A new approach to games that dares to succeed
So, Peter woke up one morning and WHAM! It came to him. A videogame focused on Hollywood, and Movie Making. "Why the hell has'nt someone made a game about this before?" he asked himself. Excited, he told his wife about his new great idea, she gave a grunt, but from there, magic happened - where that one story would soon be history being stamped in the growing industry of videogames.
The Movies is pretty much what you would expect from the title. Movies. YOU are the studio manager, YOU must create the stars, YOU must make the best movies, YOU must create and manage the movie studio. And this is one thing Lionhead has been known for, making games all about YOU.
The Movies is pretty darn fun. Let's say you boot up the game, and you would like to do the Campaign-ish game. You start in the 1920's, and work your way up the years doing nothing but stuff movies are all about. It's like a Movies Fanatic dream come true. I won't go in depth, you can check out GameSpot's review for all that - but I can say that the game will keep you busy for hours. The GameSpot reviewer could not have said it better, it's so easy to lose track of time and find yourself sitting at the computer at 5 in the morning while the sun begins to rise - pretty much like what The Sims was like for some.
Now, the sandbox mode is great... but the advanced movie maker leaves you somewhat limited and wishing you could have more flexibility. Lionhead wanted to focus on creating the game for the audience that was largest, and making this tool easy and limited was the only way to achieve that. However, one thing I believe Lionhead overlooked was that most people buying this game- are the talented ones. They want to make movies, they want to have flexibility, no matter how complex something looks, they are willing to figure everything out to create what they truly want.
Despite the very few shortcomings, the most important thing about this game is the future. There is definately room for improvement, and Lionhead is dedicated in doing so, Which seems to be very promising with expansions and extra content... Also, never forget the mod makers out there who will keep this game alive. This game will be around for years and years. Do not give up the chance to be part of something special. If you love Tycoon games, love Movies, or hell, just love videogames in general. When you seethe pretty blue box sitting on the shelves, buy it.