On the one hand Transformers is the perfect brand for a videogame: huge, imposing robots shape-shifting into fast cars, screaming around tight bends before changing back to launch rockets at distant opponents. It’s videogame cliché with good reason - games like this allow us to live out our most boyish fantasies and, as boyish fantasies go, they don’t come much bigger than Michael Bay’s new take on this beloved 80’s franchise.

On the other hand we all know that film tie-in videogames usually suck. Extremely tight development timescales and the way they often have to meticulously stick to the film’s plot and style, even when these restrictions aren’t necessarily best for the game, ensure these videogames often aren’ty all they could be.

Sadly these suspicions are confirmed in Transformers: The Game. Across its campaign you’ll be able to play as both the heroic Autobots and the mean-eyed Decepticons reliving various scenes from the film in a game that’s a cross between Armored Core and Crackdown. At times it’s visceral, high-speed and enthralling. At others it’s infuriating, tedious and under-developed, a huge disappointment coming from the developer who so brilliantly handled the Lego Star Wars games.

Set in a small area (sometimes a city, other times a desert) you’re given quick fire missions according to the side you’ve picked. These generally follow the film’s script but, in terms of gameplay, are all fairly derivative: stop the enemy car before it reaches this location, provide a diversion while comrade robots attempt to escape etc. Nevertheless the pace is enjoyable even if the occasional difficulty spike will see you restating a mission time and time again.

Controlling the robots is simple. A flick of the Y-button switches them into their secondary form while you have a jump button, a defense shield and three forms of attack. The lumbering robots are surprisingly agile (even those who can’t turn into helicopters) and you’re able to climb atop of buildings with deft ease. In a game mechanic directly borrowed from Crackdown various collectables are hidden through the game’s locations and tracking these down opens up new mini-games and bonus film content. Indeed, trying to find that last token can be one of the most enjoyable parts of the game.

While generally everything in the game looks good the driving sections are awkward, in fact all activities lack a certain polish and fluidity one expects from such a blockbuster. With arbitrary time restrictions on missions, invisible walls and button-mashing style fighting the game lacks depth and vision. Indeed, Transformers: The Game mostly fails to deliver the rich potential of the IP, even if it does make for a partially enjoyable distraction for a few hours.

3 out of 5