There’s an emphasis on strategy in Code Lyoko. Players have four characters with completely different weapons and skill sets that they’ll each use in turn to solve puzzles, reach items, or defeat specific enemies. The line-up includes Ulrich, Odd Della, Aelita, and Yumi (poor Jeremy gets ditched in 2D to baby-sit his pals via computer console) and each character brings something different to the game (like telepathy or time-stopping). Yumi and Odd Della have range, Ulrich is a brawler, and Aelita is an all-round character with a mean charge attack. Each character has a personal shield that, when triggered at just the right moment, bounces back attacks for a one-hit kill that comes in handy.
We got to try out a couple of levels: a boss fight that made us change characters at least three times (this is where most of the teeth grinding comes in), a level where we had to slow down time and telepathically damage enemies, and one space level that had us grinding our teeth for a good twenty minutes before we got the hang of it. The character switching will spice things up for any gamer, but unless you’re a fan of the show, a lot of good game design might get lost in “digitalization.” It might be time to tune in.
