Trine’s three in one Review

Every now and then a game comes along that has not been hyped by the media, nor has it popped onto many gamers radars, that surprisingly, is an absolute gem of a game. Let me iterate; gems are rare and difficult to find but at the same time they are beautiful and a joy to possess, which is the perfect introduction to this hidden gem of a game, Trine.

The first thing that stands out about Trine is the fantastic familiarity that you will experience if you’ve been a long time gamer. It revives the old classic 2D action adventure genre in a new, sleek incarnation to world of current gen gaming. Trine puts you in the shoes of three uniquely distinct characters; a Wizard, a Knight and a Thief, who’s souls have been bound together by the magical Trine. Each has their own set of skills and abilities that you’ll need to traverse the perilous world. The Wizard can telepathically move objects around, conjure boxes and bridges and although he cannot directly engage an enemy he can drop objects on them. The Thief is light and nimble and she can grapple into wooden surfaces to swing across wide open gaps, she also wields a bow and arrow that allows her to be a great distance fighter. The Knight is the strongest of the lot, he is the brute that runs in head first, hacking the attacking skeletons one after another to clear the path ahead. The characters can be ungraded by finding new weapons hidden in chests and by collecting experience potions that are scattered through out the levels.

The great thing about Trine is that most of the puzzles can be solved in a multitude of ways. For example: you are faced with a impossible to jump across an acid pit. The Theif could simply grapple onto a wooden ledge and swing across or the Wizard could conjure up a box, drop it into the acid and then beseech a bridge that leans on both the box and the far ledge allowing him and the knight to simply make a small jump and walk across. If you are playing on your own, the three characters inhabit one body and you can switch between them as you see fit. You can even change them in mid air should your skill levels reach those epic heights. Each character has  independent health and magic meters and if one dies you can go on using the remaining two until a checkpoint is reached, whereby the deceased  characters will re-spawn.

The team have also taken a lot of time to keep you on your toes regarding the puzzles, just when you think you’ve figured it all out they drop something new for you to contemplate your way through. The evolution in the puzzles encourages experimentation with the physics, which in itself, is a lot of fun.

After reading this review I hope that you have the feeling that you have just stumbled upon a gem. Trine is a delight to play and there will be many times where you will just stop and stare at the magnificence in front of you, trying to take it all in so that you never forget it. It’s a game that you can enjoy alone and then experience it in a completely different way, while playing local co-op with your mates. From start to finish the game is about 5 hours long but you will get much more out of it than that because you will want to play it again and again. Trine offerers a somewhat nostalgic, magical experience that you will enjoy from start to finish.

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