Either I'm getting soft, or perhaps I'm suffering from baby-induced sleep deprivation, but I've really been enjoying the Spiderwick Chronicles. Ok, it's no classic but the game of the film of the book - released next week - is a great example of how to properly do a kids game. The meat of the action involves exploring the pleasantly space-marine free New England environment - take item a to place b and create item c etc - while goblin bashing and platforming sections up the pace. Children - obviously the target audience - won't feel shortchanged while older gamers with an interest in the books and/or adventure-type games should take a look. Clips from the film are interspersed and the whole thing feels nicely put together.
Sadly the same can't be said for the godawful Lost game. As anyone who bought the game this weekend will have discovered, the cave areas - which involve woefully inadequate torches, falling down holes and instant death - are already the gaming crime of 2008. Or even the 21st century. Lost fans will persevere for a while but it seems amazing that the developers included these hugely off-putting and frustrating sections in such a mainstream title.
