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Scene It? Box Office Smash 360 Guide

13/12/2008 Family Family Gamer Guide
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Scene It? Box Office Smash 360

Scene It? Box Office Smash

Format:
360

Genre:
Minigames

Further reading:
Mini games

Buy/Support:
Support Andy, click to buy via us...

Scene It? makes the move from DVD board game to the 360 quit successfully. The novelty of purpose made buzzer controllers adds a sense of occasion, as it did on Buzz PS3. Here the focus is on Films rather than the wider question set of Buzz.

It's one of those type of game genres...

Mini games come in a variety of shapes and sizes. What unites the genre is the speed with which players can pickup the games and the relativley short time requried to complete a level or two.

But why is it any better than the others...

The game brings a quiz show feel to the console trivia question genre. Complete with a set of four buzzers it's a great fit for impromptu parties, after dinner entertainment or family get-togethers. The buzzers each feature one big button and four smaller coloured buttons, each of which are used in the various rounds.

Although they are well put together, it's a little odd that they are infrared rather than blue tooth (sorry to get a little technical here) as this means not only do you have to plug in a receiver to the 360, but you also have to have line of sight to buzz in. It's also a little irksome that a maximum of four people can play at one time. The Buzz PS3 controllers took the blue tooth route and allowed up to 8 players (if addition Buzzers were purchased) and in this way have it takes the usability (as well as technological) edge.

Once setup, you can start playing and select a game type. Either Party play randomly selects an endless stream of games or Play now which provides a structured quiz game experience.

The questions focus on Hollywood knowledge from the 1950s to 2007 and is set in a Hollywood movie lot. As nice selection of game types are played through. Child's play has you guessing a movie from a child's drawing. Invisibles has you guessing a movie from a picture with the people erased. Now playing shows a movie poster slowly adding in details. Finally, Pictograms has you guessing movie titles from everyday object. These are then mixed up with questions that use video or audio clips. Movie clip shows a movie clip on which it then asks a question. Sound clips plays an audio snippet and has you guess the movie.

So what experience should I play this game for...

The attraction here is testing your Movie knowledge out with family and friends. Film buffs will be more drawn to this than other players. The best moments are in larger groups, even sharing buzzers between teams works well. Here, there is a real sense of an added value board game. Different people spar for the top spot and try and dredge the right answer from their memory.

And when can I take a break...

The main quiz game lets you choose a short play option which helps speed proceedings when you are short of time. This keeps the game to just three rounds rather than long play's five. In terms of longevity, there is also a nice feature whereby the game tracks what questions it has asked you to avoid duplicates. And with 1,800 questions and over 20 round types it should keep you entertained for some time. Here, Scene It offers much more variety than Buzz PS3 which provide the same series of rounds each time you play.

This is a great game for who...

Young players will largely find the questions a bit beyond them, but placed on a team with an adult they can make a significant contribution.

Intermediates will enjoy playing a video game that is more intellectually and socially stimulating than they may expect. The questions and variety on offer are impressive. .

Experts are likely to look down on the poor visual and modest presentation. Buzz PS3 has the edge here, although for Scene It counters with a great variety of rounds and more varied experience.

Written by Andy Robertson

You can support Andy by buying Scene It? Box Office Smash



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Andy Robertson writes the Family Gamer column.

"Videogame reviews for the whole family, not just the kids. I dig out videogame experiences to intrigue and interest grownups and children. This is post-hardcore gaming where accessibility, emotion and storytelling are as important as realism, explosions and bravado."


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