the chariot race.

Beating the computer in the events is ridiculously easy (more on the events later) so the single-player game is almost entirely based around a puzzle-action hybrid. Of course, you need to fight your way through some "pesky Romans" as Obelix delights in calling them. The combat system is really rather simple - you can unlock special moves such as swinging Romans round your head and hitting other Romans with them, but it is just as efficient to button-mash your way through them. The special moves are unlocked by collecting helmets, and you collect enough helmets to unlock everything very quickly. The combos are probably more about style than any real skill - but they are good fun to watch all the same. You really feel like you are in a battle straight out of the comic books.

The rest of the game is based around getting from point A to point B, with different problems involved in each. The gameplay is very similar to the latest Prince of Persia games - a lot of switches to push, ledges to climb and similar gadgets. There is also a co-operative element where Obelix may need to stand on one switch while Asterix climbs up the wall to the next switch, for example. Switching between characters is as simple as pressing the minus button - or you can play co-operatively with a friend, with one player controlling each character.

Along the way, there are several fairly lengthy cut-scenes - most of them shameless plugs for the film, but there are plenty of in-jokes for fans as well. The voice-acting is pretty good as well - the actors have been well chosen for each character.

The single-player mission is over quite quickly. It is fairly short, and there are plenty of hints on where to go next. Dogmatix always runs ahead and shows you the next place you need to go, or switch you need to push - it is important to remember that it is a game aimed at the younger market, after all. Once the single-player mission is over, all that really remains is the multiplayer Olympics with your friends.

As in all such games, the events are pretty hit-and-miss - I most enjoyed the traditional events such as the sprint or the javelin. The sprint is as basic as shaking the Wiimote as fast as you can, with the odd opportunity to attack your opponent thrown in. The javelin involves shaking the Wiimote as fast as you can, followed by pressing and releasing a button to get the correct angle.

There are also some events more in-fitting with the theme, one example is where you need to beat up more Romans than your opponent within the time limit. Alternatively, you may find yourself faced with multi-coloured Romans and need to bash them in a specific order.

The events are fun for a while, but soon lose their appeal - there are certainly better multiplayer games available on the console. Overall, this game is definitely one for the kids, or the fans, and for that reason I personally will give it a rather high score. It is definitely worth a look if you are a proponent of the books, and a pleasant surprise if you were expecting another terrible tie-in.

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By Richard Bright