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May 25, 2007 - It's now an official requirement for each summer movie release -- along with a flashy premiere that costs more than a third world nation's security budget, every tentpole flick must be accompanied by a mobile game. Of course, it's up to the publishers and developers to create something that's legitimately compelling and not just another cog in the studio's marketing machine. Disney and developer Capybara have something here that falls right in the middle.

At World's End is based on the third film in the pop culture phenom of a trilogy. Will Turner and his cohorts must rescue Jack Sparrow from a purgatory of sorts so that can take the fight back to Davy Jones and his new master, Lord Becket. As such, you begin the game as Turner, seeking the help of a pirate lord in Singapore. The first two levels are something of tutorials, teaching you the ins and outs of the controls. At World's End is largely a platformer with lots of running, jumping, and collecting. There are pirate enemies to do battle with, too. Turner and Sparrow (no secret that he's resurrected) engage in a little swashbuckling on two levels -- basic combat in the context of platforming and duels with bosses that require parrying, feinting, and slashing.

Capybara does seek to mix things up in the game's 21 levels (which is an impressive number for mobile), such as adding ship battles and escape scenes. In a ship battle, you must aim your cannon at the opposing ship's guns as well as blast their cannonballs out of the air. Successive hits release power-ups, like a triple shot. Unfortunately, these battles aren't very exciting. You also have scenes where you must fend of a horde of incoming enemies, but your enjoyment of this is directly related to how much you enjoy pounding on attack buttons.

Like Capybara's incredibly cute and playable Happy Feet, there is a certain emphasis on collection. You must crack open crates and defeat enemies to recover gold doubloons. Each level also has a set number of treasure chests that need to be unlocked. The game charts your collecting, tallies scores at the end of levels, and awards mini-games if you manage to swipe enough booty. How you feel about collecting will have an effect on how much you like At World's End. For example, I don't mind it as long as it's reasonable, but do get frustrated when I reach the end of a stage with only 99-percent of the gold coins after defeating every enemy and braking open every chest.

Two things about At World's End serve as buzzkills. First, the control is questionable. I tested the game on a Sony Ericsson w810i and an LG CU500. Both handsets have responsive directional pads and buttons. But hitting landings, making jumps, and especially swinging on vines was a purely hit-or-miss operation. Pulling off a double-jump seemed more random than anything -- sometimes I'd reach the rigging, sometimes I'd be pounding on the jump button (2 or up) to no avail.

Secondly, there isn't much pizzazz in here. The game looks okay and it manages to squeeze in plenty of stuff from the movie, but it lacks the flair that packs 'em in the theaters. If you have a chance, check out Gameloft's Pirates of the Seven Seas and you'll get an idea if what I mean -- there's an over-the-top pirate adventure with frilly shirts, flamboyant moves, and beautiful scenery. At World's End just isn't inventive -- it's a textbook side-scrolling movie game, and after playing games with loftier ambitions like Warner's 300 or Capybara's own Cars, it's hard to settle for the routine.

Closing Comments
Developer Capybara Games has assembled a perfunctory movie-game that hits its marks -- swashbuckling, cannon fire, vine swinging -- but fails to engage the player at all. That the game play isn't compelling (a problem augmented by iffy control) is a shame, because with no fewer than 21 levels, this could have been a real value for mobile gamers. If you're looking for a great pirate-themed game to compliment your interest in the summer spectacle, I recommend Gameloft's Pirates of the Seven Seas.

When rumors about a possible film inspired by the attraction first surfaced in 2002, many saw the move as a simple ploy by Disney to promote one of its theme park rides. Additionally, many were concerned that pirate films such as Cutthroat Island and films based on Disney attractions such as The Country Bears had not done well at the box office. Nevertheless, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, starring Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, opened on July 9, 2003 and eventually grossed US $653 million worldwide, becoming one of the top twenty-five global box office earners of all time.

In 2006, to promote the release of the second film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, and to bring the attraction up-to-date, audio-animatronic likenesses of Captain Jack Sparrow and Captain Barbossa were added to the Disneyland and Magic Kingdom versions, along with new special effects, though the basic ride remains the same.

The triumph of the first film led to the production of two additional films with the same core cast. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest opened in July 2006 and quickly broke several records, including that for the quickest $US100 million box office gross.[1] Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, the final film of the trilogy, was produced concurrently with Dead Man's Chest and is set to be released in late May 2007.[2]

In the follow-up to the record-breaking smash 2006 hit PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST, we find our heroes Will Turner (ORLANDO BLOOM) and Elizabeth Swann (KEIRA KNIGHTLEY) allied with Captain Barbossa (GEOFFREY RUSH) in a desperate quest to free Captain Jack Sparrow (JOHNNY DEPP) from his mind-bending trap in Davy Jones' locker-while the terrifying ghost ship, The Flying Dutchman, and Davy Jones, under the control of the East India Trading Company, wreaks havoc across the Seven Seas. Navigating through treachery, betrayal and wild waters, they must forge their way to exotic Singapore and confront the cunning Chinese pirate Sao Feng (CHOW YUN-FAT). Now headed beyond the very ends of the Earth, each must ultimately choose a side in a final, titanic battle- as not only their lives and fortunes but the entire future of the freedom-loving Pirate way hangs in the balance. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Gore Verbinski from a screenplay written by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio, our beloved cast sets sail once again on a fresh, new adventure in May 2007. Thanks to IGN