Game Focus writes: "Pretty much every movie nowadays gets a videogame adaptation but only animated movies are the most successful simply because they're clearly marketed for kids. Nothing is cooler than controlling your favourite character right after watching the movie. Bee Movie, Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda were the latest Dreamworks' animated franchises to get their own videogame and now its Monsters vs. Aliens' turn. Chances are, if you're reading this review you went to see the movie with the family and the kids are begging you to own the game at home."
Pros
+ Simple and intuitive control scheme
+ Solid voice-overs and sound effects
+ Charming characters
+ Solid graphic engine, vivid visuals
+ Monster Challenges adds some replay value
Cons
- Repetitive voice-over lines
- Game can be completed in a weekend
- Cut-scenes look inferior than the game itself
- Co-op is fun but could have been expanded a bit more
Chris B. of TGF writes:
"By now most gamers are immune to being sucked in to purchasing a video game that is based off a movie. For the most part the games aren’t based off the movie itself, and are usually a side story created using loose parts of the movie to tell it. Developer Beenox and Amaze Entertainment, with publisher Activision decided to throw their hats into the ring and take on the project of creating the home based console and handheld versions of the movie by DreamWorks Monster vs. Aliens."
Movie-tie-ins are almost always universally panned by critics and are seen by the majority of the industry as an opportunity to cash in on something big at the box office. Usually criticism levelled at said productions is due to poor game play elements resulting from a short development time and a rush to release the game on a tight schedule, unfortunately for Activision Monster vs. Aliens fits this trend to a tee.
PGNx writes: "Monsters and Aliens battle it out in Activision's latest title. The game, based on the upcoming Monsters vs. Aliens feature film, is developed by Amaze Entertainment for the Nintendo DS. The general plot and gameplay is fairly similar to its console cousins though the game was obviously adapted for the handheld."
