PlayStation 2

The Italian Job

Any game that enables you to speed a MINI Cooper down a flight of stairs then watch as the two cop cars chasing you crash head-on into a mangled mess can't be half bad. Then again, when you take into consideration the fact that you can complete the entire Story mode in less time than it takes to watch the movie the game is based on, you feel like Edward Norton isn't the only one getting ripped off.

Why do developers insist on proving the axiom that "licensed games are never as good as original titles?" Sure, there are the occasional exceptions to the rule, but by and large the generalization holds true. If it didn't, it wouldn't be a very good generalization now would it? Sadly, Eidos' The Italian Job does nothing more than prove the generalization correct.

On ne peut pas dire que l'adaptation vidéoludique du film Braquage à l'Italienne aura bénéficié de beaucoup de considération de la part du développeur. Voilà un soft d'arcade tout juste sympathique mais qui affiche de façon un peu trop effrontée son manque d'ambition.

The Italian Job, like just about every other big action or adventure movie lately, was a pretty big theatrical success. Netting over ninety million dollars, the all-star cast and over-the-top driving action obviously drew theater goers everywhere into the seats. Therefore, The Italian Job also managed to do what most action or adventure movie licenses did: become video games.

As yet another movie-licensed game storms the consoles, you have to wonder why developers keep doing this. It works out so rarely that it just doesn't seem to be worth the effort. But in the case of The Italian Job, it's actually not as bad as you'd think. The game has good modes, solid mechanics and decent looks. For a game based on a film it's a little thin on plot and over far too quickly, but just like the movie, it makes for a good rental.

There’s a simple rule about video games, anything based off of movies is going to suck, and with very few exceptions, it’s a pretty good rule. So what of The Italian Job?

Every time you pass a mission in Story mode, the game asks if you are sure you want to play the next section. You want to know why? Because it is serious gut-check time and you really have to ask yourself if you want to continue playing this dreadful game. The missions are short, the graphics are average at best, the playcontrol is horrendous, and having to listen to the monotone voice-over relaying the story is like listening to fingernails grading on a chalkboard. The circuit and stunt modes are better, but not by much. Sure, Mini Coopers are neat little cars, but I think I would rather be run over by one than play this game again.

"OH JOY!!" WE EXCLAIMED as another movie tie-in game turned up for review. This time, it was The Italian Job: L.A Heist from UK based developer Climax. Movie tie-in games are generally met by games journalists with a certain cynicism, and the greed-inspired nature of movie studios to 'cash in' wherever they can is normally the driving force behind it. However, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that movie producers spend millions on their films, and have to at the very least recoup that expenditure.

Eidos Interactive is the latest publisher to dive in on the recent flurry of mission-based driving games with its movie-based title The Italian Job. Like games such as Midtown Madness 3 and Midnight Club II, The Italian Job tries to wrap some form of meaning around large, easy-to-grasp open-city racing. Unlike the entries from Microsoft and Rockstar, though, The Italian Job is almost completely devoid of both flavor and interesting gameplay, and the whole thing feels like it was slapped together in a supreme hurry to cash in on the release of the film.