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

Following our brief look at The Adventures of Tintin during Ubisoft's press conference yesterday, today, we had an opportunity to attend a presentation given by members of the Ubisoft Montpellier development team. Preceded by a brief video introduction from movie directors Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson, the presentation included four distinct action sequences, all of which were shown in 3D.

The first sequence, entitled "Fight Allan" for the purposes of the presentation, saw Tintin attempting to outsmart a small band of enemies aboard Captain Haddock's ship, the Karaboudjan. Played predominantly as a 2D side-scrolling platformer but with some excellent cinematic camera angles in spots, this sequence required Tintin to engage in some cartoonish combat. As hooks swinging in the foreground made great use of the 3D glasses that we were wearing, Tintin snuck up behind an enemy and incapacitated him from behind (yellow stars circling the enemy's head as he lay unconscious let us know that he wasn't dead) before dealing with another enemy by throwing a large pot down onto his head. Next up was a boss battle of sorts against Allan the Terrible. Played from the same sideways-on perspective that most of the game appears to be in, this fight saw Tintin deftly jumping between platforms while being pursued around a relatively small area. To defeat Allan using nonlethal means, Tintin had to collect bananas from around the level and then throw them into Allan's path so that he'd slip on them and, ultimately, slide straight into a wall.

"Trouble in the Water" was the most impressive sequence shown. In it, the Karaboudjan was taking on water, and after a fast-paced sequence in which Tintin and Haddock ran toward the screen while fleeing water flooding into the corridors, the camera resumed its normal position. As the two continued their escape, the ship started to list and quickly ended up in a near-vertical position reminiscent of Titanic. Inside the ship, ladders became railings suspended from the ceiling, corridors became vertical shafts, and wooden crates floating on the surface of the rising water served as makeshift escalators. The whole sequence felt frantic from start to finish, thanks in part to visual touches that included sparks flying from the ship's electrics and the impressively turbulent nature of the water.

Next, we were afforded an extended look at the "On the Same Side" motorcycle sequence that was shown during Ubisoft's press conference. This sequence initially saw the player, as Tintin, in control of the motorcycle while Haddock sat in the sidecar taking potshots at enemies up ahead who were dropping bombs. Haddock didn't appear to be a very good shot, and so, after some amusing banter, the pair decided to swap positions. With Haddock in the driver's seat, Tintin was free to engage in some rail-shooter action; targeting enemies on motorcycles and even in a helicopter.

The final sequence, dubbed "Time to Join In" wasn't taken from the Story mode but rather from the completely separate cooperative mode. This puzzle-based level required the two players, as Tintin and Haddock, to work together and use their unique abilities to reach an exit. Tintin had a grappling hook that was used to reach high platforms, while Haddock was able to use his brute strength to destroy certain obstacles. Furthermore, both characters were able to transform into dogs when they passed through special gates in the level, which caused some confusion in the presentation until it was explained that the co-op levels are all supposed to based on Captain Haddock's dreams.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Game is currently scheduled for release in Europe in October and in North America in December. We look forward to bringing you more information on the game as soon as we're able to get our hands on a version of it.