So, I finally got my copy of Doctor Who: Top Trumps for my DS today. As I have not really delved into the game fully, I would just like to mention that this is basically my first impression of the game. What the game is not is an in-depth adventurer like Tomb Raider (also made by Eidos…). Instead it’s based on a popular card game called Top Trumps. It’s a very simple, but fun game. You have a stack of cards with different characters on them and each character has various stats. Like, how tall they are, their strength, intelligence, and so on. The object of the game is to pick the stat that will trump your opponent’s. That’s it!
Now this game collects monsters and aliens and characters from the first three series of Doctor Who. Though I have not seen Rose or the Ninth Doctor… The game has two modes of play, Adventure Mode or Quick Match both of which are self-explanatory. In the “Adventure Mode” (which features absolutely no adventure) you play as one of the characters from the show, like the Doctor, and battle planet to planet. So far I’ve gone up against the Slitheen, Jack, a Cyberman, and Martha (who I totally trounced!). In between matches are mini-games which you can unlock and play later for bonus points. And speaking of unlocking… there are character cards and bonus cards that you need to unlock as well. Another cool thing is that it features the “Download Play” function. This means that if a friend of yours has their DS and you want to challenge him or her (or those that defy such descriptions…) you only need one card.
As for the graphics and sound… the DS is not being pushed to the limit by this game. In fact I think the processors are just phoning this one in. The artwork for the characters is based on last year’s Flash animated The Infinite Quest. The artwork on the cards features actual photos of the characters, though they seem to have picked the worst photos possible. Yvonne looks like she’s trying to imitate Bono, Jack looks like he’s had something shoved where the sun don’t shine, and Harriet Jones looks like Iggy Pop! As for the sound, the actual Doctor Who theme coming from my DS speakers was cool, but that’s about it. I was hoping maybe they could have put in some dialog here or there, but sadly no. Also (almost forgot to mention this…) you have to hold the DS up on it’s end. That takes a little getting used to.
To wrap things up, if you are looking for an intense, action-packed game that you can spend hours and hours on, then this game is not for you. If you have a few minutes to kill and want to get in a quick round, this game will suit you. I was playing it on my lunch break and really enjoyed it. Heck, I just battled my roommate while he was on the john! Let me caution you though (this mainly applies to our US readers), do not get this game unless you really, really want it. I had to go through a British eBay store to order it (Amazon.co.uk won’t ship overseas…) and with the conversion rate and shipping paid about $65.00 for the game. That makes this my most expensive game I own! But I’m having fun with it and in the end that’s the most important thing.

Now if they’d only get started on a REAL game…

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