Shrek® 2 is a platform adventure based on the hit feature film and upcoming sequel. The game lets you control the movies’ weird and wonderful characters—four at a time—as you explore and fight your way through this fairytale kingdom. Here are the heroes and a few tips on how to put each of them to the best use.
The gang’s all here!
Ogre Moving and Storage The only place to start is with our star, Shrek. As you might guess, Shrek is a powerhouse and is well-suited to battle any and all of the strange creatures that come out of the woodwork to harass him and his friends. His punches and kicks do more damage than any other character, and his flying belly-flop clobbers anyone who lands on it as well as anyone nearby (friends and foes alike, so be careful).
Shrek is one of the only characters strong enough to pick up environmental elements like crates and boxes. He can hurl them at foes to do some major damage, but he can also pick things up and set them down to his team’s advantage. In some areas, your team will encounter a leap that can’t be made or a key that you can’t get to. All you have to do is switch to Shrek, lift a nearby box, and deposit it wherever you like. Presto! Now you can step up to that too-tall jump. Switch to one of your high-jumping characters, climb the box that Shrek just moved, and you’re back on your way.
Fiona time.
Lady Killer Fiona is no slouch when it comes to combat either—probably because she’s also an ogre (or is it ogress?). She’s almost as tough as Shrek, though her attacks are not as powerful. This is balanced by her special ability, called Hero Time, which slows everything else down to slow motion (a la Bullet Time in The Matrix andMax Payne). Remember that hilarious split-kick she did in the first movie, when she was kicking bozo bowmen butt in the forest? Well, Fiona has still got it.
The game offers hourglass power-ups to fuel Fiona’s Hero Time. Once she’s ready, you simply need to activate her special attack and watch as the wave of slow time spreads across the screen. This is perfect for:
Dealing with large swarms of enemies: Slow ‘em down and let Shrek pound ‘em flat.
Sneaking past sentries: Wait until they’re looking away and then keep them that way until you’re clear
Avoiding traps: Who cares if you trigger a booby trap when you can walk away before it catches you?
Everyone’s Favorite Donkey As in the movies, Donkey is not the most important or powerful character, but there are times when you absolutely need his help. He is decent in combat and faster than Shrek, but he can’t leap any higher, and he has a lot less health. To balance this, Donkey has a special attack, called the Burro Blast, which involves him turning around and (ahem) “backfiring” at his target. This powerful attack does a ton of damage to enemies and can even knock down trees, opening up new paths and new areas to explore. Indeed, the only way to get into Donkeyland is to have our long-winded steed do his thing to the gate so it falls over. Just be glad he’s facing the other way.
Takin’ care of business.
Each character in Shrek 2 is fun to play, from Gingerbread Man with his boomerang candy cane to Lil’ Red with her ready-to-throw supply of apples. The designers have taken great care to capture the personality and humor that these characters display in the films, which brings in a whole new layer of appeal for fans and newcomers alike.
