The Da Vinci Code has struck controversy all over the religious spectrum, resulting in protesting, churches boycotting the recent movie, and widespread confusion in the minds of the naive. Surrounding all this madness, there is absolutely no denying that the Da Vinci Code is a staple in modern society. It all started with Dan Brown’s novel, which wrapped twisted theories around historic facts. The result, in my sole opinion, was a cluttered mess, but in this day in age, that’s what people seem to flock to.

The video-game counterpart to the movie/book stays true to its roots. You’ll be thrown into the roles of professor/murder suspect Robert Langdon and cryptographer Sophie Neveu. Robert and Sophie will have to work as a team to get to the bottom of this conspiracy by solving puzzles, deciphering cryptic codes, and kicking some security guard behind. This is all find and dandy, but when you have to sit through cutscene after cutscene to get to the action, things begin to become exceedingly tedious. This wouldn’t be the case if these over-dramatic sequences weren’t puffed up with irrelevant details and mindless dialogue that’s as boring as watching a pile of tumbleweed roll across an open field.

Despite the boring aspects, the combat here is actually pretty well thought-out and is much deeper than I expected it to be. It’s not just one of those ‘’kick and punch’’ fighting systems, where pressing the keys faster will get the battle over quicker. The engine here allows for some, dare I say it, WWE-esque combat that’ll have you grappling and strategizing your way around your opponent. Your character will be able to attack, push, and throw enemies. A defense mechanism was tossed in as well, where clicking the correct side of the mouse at the right time will cause you to dodge an assault.

True, the fighting engine may be fairly deep, but the underlying fact that the controls are extremely clunky and stiff still remains intact throughout. It’s all due to unresponsive physics, cheap AI, and some of the worst animations I’ve seen in recent memory. If you’d wrap this same setup around smooth and fluent physics, maybe re-examine the control layout, and give it some polish, you’d have yourself a real winner. Sadly, the Da Vinci code is a clear-cut failure as it doesn’t even attempt any of the above facets.

Movie games have a reputation for cashing in on their big-screen blockbusters, but most will still have the actors from the movie lend a hand to the voice-work. Not the case with the Da Vinci Code. The voice-acting here is subpar at best, and like I said before, less details and more action would have immensely raised the fun factor here, as would have Tom Hanks. These letdowns make you wonder if this title was a blatant cash-in that was rushed to simultaneously be released with the movie.

The audio isn’t all bad though, namely just the voiceovers. The orchestral, often frightening score helps set the atmosphere, which I’ve always said is imperative to any movie-based game. Atmospheric elements are especially well done here, although I definitely would’ve liked to have seen the ambiance accompanied by some better visuals. Pop-in, invisible walls, and poor draw-distance plague this title. Technical issues are coupled with grainy textures and last-generation looking character models. An eyesore this is not, but it lacks any sense of graphical art direction that was manifest in the movie. The environments feel closed-in and uninspired. This is a major disappointment considering what they had to work with here.  

To sum things up, the missions are boring, the puzzles are annoying and tedious, and the presentation is lackluster. If the fighting mechanics would have been utilized I’d have an entirely different outlook on this game. However, there are no redeeming factors here except its superb music. Even so, you’re basically looking at a rushed product rather than an admirable interpretation of Ron Howard’s screenplay of Brown’s cult-classic.

Gameplay: 5.4
There’s a great deal of content to enjoy in The Da Vinci Code’s combat system, but far-from-amazing execution and nauseating physics damper any fun to be had. On the positive end, the campaign is moderately lengthy for its genre, and breaking the numerous codes can be enjoyable at first. Improved controls and a less awkward interface are my foremost complaints concerning the gameplay. If these problems were addressed prior to launch, we’d have ourselves a nicely done adaptation of the movie.

Graphics: 5.5
The environments appear conventional, closed-in, and unimaginative. This may come as a shock because the movie sported first-class locales, including restricted spots where, due to Howard’s highly-totted rep, was allowed to exclusively film (the beautiful Louvre Museum). The scenes are represented in horrible fashion. It’s as if they sucked the life out of these places. Additionally, the animations are cumbersome and the textures and character models could use some refining.

Sound: 6.8
The Da Vinci Code’s audio is a mixed-bag. While the epic soundtrack is in all honestly top-notch, the dialogue and voice-acting is well below average. Not only do you not have the movie’s actors lending their talents, but the ones that were chosen in place of the stars are very dull-sounding. There’s also way too much pointless communication between the characters.

Difficulty: Medium
The missions are clear-cut, and deciphering the puzzles will be extremely simplistic for the average gamer. The AI is oftentimes rather cheap, though, so keep on the lookout for dirty punches. There are three difficulty settings in total (easy/medium/hard), but you’re not going to find any real challenge until you kick it up to hard.

Concept: 5.0
Capitalizing on a popular name has never been innovative. In fact, it’s straight-up unrespectable as far as game development goes. It’s not as though the Da Vinci Code is the first video game to do this, because quite frankly, we’ve seen this several times before with movie-licensed software. It’s just always upsetting to think what could have been done.  

Overall: 5.3
When you remove the hype, press, and controversy surrounding the Da Vinci Code, you have yourself a mundane snore-fest. Subject matter alone never makes a game worth your while, and this is made evident more than ever with this once book, then movie, now well below average video game. In short, due to a hodgepodge of technical issues and overt drama, the Da Vinci Code is not deserving of your precious time and hard-earned money.