Rating of
3.5/5
An Extra Half-D
Nelson Schneider - wrote on 11/26/16
“Trine 3” is, unsurprisingly, the follow-up to “Trine 2,” by Finnish Indie developer, Frozenbyte. While “Trine” and “Trine 2” were both 2.5D titles, “Trine 3” takes the franchise fully into the third dimension for the first (though not last) time. In the process, Frozenbyte has mixed-up the ‘Trine’ formula is some novel ways.
Presentation
“Trine 3” is built on the same polygon engine as “Trine 2.” Thus it shares much in common with its predecessor: Distinctive, well-animated character models, lush and vibrant environments, and a generally high level of polish for an Indie release. “Trine 3” is a bit of a “Super Mario 64” for its franchise, and marks Frozenbyte’s first forays into 3D game design. Oddly enough, the fact that ‘Trine’ has always been 2.5D means that, despite the 2D/3D transition, very little has changed.
“Trine 3” is the first in the series to feature a world map, which looks like a game board on a tabletop, with each stage represented by a magic circle, the size of which determines the length and complexity of the associated stage. While most of these stages look like the type of thing we’re used to in ‘Trine,’ one stage which takes place inside a magic book deserves special mention for its stylized artistry.
The audio in “Trine 3” is likewise nearly identical to that of “Trine 2.” The soundtrack is pleasantly benign and the voiceacting is well done, despite the lack of big names in the credits.
Technically, “Trine 3” is quite solid. However, it can eat up a lot of system resources when running on the highest quality settings, which can lead to hitches now and then.
Story
“Trine 3” begins as “Trine 2” did, with our three heroes, Zoya the Thief, Amodeus the Wizard, and Pontius the Warrior, called to action by the mysterious Artifact of Soul, the titular Trine, which joined their souls eternally during the first game in the series. After dealing with a ramshackle golem attacking the Magic Academy, our heroes express their frustration with being at the Trine’s beck and call and wish they were free of the artifact… which happens as the artifact shatters into three parts.
It turns out that the Trine was one of a trio of ancient artifacts pre-dating all known civilizations that were found in dwarven ruins. It is soon revealed to our heroes that the Trine and its complements, the Artifact of Body and the Artifact of Mind, originally served the purpose of imprisoning a horrifically evil ancient king who sacrificed his heart for power.
Naturally, it falls upon our heroes of the Trine to hunt down the shards of the Trine, as well as those of the artifacts and, probably, re-imprison or defeat the afore-mentioned evil king. UNFORTUNATELY, that doesn’t happen in “Trine 3,” as the game is painfully short, clocking in at around 5 hours. Why is “Trine 3” so short? Because it’s the first attempt at turning the franchise into a fully episodic series. Our heroes only manage to track down part of the Trine’s fragments before the game abruptly cuts to the credits, assuring us that “Trine 4” will be along before long.
In general, I didn’t find “Trine 3’s” narrative to be particularly original or gripping. The fact that it’s only part of a complete story makes it even more disappointing.
Gameplay
Back in the 5th Generation, ever game series was trying to find a way to reinvent itself from a 2D experience to a 3D experience. While shameless Nintendo fanboys still worship at the altar of games like “Super Mario 64” and “The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time,” the rest of us recognize those games as experimental endeavors into untried gameplay styles. Fortunately for us in the present, “Trine 3’s” dev team had plenty of extant examples to examine regarding the transition of a 2D franchise to 3D. Thus, “Trine 3” is one of the cleanest and most natural transitions from 2D to 3D that I’ve ever experienced.
Reminiscent of “Super Mario 3D World,” “Trine 3” uses a semi-fixed camera to view the world, and while the game is still generally 2D in mentality, player characters are free to move in and out from the background to the foreground without limitations.
In addition to its D-transition, “Trine 3” also features a number of improvements over previous games in the series. For one, all of the annoying RPG elements are gone. Instead of collecting experience bottles in each stage, then agonizing over which character’s perks to unlock with said experience, all character abilities are available from the outset in “Trine 3.” Instead of experience, players collect ‘Trineangles,’ which are totaled together in order to unlock character-specific side missions, in which only one of the three heroes is available for use. Hunting down Trineangles is much easier than hunting down experience vials used to be, as “Trine 3” keeps track of exactly how many Trineangles a player has collected in each stage and sub-division of each stage, allowing players to jump into a stage at any given checkpoint (instead of just starting at the beginning) and providing a reasonable window in which to search for errant collectables.
Multi-player is significantly improved over previous ‘Trine’ games as well, as “Trine 3” doesn’t lock each player on a three-player team to one character. Instead, all players are free to switch between Zoya, Amadeus, and Pontius at will, even if it means having three of the same character running around at once. Multi-player has always made ‘Trine’ games much easier than they are as single-player experiences, and “Trine 3” takes this even further. Only the first player can really, technically ‘die,’ as players 2 and 3 can simply hit the Start button twice to instantly respawn without waiting for a comrade to revive them.
Overall
“Trine 3,” with its incredibly well-done transition from 2D to 3D, would have been the best in the series… if it was actually a complete game. As the first episode in what feels like a build-up to a grand finale, “Trine 3” is a bit too short and forgettable for its own good.
Presentation: 4.5/5
Story: 2.5/5
Gameplay: 3.5/5
Overall (not an average): 3.5/5
