E3 2011: The Adventures of Tintin: The Game First Impressions Preview

Although only via a prerecorded video, a couple of familiar faces took to the stage during Ubisoft's E3 2011 press conference earlier today to show off The Adventures of Tintin for the first time. Movie directors Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson both spoke of their fondness for Herge's characters and stated that the upcoming game is not only based on the first in their upcoming trilogy of Tintin movies, but also expands upon it.

The Adventures of Tintin looks to be an action game that will incorporate multiple styles of gameplay. The first gameplay sequence shown, while presented from various cinematic camera angles, appeared to be two-dimensional in nature and saw the titular reporter leaping between platforms and brawling with enemies aboard Captain Haddock's ship, the Karaboudjan. Other sequences, including a couple in which you'll take control of Tintin's dog Snowy, had the camera positioned directly behind and directly in front of the playable characters as they sprinted through the narrow streets of Bagghar.

Similar shifts in perspective were evident in other gameplay sequences; the camera was positioned directly behind a small plane being flown through a storm, but later offered a side-on view of the action as it soared over a desert in clear blue skies. (Though not shown during the press conference, aerial combat will purportedly feature in the game.) Then, after Captain Haddock was seen climbing onto a motorcycle using a conventional third-person perspective, the camera swung around so that Tintin (sitting in the sidecar) could target their pursuers in a rail shooter sequence.

Jackson mentioned at one point that you'll be able to switch between characters in order to take advantage of their unique skills and abilities, but it was also made very clear that the game will encourage cooperative play. With that in mind, it seems reasonable to assume that when you're playing the aforementioned motorcycle sequence with a friend, one of you might be in control of the bike while the other shoots at enemies.

With that said, the press release that Ubisoft put out during its press conference describes the campaign as a "solo adventure" that will be accompanied by "cooperative challenges" on "special multiplayer maps," and there's currently no way for us to know which modes the sequences we were shown today are from. Competitive play will also be supported via a Challenge mode, but no further information on that is available at present.

Other tidbits of information that came out of the presentation included an emphasis on exploration, Spielberg's allusion to 3D support when he mentioned that he "got to put on the glasses and play a level," and Spielberg's claim that the "video game changes constantly depending on the choices you make."

Based on what was shown today, The Adventures of Tintin is a great-looking action-packed game that's every bit as charming as the original source material. We look forward to bringing you more information on this Kinect- and Move-enabled action game in the coming months.