Common Sense Media Review
By Christopher Healy
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Fun, creative retro adventure serves as homage/satire.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
3-D Dot Game Heroes
What's It About?
If the plot to 3-D DOT HEROES -- an ancient evil returns to a mystical kingdom and the people look to a new young hero who they believe is the reincarnation of the legendary warrior who saved them all the first time -- sounds familiar, that's because it's the same as the plot to every Legend of Zelda game. The similarity is intentional, as 3-D Dot Game Heroes works simultaneously as both a spoof of and homage to those classic adventure games.
Is It Any Good?
Anyone familiar with The Legend of Zelda, especially the older 2-D Zelda titles, will adore all the in-jokes of 3-D Dot Game Heroes. There are gags, for example, about Sir Signe, the knight who traveled the kingdom posting wooden signs in random, hard-to-reach places. The wonderful thing about 3-D Dot Game Heroes, though, is that it works as a fun adventure of its own, even if you have no idea who Zelda is. Everything that made Zelda games so enjoyable -- epic quests, puzzle-filled dungeons, hint-giving villages, a spunky fairy guide -- are in full effect here, too. There's plenty of humor, action, and creativity. And as the characters are made of three-dimensional pixels, the build-a-hero mode allows you complete and total freedom to create the avatar of your dreams. The pre-made heroes you can choose from the start -- like a dog, briefcase-carrying accountant, and Santa -- give you an idea of how creative you can be.
Online interaction: The PlayStation network hosts a character-sharing hub to which players can upload their custom-made heroes.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the fact that the character creation tool in this game gives you complete freedom to create any kind of avatar you want. What kind of characters have your children created? Are they based on real people? Are they male or female? Why did they make the avatars they did?
Game Details
- Platform : PlayStation 3
- Pricing structure :
- Available online? : Available online
- Publisher : Atlus
- Release date : May 11, 2010
- Genre : Adventure
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : June 19, 2019
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