When I was a kid back in the 80’s, the Trivial Pursuit board game just came out and it was really popular.  In fact, many people, even my parents, hosted Trivial Pursuit parties where everyone would play the game.  The only problem was the actual rules of the old board game were not very well designed.  If you’ve ever played it, you know how long it can take to get all six pie wedge categories.  I found it more fun just to bring the question card box on car trips and read them aloud to pass the time.  In fact, when I was in elementary school, one of our teachers had a Junior Edition and would quiz the class in between lessons, during down times, or as a reward.  Now the popular quiz game enters the 21^st century with Trivial Pursuit Live!  And luckily it’s much better designed than the old board game, as it takes the form of a fast-paced trivia quiz game show!  It’s downloadable for Microsoft’s and Sony’s home game consoles, but reviewed on Xbox 360 here.

The game plays very similarly to the movie quiz game Scene It?, although the questions here are typical Trivial Pursuit categories, such as Arts & Literature, Science & Nature, History, Geography, Entertainment, etc.  Up to four can play, with any empty slots going to the computer.  You can use just one controller or have everyone use separate game pads, but it’s easier if everyone uses their own.  I don’t know why they wouldn’t let you use your Xbox 360 Avatar, as the characters you must pick from in the game are pretty goofy looking, but oh well.  You can choose to play a long five round game or a short three rounder.  Before you begin, make sure to set the difficulty level of the CPU players, too. Even on Easy they’re pretty hard.  Only reason why I won the second game I played was because I had a streak of questions revolving around Sonic the Hedgehog, Tiny Toons, and Animaniacs!  I got lucky!

In each round you must answer a series of questions, but the way you answer them may be different in each one.  For instance, you may have to simply pick from a selection of four possible answers, or vie for the best possible choice, or pick from a grid of correct and incorrect answers.  When you answer correctly, you’ll earn points.  When you get enough points, you’ll earn a pie piece, and when you fill all six, you win the game.  You don’t even have to have a pie piece from each category either, they can be the same.  However, the game is designed that you usually won’t get all the pie pieces until the last round anyway.  On the final round, you can win whole pie pieces just by answering the most questions correctly in a series, so you can really turn the game around.  By completing certain objectives, you can even earn titles to attach to your profile.

Really the only problems I had with this game are minor.  The CPU can be a bit tough, the animation and framerate in the game is very choppy, and it looks like something that could’ve been done five or ten years ago easily.  But if you enjoy casual quiz games with friends and family, you might want to check this one out anyway.

Kid Factor:

Nothing objectionable here, but reading skill is a must for the text in the questions and answer choices.  Younger players may have a harder time with the questions, too, and it’s a shame there’s not a “Junior Edition” for them.  But otherwise, it’s a fun and educational family game for older kids and above.  Trivial Pursuit Live! is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews