TRINE 4: THE NIGHTMARE PRINCE

TRINE 4: THE NIGHTMARE PRINCE / DEVELOPER: FROZENBYTE / PUBLISHER: MODUS GAMES / PLATFORM: PC, PS4, SWITCH (REVIEWED), XBOX ONE / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

After Trine 3 took the franchise into 3D territory, the series returns to its 2D roots with the fourth instalment of the popular co-op puzzle platform game. If you've played any of the previous games, you'll know what to expect. A knight, a wizard and a thief all team up to go on an adventure - this time they're trying to stop a dark magic-loving prince.

As always, Trine is a beautiful looking game. Its fantasy background and glowing objects look even better this time around. The music is on-point with the setting, and the narrator gives it all a story book feel.

The game can be played solo, as a duo or as a trio. It's a decent puzzle platformer solo but, like it always has done, Trine comes to life with two or three players. There are a couple of multiplayer options, but each comes with a downside. The game isn't designed to play with sideways Joy-Cons, so if you want to play locally on Switch you'll need another controller. Also, like most co-op platformers, it can be a nightmare if you walk too far away from your partner, leaving you to get stuck off screen. Online multiplayer solves this issue, giving each player full view of their character. You can either play with strangers or create a private lobby for friends. One downside of online, however, is the lack of in-game communication. Numerous times we found ourselves waiting for the other player to cotton onto the fact that we wanted them to come over to us. This could have easily been rectified by just mapping a couple of shouts to one of the buttons. With the Switch's lack of decent voice chat, little things like this really should be taken into account.

Trine 4 is a solid entry in the series, that looks better than ever but doesn't break any new gameplay ground. If you enjoyed the previous entries and wanted more, then this is definitely for you.