Doctor Who: Return To Earth (Wii) - Review by Chris

Introduction

After taking a hiatus, Doctor Who returned to television screens worldwide in 2005 and once again quickly became one of the BBC's most popular and highest grossing TV shows. Since its return, we've seen 3 different actors take on the Doctor's role, each with their own style, yet it is only now that the mass popularity of this science fiction program has resulted in a transition to the medium of games. With an all new story line from the show's writers and both the Doctor and his assistant, Matt Smith and Karen Gillan respectively, lending some credence to this endeavour, does the show finally have a game worthy of lending its name to?

Gameplay

Doctor Who: Return to Earth is a brand new story in the Doctor Who timeline written by the show's writers specifically for the game. It sees the Doctor and Amy discover a radio signal being broadcast from a desolate spaceship known as the SS Lucy Gray and the two decide to investigate what has happened. But before they can do this, the two get separated and so you'll have to take control of both the Doctor and Amy as they make their way through the ship and return to one another all the while trying to discover what has happened to the ship. Before long, it comes to light that the Cybermen have commandeered the ship and that the Daleks have a role to play in the happenings as well. It's therefore your job to save the ship, returning it back to Earth, but also to save humanity. It's similar in tone to what you would expect in the modern Doctor Who episodes and certainly wouldn't feel out of place on TV. Unfortunately, it hasn't made the transition to a game well.

Being split into a series of chapters, each of which basically consists of what would be considered a scene in the show, you'll take control of both the Doctor and Amy as they make their way through the ship, and using your Sonic Screwdrivers to bypass the many barriers and the occasional enemies put in your place. Yes, that pluralisation of Sonic Screwdriver was correct as, for some reason, Amy now has her own. Anyway, as both characters, you'll enact the same gameplay throughout which sees you having to collect different coloured crystals from dispensers, without stepping into their cone of vision, and then using the coloured crystals to power your Sonic Screwdriver and shoot the corresponding coloured orb to clear an obstacle. It definitely sounds strange and definitely doesn't feel right within the game, creating a frustrating environment within which to play as the controls aren't perfect and the orbs don't exactly stay still making it hard to hit them.

This gameplay extends to the entirety of the game, so you'll be shooting orbs to open doors, to put out fires, to open bonus areas or to activate the end of chapter mini-games throughout with little deviation. As such, it quickly drags the game down as it provides little enjoyment for those playing thanks to it feeling lacklustre from the moment it is introduced as well as feeling decidedly dated as it is essentially recreating the old gameplay from Doom where you had to collect coloured card keys to pass doors, albeit in a less original and lacklustre fashion. Even when you encounter enemies and have to take them out, although in some cases you will be able to sneak passed them, you still have to enact this dull gameplay to be able to activate traps or to shoot them with your Screwdriver and it does little to provide any sense of action or adventure that the shows give.

The only deviations from the template of this gameplay are the end of chapter mini-games, again activated by shooting the floating orbs. There are two of these, with the first simply asking you to roll an electrified ball through a maze without touching the sides and having you use your Screwdriver to slow down switch doors so you can pass through. The second has you repulsing asteroids which are closing in on the ship, all the while trying to bring in the wanted items with a tractor beam. While both of these provide little in the way of true enjoyment, they at least fair better than the mainstay gameplay which you'll have to plod through for several hours before you reach your conclusion. A handful of bonuses are there to be unlocked but you'll likely opt out of sticking with the game for long.

Controls

The Wii-mote and Nunchuk are your only option for controlling the game's 'action' and thankfully, it's mainly all button based but movement on the analogue stick feels far from fluid and you will at times have difficulty getting your character facing the right direction or making it across moving platforms without falling because of this. The IR pointer is put to use throughout for the Sonic Screwdriver crystal sections and while it's not the most accurate use of the functionality we've seen in a game, it's by no means the worst, although you will find yourself repeating these sections due to the inaccuracies.

Graphics

We all know that the Wii isn't capable of producing high definition graphics, even if the likes of Super Mario Galaxy and Monster Hunter Tri have definitely pushed in that direction, but it is definitely capable of much more than this game offers. Everything from character models to environments looks awful, and definitely wouldn't be out of place in an N64 title. Everything is just designed to such a basic level of work that the game fosters little of the atmosphere that the show manages to create with its locations. The Doctor and Amy are the highlights of an altogether botched job here and even their character models, while carrying an exaggerated cel-shaded look, fail to meet even the standards of a budget title on the console with poor texture work and animation making them look as far from their real world counterparts as they should have been given that they leant their likenesses to the game. There are also occasional frame rate issues as well as a complete lack of widescreen support.

Sound

Music is perhaps the best part of the game, although that really isn't saying a whole lot, with some decent work on show here that would easily fit within the context of the actual TV show. It's a shame then that while the music can be good, sound effects are poorly done and feel exceedingly dated. Similarly, while the developers have managed to get both Smith and Gillan to reprise their roles as the Doctor and Amy respectively, their voice work fails to find a place not only within the game but within the brand, feeling very unnatural in its flow and lacking any sense of energy which would otherwise help to enforce their characters. It just doesn't come together at all.

Final comments

What starts out as a game with a plot worthy of the TV show quickly shows its true colours and appears as nothing more than an attempt to cash in on unsuspecting consumers this holiday season, and acts as an insult not only to Doctor Who fans but gamers in general. The game is simply a mess in pretty much every area and even the slim glimmer of hope in the form of some decent music does little to elevate the game above horrendous. It looks horrible, it plays terribly and provides very little in the way of bang for your buck. Even if you are a fan of the show, this can't be recommended on any level as it sits ably alongside Ninjabread Man as one of the Wii's worst titles to date. Avoid at all costs.

Pro: Music isn't terrible, plot is worthy of the show
Con: Looks horrendous, gameplay is terrible and shallow, controls aren't great, voice work sounds disjointed and unnatural
Final score: 2

Share on Twitter or Facebook

Comments