It took a while for Microsoft to enter the Game Quiz space but with their second title it is obvious that they intend to hang around.
Scene-It: Box Office Smash is a game that, like the first, focuses completely on movie trivia and while expands on the first in the type of games available doesn’t do a lot to progress the franchise other than the range of questions being asked, that isn’t going to make it a bad game though is it?
The answer is no, it doesn’t make it a bad game, it simply means that perhaps we can’t be as judgemental of Sony as we typically might be when they don’t revolutionize their franchises with every iteration.
Of the questions asked a surprising large amount I would consider to be of a “classical” nature and as such almost impossibly hard for someone as young (under 70) and uncultured (I like movies with colour) as myself to answer. But again given the nature of the game it is only natural that there be some areas that extend beyond common pop culture knowledge. The overall mix of questions wasn’t slanted heavily in any discernable direction and so I would consider the mix appropriate for a variety of people to enjoy.
The game mix ranges from movie scenes and animated 8-bit interpretations of scenes through to anagram decryption and quick-fire question rounds. The 8-bit famous scene animations are not only fun to play but amusing to watch, as are (to a lesser degree) the picture interpretations, there is however a lack in there numbers as I encountered at least one scene twice in as many games. The rounds where you need to buzz in to take control could work a little clearer as no-one ever seemed really sure what was happening and who had taken control and who had failed outright.
I thought the avatar integration was a nice touch, and provided you actually play with someone who has a customized avatar, the scoring summaries make a lot more sense, at least until the people that get the most questions wrong start getting bonus points… yes, that’s right, bonus points for sucking the hardest.
The bonus points seem to be some kind of attempt at rubber banding as you might expect to see in an arcade styled racing game. This game is obviously designed for light-hearted fun because at no point does being rewarded for being unsmart (that word came up highlighted in red by the spell check for some reason) make sense in a truly competitive environment, in fact it reminded me somewhat of NCEA. Perhaps I am just bitter because I lost an online game because of it.
If you like quiz games and have already purchased the first Scene-It then I would say that go for it. The price point including the buzzers is slightly more expensive but for a good time with multiple people on a console that is traditionally single user centric the 99$ retail price perhaps isn’t half bad for a title with such a slick presentation and a surprisingly comforting lack of an obtrusive presenter.
