Bolt
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| Bolt

Dogs that watch telly are funny. A past dog of mine would amuse me for hours whenever any nature shows were on the box by running around the set in circles, desperately searching for zebras.

That's nothing compared to my weekly dose of Animal Hospital though. That was a hoot.

Of course, dogs that actually star on the telly are far rarer. Disney's latest animated hero - a hound named 'Bolt' - is one such pup, though his fame has deluded him into thinking he has super powers.

Regardless, he's the perfect lead for a platforming adventure, the game's episodic nature allowing him to put his powers to good use. He's a better lead than my dog would be, anyway.

Bolt, as you might expect, has a certain spark to him. Able to make mad dashes across the screen and release a torrent of electricity upon his enemies when he's sapped up enough lightning bolts dotted around the levels, Bolt's main activity is actually jumping. In fact, most of the game's 2D levels focus on jumping and your ability to jump at the right time.

But while this might initially seem a little banal and unchallenging, Bolt's sharp adventure blossoms into the kind of platformer that's constantly asking more and more questions. This is far from a breeze.

The first few acts introduce you to Bolt's encounters gradually, each location consisting of three fairly standard platform levels - leaping between ledges and so forth - and then a final boss battle.

Bolt himself bounds around fairly slowly, but as the levels pass, traversing from podium to podium becomes a trickier prospect, some moving in set patterns or collapsing entirely after a few short seconds holding your weight.

The stiffness of the controls doesn't help either. Leaping with any of the three keys - '1', '2' or '3' - sometimes lets you down at vital moments.

Luckily, the gameplay itself is incredibly forgiving, the levels littered with memory posts and no limit placed on the number of times you can restart - and that could be a fair number. That's because, as Bolt builds, it begins to merge its challenges - those leaps of faith sitting rather craftily next to patrolling guards.

Starting off as nothing more than standing statues, by the end of the game these guards positively parade in packs, defending ledges you'll only just reach and firing weapons you'll only just dodge.

It's all simple stuff that runs on a set circuit, meaning predicting your foe's movement and accommodating your approach is the path forward, but the fact you even have to do so puts Bolt a step ahead of many other movie cash-ins.

Particularly backbreaking are sections of each level where Bolt runs of his own volition. In these often lengthy set-pieces, all you're actually required to do is jump on command (typically signified by great big flashing arrows ordering you just when and in what direction to leap), but though this might seem like pandering, these pacy plays become tougher and tougher.

But they also fully reflect Bolt's attitude. Disney's doggy adventure is far from revolutionary and the controls could do with some work, but it does cherrypick some simple and effective ideas and employ them from beginning to end, from the straightforward design of the levels to the classic, almost romantic nature of its boss battles.

It's this simple, easing through the gears approach that allows Bolt to be a successful first base for platform newcomers without insulting anyone on a return trip. Managing to appeal to both these groups with however elementary a package is no easy task and is, perhaps, Bolt's real super power.

Bolt

With a classic, challenging, if not wholly original design, Bolt manages to appeal to both platform fans and those taking their first steps in the genre in one neat and simple adventure
Score
Keith Andrew
Keith Andrew
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font. He's also Pocket Gamer's resident football gaming expert and, thanks to his work on PG.biz, monitors the market share of all mobile OSes on a daily basis.