Ars Technica reviewed the Nintendo DS handheld version of Transformers, generally impressed with the effort put into the title, but put off by its “buy one, get half” content.
Unlike its release on other platforms, the DS version is split into two games – one featuring the Autobot campaign and the other the Decepticon storyline. Each “side” retails for $30.
In the Autobot disk played by the reviewer, the player controls an unidentified newer Transformer who is not confined to morphing into one vehicle.
The portable’s touch screen is used as a radar display and features a transformation button.
Although obviously not very heavy on graphics in general terms, the title apparently pulls off quite a bit for the DS platform:
“The models are a little clunky, and the vehicle models are plain and heavily pixelated, but everything moves well, with decent animation…The fact that the DS can handle a 3D Transformers game complete with a moderately long draw distance and hub worlds at all is something of a feat.”
Transformers also features an online play mode in addition to deathmath and some form of “soccer” that is persisent: both “sides” of the battle download a mission and the highest scoring side over the course of seven days wins.
