Shortly after Telltale Studios released the first episode of the Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventure series, they have seen fit to bring back the animated comedy duo Sam and Max. Released on the PC back in 2006 Sam and Max have finally made to onto Xbox live in there latest adventure Sam & Max Saves the World. This new addition to the Xbox live arcade has certainly received a warm welcome to new comers and fans alike but has it kept true to the series?
Sam & Max Save the World contains six episodes each equal to a good two to three hours of game play (depending on your detective abilities). Although the game costs 1600 Microsoft points the fact that this package contains six full episodes means you’re definitely getting your money’s worth. Each episode has its own story with their own challenges and puzzles to solve but they all focus around a mysterious sub plot which links all the stories together which will keep you playing until the end.
This game keeps all of the random humour that we have all come to know and love from the Sam & Max series. The developers have done their homework and have kept it true to the origins of franchise which all long time fans of Sam & Max will be pleasantly pleased with. If you are new to the adventures of Sam & Max then don’t fret this game is quite suited for first time comers to the series and will be able to jump right into the action without feeling alienated or out of place.
You control Sam as you solve the mysteries of the game and although at certain points you can switch between dialogue options of both Sam and Max you can not directly play as Max. The game features a click and go style of control movement rather than the traditional use of the joysticks. Hover your courser where you want to go and press “A” to move. As simple as it sounds this style of control is best suited for the mouse rather than a console pad and can be quite aggravating while waiting for you character to go from one place to another as you move at a set walking speed.
But with a bit of patience you will be rewarded with the hilarious and sometimes disturbing dialogue from Sam and his mentally unstable partner Max. But still, some alterations to the controls would have been nice especially since this was clearly made with a different platform in mind.
Despite the hilarious banter of the game some clues and items are too subtle and can leave you pulling out your hair in frustration making you wish you had a walkthrough. Unless you happen to work as a full time detective in your day to day life some seriously creative thinking will be required for you to advance in the game. Talking and interacting with other characters in the story is essential to solving the challenges that lay before you but with so many of the dialogue options being their for gags you may find yourself having a long conversation before getting to matter at hand.
So this game may have some obvious flaws and could done with some tweaking rather than just being taken from a PC platform and slapped straight onto the console. Despite this consider that you are getting classic Sam and Max comedy at a cheap price tag and instantaneously this collection of six games is certainly worth its weight in MS points.
Leave a Reply