We’re pretty much used to popular mobile games getting movie makeovers now. Whether it’s Brave and Temple Run or Angry Birds and Star Wars, it can be great to jump back into a familiar experience with a different yet exciting new theme.
We’re pretty much used to popular mobile games getting movie makeovers now. Whether it’s Brave and Temple Run or Angry Birds and Star Wars, it can be great to jump back into a familiar experience with a different yet exciting new theme.
Monsters, Inc. Run – a mashup of Monsters, Inc. and Mega Run – is a strange one. There’s no doubt that the Mega Run magic is still there, but the Monsters, Inc. licence is completely wasted, such that it actually degrades the experience.
The game follows the story from the original movie, in which Boo is kidnapped by Randall. Sulley and Mike set out to save her, one-touch runner style.
For the most part you’ll be controlling Mike as he bounds along platforms, smashes through obstacles and bops enemies on the head. All you need to do is either tap the screen to do a small jump, or hold down to jump higher.
Every now and again, you’ll also be able to bring Sulley out to play by collecting special tokens. Sulley can smash through certain barriers, and give you access to areas that Mike can’t reach. This is necessary when trying to collect all the secret items hidden in each level.
As with Mega Run, there’s some great action to be found. While you’re grabbing coin in a bid to collect three stars on each level, there are also powerups that allow you to blast through enemies, encase them in goo, and other such niceties. You unlock these powerups by levelling up through the game, but you can also pay real money to get them more quickly.
Chasing these unlocks is good fun, as you watch your XP bar climb higher and higher and you begin to top the online leaderboards. It’s especially rewarding on the later levels, when the going gets really tough and every victory feels like you worked hard for it. Falling off the level in particular will happen a lot.
But Monsters, Inc. Run is not nearly as fun as the original Mega Run. For starters, the licence is barely used at all. Apart from the characters and some minimal static cut scenes, the game doesn’t pull anything from the film, and it might as well as just been a sequel rather than a movie tie-in. It feels like a hugely wasted opportunity.
This game also doesn’t feel as hectic or exciting as the original. A lot of the level design is pretty bland, especially to begin with, and after a while all of the levels begin to look the very same. While we were up until all hours pouring huge amounts of time into Mega Run, we didn’t really feel like spending any more time with Monsters, Inc. Run once we’d beaten it.
As movie tie-ins go, Monsters, Inc. Run is a great deal of fun – but it’s also completely forgettable, and you’ll have moved on to a new experience and pushed this one aside pretty quickly.
