Nintendo DS: Drawn to Life Review

Would-be mini-artists may perk up when hearing of putting their stylus stylings to the test. The premise of Drawn to Life is rather simple: draw your hero character and a few environment items and put them in a 2D platformer. The idea is intriguing enough, although non-artists may not have as much fun with the concept.

Drawn to Life puts the player into the perspective of a world-creator. As a creator, the player interacts with a previously created world. Naturally, dire times have come forth, and the inhabitants beg for help.

From there, the player creates a hero character and sifts through dialog to get to the platform part. Much akin to Mario, the created hero jumps, stomps bad guys, and collects coins. Along the way, the player will need to draw up their own platforms and weapons to move along. Aside from that, there's not much deviation from the familiar formula of the platformer.

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The best part of the game is getting involved in drawing up the hero and environment objects. Unfortunately, once these things are put into play, they have little allure other than a self-pat on the back for your artwork. Overall, the game is rather simple, leaving for much younger-crowd appeal. However, experienced players will be yawning in minutes.

If you like to draw or create graphic art right down to the pixel, then pick up this game. If you are looking for an original experience, you may wan to divert your attention elsewhere. Drawn to Life is worth a try in any case.

Pros
-Tools for creating characters/objects are quite functional
-Control scheme is simple
-Characters/objects can be modified later

Cons
-The gameplay is repetitive
-The animation on the created hero leaves much to be desired
-The dialog is far from intriguing

Resembles/Feels like:
Playing stripped-down draw-your-own-Mario.

Rent or Buy: Rent
Personal Appraisal: $19.99
MSRP: $29.99

Other opinions
6/10 @ 1up.com
7.9/10.0 @ IGN.COM
3.5/5 stars @ gamespy.com