Once upon a time… Like all great stories, that of Arthur and Les Minimoys begins like this. Arthur is a young boy of about ten, fascinated by the stories his grandmother tells him at bedtime. So much so that he dreams of African tribes and peoples straight out of the imagination of his grandfather who disappeared mysteriously four years ago. What if everything she told him was true? The treasure ? The Minimoys? That would help Arthur solve the problem of his grandmother being threatened with eviction by a horrible, unscrupulous promoter. But before finding the loot, Arthur will have to go through many stages, including the first: the transformation into Minimoys.
Arthur at the Minipouss
Under this name of Minimoys hide adorable little, what am I saying, tiny creatures halfway between troll and elf. Invented and designed by Arthur's grandfather, these critters measure around 2,5 millimeters and are all endowed with special powers. As for our Arthur, once transformed into Minimoy, he has multiple abilities, so he can jump, push, and attack. And thanks to sequences of blows, he can also crush his enemies or lift heavy loads. But to carry out his mission, Arthur will not be alone, he will be accompanied by two other companions, Bétamèche and Séléna. As soon as he will not be able to solve his problem, Arthur will have to give up his place to one of them. Séléna will help Arthur to progress thanks to a sword, which she and she alone holds. As for Bétamèche, he will have a long-range knife to keep enemies at a distance.
From the first minutes of play, we quickly realize that the title developed by Etranges Libellules is a game intended for young children. Each action is detailed, explained and even repeated several times - at the beginning - to facilitate the handling of the game. The gameplay itself is nothing very extraordinary, far from being original, but far from being boring , it allows players to progress from tableau to tableau by exploiting the scenery. From time to time, a hint of action comes to spice up the story a bit, like the various mosquito attacks led by an ugly character. On the other hand, certain passages of the game are awfully difficult to cross and in particular when no more indication is given, the rotation of the cameras not helping. Obviously, this should not pose any problem for aficionados, on the other hand it is to be hoped that neophytes do not give up too quickly. The disconcerting simplicity of the grip is unfortunately tainted by the difficulty of progression encountered.
King Arthur
Aside from this slight concern, the cinematics presented are pleasant for the eyes and the ears. These film clips are neither too long nor too short, just right. They should perhaps even persuade some of them to go see the film or read the book, that is to say... The graphics are honest and even pleasant, the Minimoys universe is cute and colorful. As for the dubbing, they are quite successful and that of the Lilliputians is rather credible, even if sometimes we would like to slap two or three. The story is friendly, simple and effective, far from being complex and tortured, it will bring young and why not big children into a magical world.
