There are so many developers who hardly use the touch screen for more than mini-games and menus. They fail to see how the touch screen could be used to the fullest. Luckily, developer 5th Cell has found a great way to use the second screen on Nintendo’s portable. Coloring.

See my thoughts on Drawn to Life, after the break.

There is a darkness that has cursed the land of the raposas, a cute and happy race of rodents. Dark clouds have devoured the city. “The book of life,” which holds such items such as the sun, crops, night, and so on, has been destroyed. The pages of the book have been scattered all over overland, and all that is left are a couple of raposas left to pray to “The Creator,” for help. “The Creator,” is you. It is your job to create a warrior to help find these pages again, rebuild the town, and help clear out all of the darkness to restore peace and unity into town once again.

The customization in this game isn’t done to the greatest ability, it’s damn good enough to still let you enjoy the game. The warrior you choose to create to help save the village will look how ever you draw him on your DS to the best of the game’s power, and although it’s not perfect, it still shows you how 5th Cell has created great innovation for the portable. This game is a very simple platformer, similar to Super Princess Peach, but it has a little more to collect and I found it a tiny bit more enjoyable and lengthier. The drawing in this game has a couple of boundaries, but I wasn’t bothered by most of them. Occasionally you’ll have to draw a weapon you’d like to use, or color in a form of transportation like a submarine, or a whale, but they still look really good on the DS. Of course, if you’re anything like me, you’d probably be drawing perverted images to use as your guns, and curse words to name your city and city buildings. I did find it annoying, after a while, when you’d finish playing through a level and the entire town would direct you to talk to other townsfolk over and over again, until it was time for a new level. Levels in this game tend to become repetitive after a while. The simplicity also bothered me a bit. This is not a challenge for most mature and hardcore players.

As I stated before, the drawing system isn’t dead on correct, but it’s good enough to play with. Most everything in this game is colorful and cute looking. Bright colors and simple, yet presentable, environments don’t get very old or sore on the eyes. I can’t really complain over the unique drawing system much. It gets the job done and it doesn’t really do much wrong to hurt the gameplay.

Cute, cartoonish sound effects and music fill the DS’ stereo speakers as you play Drawn to Life. The sound effects are pretty average, but I will say that the music is pretty awesome. I liked the music throughout the game, BUT, it gets extremely repetitive. How many times can you listen to one song without getting sick of it? The music didn’t blow me anyway or anything, but it needs a bit of work. I get this repetitive feeling like every song is starting over too quickly, a little too much.

Drawn to Life isn’t the longest DS platformer, but it’s not overly long or short. Once you complete the game, you can play some of the short games you unlocked during the course of playing, as well as playing wireless multiplayer, and going back to previous levels to collect items you never got on the first run, just as any platform lover loves to do.

Drawn to Life is a simple platformer that young peoples and the casual gamer can enjoy. In fact, I believe the casual gamer would appreciate the DS more with this title. Gameplay was a bit repetitive and it has its lows, but it’s still a good title. The drawing system is a great system that I’d love to see more of on other games, or maybe a sequel. Basically, this game shouldn’t be ignored, but it shouldn’t blow you away. It’s above average and very unique. Give this one a try.

- Unique drawing system
- Fun platforming action
- Enjoyable music
- Colorful and cute environments

- May be too simple for some
- Levels and music can get a bit repetitive
- Drawing isn’t always as free as you’d like it to be

3.5/5

Categories: DS, Nintendo, Reviews