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> Results: Transformers: Autobots
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The ESRB Says
Violence: GamerDad battled enemy Transformers all over the place. You would guess that the least capable graphical gaming platform would get the worst version of a game based on a highly graphics rich movie adventure. You'd be wrong - once again the DS version is completely different than the other platforms, and once again it is the best. This is a solid game that any fan of Transformers - even those who grew up with them will enjoy, but this game is a true wonder for kids who have spent their youth with the evolving Bionicle lineage, new generations of Power Rangers each year, and of course Pokemon. You can scan almost any vehicle you see and choose it to transform into from the menu, to the point where it becomes almost a mini-game - my kids alternated control of the game during an hour long drive recently and that was what they each focused on while playing. Transformers: Autobots plays like a sandbox action game with a variety of missions for you to take on in the various locations you visit - you travel from the city of Casino Town to the frozen wastes of Antarctica as you progress through the game. Controls, sounds and graphics are all very well done - the game looks much better than you'd expect for a 3D action game on the DS! Some of the coolest action takes place outside of the main game - you can freely go back and redo areas and battles to build up your stats. There is also a variety of multiplayer action available - there is some fairly typical download and multi-card play that allows you to battle friends with their own Autobot or Decepticon in a variety of locations. I say typical not because it is bad, but it pales in comparison to the unexpectedly well done "Battle for the Allspark" mode over the Nintendo WiFi connection. In that mode you connect to the server, get your mission, then disconnect and try to get the highest score possible. You then upload your score which is added to the total for the Autobots (or Decepticons if you have that version) and if your team 'won' for the day you get a download that unlocks additional content. My kids lamented not having WiFi in the car for that mode! My biggest gripe with the game was that there were so many options that all of the buttons were used and you also needed to have the stylus ready to use the touch screen. Most action games choose either the buttons or the screen, so completing actions felt occasionally like juggling. Also, the fact that unlike the recent Pokemon games, this is really only half the game, the other half being contained in Transformers: Decepticons.Those are fairly minor complaints, and neither has dissuaded my boys from taking Transformers: Autobots on as their current 'most played' game. This is pretty clearly aimed at the 'tween' market of new Transformers fans, but is an enjoyable experience for just about any age.  
There are two sides to Transformers - the Autobots who are sworn to protect the humans and the Decepticons who really don't care who or what they destroy. The content is typical for an action game - only this time you get to play as shape-shifting robots! You play as the 'good guys' - the Autobots - in this version, and therefore your missions and actions are judged based on your ability to preserve life and avoid damaging property while also eliminating Decepticons. There is nothing inappropriate for anyone who has seen the movie - and the game allows kids a bit younger safely in on the action.
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