On Our Desk - 14

Doodle Hex

Publisher: Tragnarion Studios
Platform: Nintendo DS
UK Price (as reviewed): £24.99 (inc. Delivery)
US Price as reviewed: TBA

Doodle Hex is a game created for the Nintendo DS and it’s one of those super-easy and cartoony games that basically involves scribbling all over the screen.

Our first thought was that we liked the graphics of the game as they’re very cartoony and cute – the type of thing that would definitely appeal to a younger audience. Most of the game is trying to appeal to a young audience in fact, but the downside of that is that anybody over the age of ten will quickly find the game quite dull. We certainly did.

The introduction to the game really bored us, for example. It went on far too long and we didn't even bother to read all of it, to be honest. It seemed so pointless and padded that we have to admit skipping over a large chunk of dialogue at the start of the game.


It was a good thing then that the storyline to the game is so simple. Once we’d picked a character we got a brief bit of cheesy background information before being allowed to continue with the game itself. We picked the character of Princess Tiffani and her story is that she was a selfish brat of a Princess who got whatever she wanted from her daddy, the King.

Hoping that some time away would help her grow up, the King eventually sent her to the College of Runes so that she could learn magic and (hopefully) manners. It’s here, in the College of Runes, that most of the game is set as players learn new magic spells and hexes, which are cast by drawing the runes on the screen. The majority of the game then becomes a matter of casting runes at an opponent and defending those that are cast at you as quickly as you can – scribbling patterns onto your screen as fast as you can.

The game starts when the Princess arrives at the college and we were thrust straight into a lesson about runes. This entire section was basically a tutorial on how to use the touchscreen and draw different runes, but we thought it went on too long and was very dull. This part of the game would have been so much more successful if it had just been more to the point – by this point I still hadn’t actually tried any actual gameplay!


The main problem we found with the game though was that it was far, far too easy. The moves and techniques that you had to use whilst fighting weren’t just simple, but also repetitive and boring. Almost every fight was the same and they were so easy to win that it quickly became a chore – which is saying something when you remember that I’m not much of a gamer! I usually find it very hard to learn new controls and struggle to master new tactics.

The characters were annoying too. Their voices, dialogue and even their names sounded like something you’d find on Nickleodeon if you watched it at midnight while in a bad mood. The characters often tried to act hip or cool, but much of it was cringeworthy as it was obviously written by an older man.

That isn’t to say the game is a complete failure though as we’re sure that it could be enjoyed by a younger audience. The colourful characters, (kind of) sympathetic writing and easy-to-master gameplay will make it instantly appealing to children and younger gamers, though we still reckon the lengthy introductions and cutscenes will stop them making any real progress into the game.

One thing we will say in favour of the game too is that there’s a fair bit of longevity here, if you don’t mind repetitive gameplay. The game isn’t exactly short and there are a number of characters to choose from and unlock, each one with their own special runes and spells to cast.

Verdict: Doodle Hex is slightly at odds with every market, proving too easy and repetitive for most gamers and too verbose and dull for anyone younger or less familiar with a DS. It isn’t bad per se, just unfocused.