The shallow, lackluster and nearly non-existent gameplay in “Sprung” will frustrate gamers drawn to it by its sexy content.
“Sprung,” Ubisoft’s second offering for the Nintendo DS game system, is heavily inspired by a genre that has had limited success in the United States: dating simulation.
“Sprung” takes place during Brett and Becky’s – the two main characters – skiing vacation and follows their attempts to find love, be it monogamous or promiscuous.
Players are given the opportunity to play as either character, which makes “Sprung” one of the few American dating games to actually deal with women searching for her soulmate. It also gives male gamers a taste of how weird it felt for female gamers to be forced to play through the male-orientated dating elements in classic games such as “Harvest Moon.”
Unfortunately, there is very little actual gameplay involved in “Sprung.” What it basically amounts to is a choose-your-own-adventure book divided into scenes. Frequently, the storyline does not even make sense. All the players really do is select from a list of responses (and facial expressions) while conversing with characters, in order to further the plot, either by getting phone numbers from dating prospects, ditching a bad date or convincing a character to give you an important item.
Trying to navigate through the conversations is difficult, due to the arbitrary nature of which responses will successfully resolve the plot and which ones will not. It is often unclear why a certain choice leads to failure. There is also little room for error; screwing up a situation sends players back to the beginning of the scene or to checkpoints interspersed throughout certain scenes. Adding to the difficulty is the insertion of red herring responses into the choices players are allowed to make. Often, it is not certain whether a selection will automatically lead to failure or do nothing to forward the plot.
The inventory system is also poorly executed. Far too many items are given out and it can be quite difficult to figure out when to use these items. An example of this occurs early in the game, when the only way to get a phone number from a girl is by giving her a rose, an option that is not even immediately apparent.
“Sprung” also fails to adequately use the dual-screen system the DS provides. The game can be played with or without the stylus, so all the second screen really does is change the way graphics are presented.
The graphics are one of the game’s few highlights. Although two-dimensional, the graphics are crisp and clear and have a unique visual flair. There are also some visual effects that are periodically injected into the action.
The sound, however, fails to match the graphics quality. The music quickly becomes obnoxious unless turned off and the lack of voices is disappointing. With a game as text heavy as this one, having actors and actresses speak the lines in the game would be greatly appreciated.
Aside from the gameplay, what is most disappointing about “Sprung” is the way the female storyline is handled. What could have been an interesting view on the female perspective of love gets turned into gender education. Some of the scenes in the female story include gathering gossip from other girls, going shopping and being a model. This game wastes the opportunity it has to present a unique view on dating as a woman, and fails its calling.
Geared primarily towards a teenage audience, this game presents little to recommend it to anyone outside of this age range.
