PLAYSTATION GAME RECOMMENDATIONS |

[#] Atlantis: The Lost Empire (Sony, PlayStation, 2001)

It's no treasure, but a pleasant enough adventure.

I can't comment on if Atlantis as a movie is a lost classic, having only seen the clips of it interspersed throughout this game, but I can certainly say that Atlantis as a PS1 Disney game sticks out among them. A group of 1910s explorers from across the world set out to find the lost city of Atlantis (weird, that), discovering that both the harsh climate of the deep sea and some of their allies have it in for them. It's a 3D platformer with hints of a bunch of things, and y'know, it's not half bad. Light, quick, decently varied, it's maybe not a must-play, but I imagine fans of the genre and fans of the movie would find it as satisfying a swim as I did.

Each character has a unique ability that you'll need to progress in the often-fantastical locales of ice caves and Aztec-inspired ruins. Milo, your main man, can climb about, Audrey has her flare gun (which acts more like a revolver than anything), Vinny can plant explosives on walls, and so on. This game wears many hats aside from those, with bits of puzzle solving, underwater shooting sequences, car chases, and stealth on offer, but to its credit, it never feels disjointed, possibly due to none of it being too in-depth. That said, the stealth bits after you get into Atlantis are pretty laughable. You can run past guards without consequence, and even getting caught isn't much of a punishment.

The graphics remind me weirdly of Fear Effect--clean and crisp without being overly cartoony. You'll collect Atlantean crystals which you can combine with your other key items to give them special abilities, but it's unfortunately not all that well-utilized. Combining is necessary for the occasional key item, which is where the light puzzle solving comes into play. If there is a big flaw with Atlantis, it's that aiming your throwing projectiles kinda sucks and movement tends to be annoyingly slippery, especially as you're hopping lava rivers. I got used to it though. There's some cool unlocks for 100%ing the game as well--definitely consider it if you're out to find Atlantis for yourself.

Recommended for... intrepid deep sea explorers and Eurocom enthusiasts.