The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

 Xbox
Metascore
72

Mixed or average reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
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  1. IC-Games
    74
    Kids with better patience than adults will marvel at the great visuals and probably forgive any of the shortcomings we have picked out. For starters it's immensely frustrating in places and perhaps a little on the short side.
  2. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    73
    Surprisingly polished for a movie tie-in, this is a fun puzzle adventure let down by a dull hack-n-slash ending. [April 2006, p.87]
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  3. TeamXbox
    71
    The overall scope of the story is much deeper and involving than other games, and the inclusion of multiple characters for combat and puzzles adds a bit more depth as well. The experience is still easy though, and won't pose much challenge to anyone over the main demographic.
  5. Ferrago
    71
    Children might not be too critical of the game's smaller blemishes such as the mind numbing collecting of coins and an often unfair camera that is completely fixed in position.
  6. DarkStation
    70
    The video game adaptation does well, offering lush visuals and decent combat, but falters with a fairly limited multiplayer mode and unbalanced characters.
  7. Armchair Empire
    70
    An above-average movie tie-in. If it left some of the exploration and discovery up to the players instead of laying things out it would have scored higher. That said, it's still a good gaming experience.
  8. netjak
    70
    It is not without its flaws, but it does make some attempts at innovation, which is more than I can say for most licensed games, if not most games period. It's too short for me to wholeheartedly advocate a full priced purchase.
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  9. DailyGame
    70
    If you take the package as a whole, especially taking into account the amazing cutscenes and environments, it's a game well worth playing.
  10. GamePro
    70
    The between-level load times are also slow, but the greatest concern is the unhelpful and idiotic friendly A.I. that leaves you alone, fending off hordes of attacking wolves while your siblings stand stupidly by.
  11. GameSpot
    69
    This console and PC trip through the Wardrobe is a mostly run-of-the-mill action adventure that might hold some measure of appeal to fans of the film, but not so much anyone else.
  12. Gaming Age
    67
    Narnia makes for a decent adventure title on both systems, but it fails to do anything new or astounding. The game is also on the short and easy side, even with some of the unlockable extras.
  13. GameShark
    67
    Does a good job of following the film closely and offers a lot of cool film extras that everyone will enjoy. While the gameplay isn't perfect and probably could have used a little more depth, what is there is great for youngsters and marginally entertaining for adults.
  14. Game Informer
    65
    As the game wears on, the simple pleasures of the gameplay fade, and the incredibly frustrating boss battles mount in aggravation, leaving us with nothing more than another unsatisfying licensed game. [Dec 2005, p.159]
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  15. Official Xbox Magazine
    65
    Narnia lovers will enjoy taking part in the classic story, but you'll likely play it once and put it away like a childhood toy. [Holiday 2005, p.83]
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  16. Worth Playing
    65
    Whether your interest in Narnia is religious, literary or both, little of the wonder that accompanies Lucy on her first trip through the wardrobe makes its way into this Xbox version of the journey.
  17. Gaming Nexus
    65
    It would have been great to see some of the puzzles fleshed out more and some better fighting mechanics, but the game is what it is.
  18. Gamer's Hell
    64
    Stacked against the pleasingly immersion-friendly fighting mechanics are a restrictive camera, lackluster sound, fractured A.I., and shamefully substandard graphics.
  19. eToychest
    60
    While somewhat interesting in parts, most players will be only marginally amused by the effort, while those who grew up on the source material will be more inclined to come away feeling sadly disappointed.
  20. GameSpy
    60
    While The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe does have some issues with the A.I. not being smart enough to help you out when you most need it, it's not bad enough to make this a totally horrible game.
  21. GamerFeed
    60
    The game looks and plays just fine, and stays true to the theme of the film, but fails to really bring anything new to the experience.

Awards & Rankings

91
#91 Best Xbox Game of 2005

User Reviews

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User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 8 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 8
  3. Negative: 2 out of 8
  1. aspentitan
    Nov 25, 2020
    7
    An interesting game where you play as 4 children in an rpg styled game of the movie. It has a lot of similarities to today's Lego games. InAn interesting game where you play as 4 children in an rpg styled game of the movie. It has a lot of similarities to today's Lego games. In this one you toggle thru the various children which each have special abilities and you can purchase unique upgrades through gameplay unlocks as you go thru the chapters. The gameplay starts by showing a scene of the movie then blends the movie clip into the video game and you complete the scene. The more you explore an area and collect things the faster you can buy upgrades. You can replay the chapters to do better if you like. A single player game gets a little confusing switching between characters during gameplay at time. The action can get quite hard if you don't understand the goal of the scene and this made a few levels quite repetitive and frustrating but overall the game is decent and more fun than it looks. If you can co-op with a friend the game should be better but I played through it alone. It is a rather quick game but was fun throughout. The chapters all seem to be a nice division of the game (15 areas). A few areas of the game have redundant gameplay and overall the audio on this game is subpar. One playthrough was enough for me I enjoyed my playthrough but I don't think it's worth investing in more than once. That said the game can be gone thru again trying to better each level at a higher difficulty I think there is good value for other people it's better than a rental game. Rated T for teen I think it could even be E for Everyone. Pretty similar to the movie if you could watch it you should be able to do the game too. I wanted to give this game a 6/10 because it had a few areas of the game which could have used an overhaul but for the most part this was a pretty entertaining game. I ultimately didn't do the 6/10 because those problems were a factor of the game being unique and not so much broken.… Full Review »
  2. A.H.
    Dec 12, 2005
    10
    Solid in every respect. Very fun to play. Nicely tied to the film.
  3. BlueFalcon
    Nov 16, 2005
    4
    It feels like you're jumping through hoops in this one. I also hate how it uses so many platformer cliches. Although I did enjoy how the It feels like you're jumping through hoops in this one. I also hate how it uses so many platformer cliches. Although I did enjoy how the film clips are blended in w/ the game (although the graphics aren't even close to looking like the films).… Full Review »
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