This game sucks (mostly).

User Rating: 5 | Haven: Call of the King PS2
Haven: Call of the King is an overly ambitious platformer that falls short of its goal. Developer Traveller's Tales attempts to stave off boredom by incorporating many different gameplay mechanics. In the several hours I played this game, I platformed, piloted a motor boat, used a jet-pack, rode a buggy around in car combat and operated a turret mounted on a moving train.

To be fair, some of these sequences were fun. But in order to enjoy a short segment of gameplay, you have to toil through a lot more unenjoyable stuff. The platforming, in particular, (which is the core of the game) is utterly boring. In fact, I stopped playing this game because I got stuck on a platforming section. The game was forcing me to collect 5 freakin' feathers in order to advance and I could only find four. I got tired of running around this tiny area looking for another feather that I couldn't care less about, and realized that if I did find it, I'd just have to put up with more boring, frustrating gameplay.

I don't mind collecting items in a platformer, as long as the items have some utility. Let me collect bolts to use to upgrade my weapons. Don't put me in an area and say, "Collect nine widgets to advance!" That is uninspired and gives me little incentive to embark on said collecting. But Haven is dead-set on forcing you to collect worthless junk. If my memory serves me correctly (it's been a while since I soiled my PS2 with this game), some levels forced me to collect no less than THREE distinct sets of worthless crap in order to move on.

The arbitrary nature of the collectible gizmos really make Haven feel like just another generic platformer. In fact, everything about this game, from its lame, cornrowed, redhead protagonist to its forgettable story and uninspired level design, simply screams generic. While there are a few bright spots, I guarantee it is not worth your time to slog through the rest of the game to uncover them.