1. The Spiderwick Chronicles Game Cast

The Spiderwick Chronicles isn't bad for a game-of-the-movie, but it's not good for a game.

By Joe Dodson on

The Spiderwick Chronicles will not make your inner child throw itself on the ground screaming, or cause your outer adult to turn an even more bitter shade of jade. Indeed, the game manages to relate the movie's plot effectively, has a brisk pace, and is never particularly odious to play. Then again, it's rarely outright fun, since most of the game's elements (collection, fetch quests, easy action, bad platforming) are the kinds of things you would like to escape from, not to.

The Spiderwick Chronicles will not make your inner child throw itself on the ground screaming, or cause your outer adult to turn an even more bitter shade of jade. Indeed, the game manages to. The Spiderwick Chronicles video walkthrough guide. Tutorials, hints, lets plays, walkthroughs, guides, and more.

The story is the main exception. It's well represented in various cutscenes pulled from the film and in the in-game conversations. The Spiderwick Chronicles is the story of a family that, after a bitter divorce, has left dad behind and moved into the estate of a crazy, dead uncle who devoted his life to chronicling magical creatures. One of the kids in the family finds his book, and a magical adventure ensues.

Well, it does in the film, anyhow. In the game, a fetch quest ensues, and then another, and another. You're constantly running about your house and the forest looking for unexciting items like hose nozzles and vinegar. And everything you eventually are asked to fetch can be inspected the first time you see it. So, if you can look at it now, you're going to have to get it later, which begs the question, 'Why can't I just grab it now?' The answer, unfortunately, is nowhere to be found.

One of the first things you fetch is a baseball bat, which you use to kill wicked little critters, gangland style. This beating-things-to-death mechanic, while disturbing, is the best one in the game. It requires only one button, but as you knock the teeth out of your victims, you learn new moves. You only need to hit the attack button, and the new powerful moves just sort of happen once you learn them. The best of these is a golf swing. First, your enemy is launched into the air. From there, you can charge up a mighty swing, as time slows and the enemy falls back down into your strike zone. You then release the button to unleash the bat head, slamming your enemy, who rolls like a ground ball while squirting green blood in all directions before expiring in the dirt and spitting out all his teeth, which you then fetch.

But the real gory, Joe Pesci-inspired pleasure (remember the baseball bat scene in Casino?) is short-lived, pardon the pun. As soon as you upgrade to the metal bat, most enemies don't even live long enough for you to launch them into the air and splatter them into the ground. Even worse, you are soon put in control of a different character, who wields a squirt gun full of vinegar. Even though the concept is just as violent and sadistic (vinegar is like acid to goblins and makes their bodies dissolve while they scream), the reality isn't as fun or visceral. Another character has a fencing sword, which also lacks the brutal impact of the baseball bat. Still, one cool weapon out of three is a much better batting average than most official movie games can hope for.

Given your characters' violent tendencies, what do you think you do with the fairies you catch in your fairy net? If your answer involves tearing off their legs and watching them squirm, burning their bodies with a magnifying glass you fetched, or crucifying them on Styrofoam with needles..you are wrong on all three counts. You paint them, and then they grant you a one-time-use ability, like a blast of air or health restoration. While such warm and fuzzy affairs between the boys and their woodland quarry hardly ring true, running about meadows while catching bright happy things in a net is still a treat.

Less entertaining are the portions of the game involving Brownie Thimbletack. The idea of Brownie Thimbletack is very weird and very fun. He's a tiny, effeminate, drug-addicted bachelor who speaks in rhymes, kills roaches, and lives in a birdhouse. If only the challenges he faced were as colorful. They come in three varieties: jumping, dodging electricity, and, of course, fetching. Jumping doesn't really count as a challenge, because all jumps are handled automatically. Dodging the rampant and freely arcing electricity that exists in the house's walls (shouldn't he notify the family?) only requires a little timing. But the fetch quests are awful and are likely to end your time with the game. You'll occasionally be asked to find a thing and have no idea where to look. You'll wander all over, dodging electricity, spearing roaches, and rhyming to no avail. You may not see the end of this tale!

• The Spiderwick Chronicles Review. The Spiderwick Chronicles isn't bad for a game-of-the-movie, but it's not good for a game.
• The Spiderwick Chronicles. This bland, by-the-numbers adventure would take an hour or two to finish if not for exasperatingly numerous fetch quests and a lame drawing minigame that you must.
• Got a The Spiderwick Chronicles walkthrough, FAQ or Guide? Use the submission form, or email them as attachments to faqs@neoseeker.com.FAQs/Guides are posted in their original, unaltered form.
• The Spiderwick Chronicles Review. The Spiderwick Chronicles isn't bad for a game-of-the-movie, but it's not good for a game.

That pretty much sums up The Spiderwick Chronicles from a gameplay perspective, though there are occasional puzzles (if 'Place fuse in fuse box' counts as a puzzle) and some really lame boss fights. It's also worth mentioning that while the major gameplay elements are all pretty stale, the game switches between them constantly, so you're never stuck doing the same thing for long. You won't have a blast playing The Spiderwick Chronicles, but you won't be horribly bored, either. There are also a couple of wimpy multiplayer minigames that unlock as you play through the story, though races to capture the most fairies is likely to entertain only the youngest gamers. In fact, this game isn't likely to entertain anybody for long, because it's both short and easy.

No matter your age, you will likely think the house looks good, and it should be clear that some very talented artists spent a lot of time making it so. The rest of the game looks average, from the character animations to the enemies to the forest. The sound design, on the other hand, is shockingly bad. Every time you examine an object, your character says something. So if you examine some baggies, your character says 'Baggies.' If you examine them again, you get another 'Baggies.' If you do it three times in a row, you get 'Baggies, baggies, baggies,' which is just crazy. And later, the audio breaks down for a while and the speech gets all garbled, which is just lazy.

The characters in The Spiderwick Chronicles do their best with their wicked bats, fairy nets, mouse-man friends, and cool-looking house, but they're no match for the entropic forces of fetch quests, bad platforming, and uninspired action. Though the heroes of the movie eventually save their own day from the forces of boredom, they probably won't be able to save yours.

Three Stray Sods can be found in the grassy open field in Forest Road and five are in the Deep Woods. Sods always guard a brown bush that conceals a hidden area. Before catching a Sod, you must run around it to make it dizzy. You will know it is working when a spiraling mist appears above it and the bush opens. Then, capture it.

Only Simon can find Knockers. The first one is in a cave at the Quarry. You must extinguish the lava with your Splattergun, and the Knocker will come out to give two Boomstones. The other Knocker is at the end of the Cellar Tunnels. You will find a note saying the Knocker will only come out if you 'ring' the crystal with a stone. Look behind you to see the crystal. Throw a Boomstone at it, and the Knocker will come out.

If you already have Thimbletack's Jack, go to the bars with alternating electric currents. Go to the third bar, and quickly run to its left. Look behind, and you will see another platform. Keep following it until you find a hook where you can aim your jack. Swing to the other side, and an intermission sequence will show the Antique Saber has been unscrewed. You will also find the last two cockroaches here.

When you catch a particular faerie for the first time, you must paint it in order to record it in the Field Guide. There is a time limit; do not spend too much time painting small details because the paint will slowly spread over it. A glowing sphere will appear on a faerie if it has not been recorded yet. Once a faerie is recorded, you do not have to paint it again the next time you catch it.

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On your way to the Quarry to rescue Simon, you will pass the river with two sprites flying around it. At this point it is crucial that you record the Will o' the Wisp. After you cross it, Jared will sense something but ignore it. You will then see the River Troll wake up. After you escape with Simon and return to the River, the River Troll will block your way. The only way to cross is to make it sleep by feeding it ten Goblins. Keep using the Will o' Wisp you caught earlier to lure the Goblins to the River Troll. You must do this every time you cross the river unless you turn it into stone. To do this, you have to use Simon's Splattergun to push it towards the sunlight. When it is out of the shade, an intermission sequence will start with it turning to stone.

The Cypress Tree folk are found in the middle of the pond in the Deep Woods. It will teleport you to the Griffin's perch. The Oak Tree Folk are also in the Deep Woods but are blocked by brown bushes, each guarded by a Stray Sod. This one will lead you to the end of the Cellar Tunnels.

After you defeat Mulgarath, switch to Jared, and talk to Hogsqueal on the tree in front of the house. He will ask you to bring him Redcap's hat. You can find it in the kitchen.

After entering the Forest Road from the mansion, keep running straight until you reach a pond that is blocked by a log. Wait there until the Pond Skater is close enough to catch. The other ones are at the ponds in the Deep Forest and the bottom of the Quarry.

Mulgarath will chase you. Run toward the kitchen, and use the dumbwaiter. If some chairs block your way, hit them with your bat. Once you start going up, Mulgarath will turn into a snake and go after you; you must hurry. When you reach the study, three Goblins will try to attack you. Do not bother fighting them because they will just slow you down. The other side of the study will be blocked by furniture. Climb over the large bookcase, and keep running. The snake will catch you, but Thimbletack attacks it so that you can get out the window. Jump to the other ledge, and start climbing up the roof. When you reach the top, run to the ladder, and start climbing. A sequence from the movie will play showing Mulgarath getting eaten by Hogsqueal.

The Spiderwick Chronicles Game Cast

After recording Waffleflea (Flower-Wing near the mansion), he will challenge you to a race. After you have released him, he will appear in front of the house. Talk to him, and he will ask you to run through the waypoints (the glowing green spots around the house) until you reach the main gate. An easy way to defeat him is to immediately catch him after you have finished talking, or use a Dash ability, then run through the waypoints.