Lemony Snicket��s a Series of Unfortunate Events

Upon starting Lemony Snicket��s A Series of Unfortunate Events, the game issues a stern warning: ��The videogame you are about to play is extremely unpleasant.�� It��s ostensibly a tongue-in-cheek reference to how spooky the subject matter is, but in many ways it��s simply honest.

Fans of the children��s book series or the Hollywood adaptation will already know the plot��the orphaned Baudelaire kids must quell their evil Uncle Olaf��s schemes to murder them. Outsmarting their villainous guardian��s schemes in a grand Victorian mansion could be clever, macabre fun��but instead, it��s an unsatisfying parade of dull fetch quests. Most of the game��s 16 exceptionally short levels unfold like this��Olaf either tasks you with chores or attempts to do you in, so brawny brother Klaus collects the four or five objects needed to complete sister Violet��s cockamamie invention needed to satisfy or outsmart the villainous uncle. When a character��s principal activity is collecting random junk, you know you��re in for a splendid time��

A few bright spots shine through the grime: Brief platforming sections as cute toddler Sunny Baudelaire provide simple thrills, and the voice acting by Tim Curry and Jim Carrey sounds exceedingly professional. It��s too bad the majority of the game feels like a rote collect-a-thon. Young gamers will likely suffer through it, but right-minded adults should steer them toward something more substantial.

04 OUT OF TEN

PUBLISHER: Activision // DEVELOPER: Amaze Entertainment // PLAYERS: 1 // LIVE: No // MSRP: $19.99 // ESRB: E

Copyright © 2005 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in Xbox Nation.