Xbox 360 Review: Shrek Forever After

This Far, Far Away game is sure to bring the family closer!
Shrek Forever After closely follows the plot of the film of the same title. You follow green antihero Shrek as he hits a point in his life where he wants to be an fearsome Orge again. When Shrek receives an offer he can’t refuse from Rumpelstiltskin he finds himself living in an alternate universe in which he losses his best friends, children and Fiona. Shrek is faced with reinstating his ‘True Love’s Kiss’ within 24 hours or everything in Far, Far Away will be ruined forever. Being that Fiona is now an independent freedom fighter and has given up on ever finding her prince, Shrek really has a task on his hands to try and win her over.
The game starts off with the tutorial level. The tutorial is hosted by one of the Three Little Pigs. He gets you up to speed with all the controls, characters and their various abilities, plus all the ways they can interact with each other. He will pop-up from time to time within the game to offer clues and hints. As the game goes on the pacing increases but throughout the game you are still given helpful character hints near items so you know which character to use. During harder puzzles the 3 Blind Mice show up to offer guidance to players (at a cost of course).
You can seamlessly switch between any of the four playable characters using different methods and each of the characters have their own unique abilities and powers.
Donkey has head butting attacks and the ability to sing off key. He also has powerful kicks to help in solving puzzles.
Puss In Boots uses his sword and his cuteness ability on opponents. He uses his claws to climb and his unique jumping ability to access out of the way areas.
Fiona has powerful sword attacks and she uses a bullhorn as a rallying cry. Also has the ability to light explosives with her lantern to open secret areas.
Shrek uses his fists and a roar to frighten any enemy he encounters. Shrek uses his power of strength to move objects.
The characters and cinematics look great. The characters are bright and well animated and the framerate is solid (perfect for supporting four player coop). Although the actual actors from the big screen are not used, the stand-ins are comparable in their voiceovers. Gameplay music consists of two different instrumental scores; one for shrek’s world before (a pleasant tune) and one for his new alternate world (a drab and creepy tune). The music played during fight sequences are a number of licensed tracks from Shrek movie soundtracks.
You get to explore wonderful levels like Shrek’s Swamp, the Dragon Keep (from the first movie), the Peasant Village, the Catacombs, the Docks, and Rumpelstiltskin Palace. There are several mini puzzles as well as larger puzzles and plenty of combat in-between. Each level is full of awesome enemies like witches, bats, rats, trees and pitchfork wielding humans. There are also special guest appearances by Gingerbread Man (Gingy), Pinocchio, pirates and more.
The game does start off slow but picks up pretty quickly. The challenge level picks up as well. Some of the later puzzles get very challenging. Younger players may become easily frustrated by some of them, thankfully you can turn to the Three Blind Mice for help. I’ll even admit I had to enlist their services late in the game. I feel that is a good thing though meaning that the gameplay can keep both kids and adults entertained. While I enjoyed playing solo, coop play is truly the best way to play. Though multiplayer is offline-only, the 4-player local co-op is a great deal of fun. Solving some of the puzzles and taking on witches, evil trees, and possessed pumpkins is a blast with other people. With a right mixture of puzzles and kid-friendly combat, Shrek Forever After is the perfect game for some family fun in Far, Far Away.
Shrek Forever After receives a:
Shrek Forever After is rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) by the ESRB for Cartoon Violence, Comic Mischief and Mild Lyrics. This game can also be found on: PS3, Wii, DS and PC.