The Spiderwick Chronicles is an action-adventure video game adaptation of the film of the same name. It was released on February 6, 2008, in North America, and on March 14, 2008, in Europe for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 2.
| The Spiderwick Chronicles | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Stormfront Studios |
| Publisher(s) | Vivendi Games[a] |
| Designer(s) | KnowWonder |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows Nintendo DS PlayStation 2 Wii Xbox 360 |
| Release |
|
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Plot
When Jared, Simon and Mallory Grace move into the Spiderwick estate, they discover the late owner's field guide to fairies. They soon discover a hidden world all around them, populated with creatures such as brownies, goblins and sprites. However, Jared and his family are in grave danger, because Mulgarath, an ogre, wants to steal the book for himself.
The Spiderwick Chronicles script mixes the events of the film with some elements from the original books.
Gameplay
The game's playable characters are Jared, Simon and Mallory, and Thimbletack can be used to explore small areas. Each character has a unique weapon with which to fight against evil creatures. The Grace children can capture Sprites to give them special power-ups. The gameplay is a mix of exploration, puzzle solving, and combat. There are items to find, Sprites to catch, and areas to check.
Reception
| Aggregator | Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DS | PC | PS2 | Wii | Xbox 360 | |
| GameRankings | 64.13%[1] | 63.50%[2] | 65.00%[3] | 64.36%[4] | 63.00%[5] |
| Metacritic | 60/100[6] | 61/100[7] | 64/100[8] | 62/100[9] | 59/100[10] |
| Publication | Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DS | PC | PS2 | Wii | Xbox 360 | |
| 1Up.com | 20/100[citation needed] | N/A | 50/100[citation needed] | N/A | 50/100[citation needed] |
| 4Players | N/A | 71%[11] | 70%[11] | 70%[11] | 70%[11] |
| Eurogamer | N/A | 6/10[12] | 6/10[12] | 5.5/10[b][13][12] | 5.5/10[b][13][12] |
| Game Informer | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6.5/10[14] |
| GameRevolution | C-[15] | C-[15] | C-[15] | C-[15] | C-[15] |
| GamesMaster | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 7.3/10[16] |
| GameSpot | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6/10[17] | N/A |
| GamesRadar+ |   [18] | [19] | N/A | 4/10[20] | [19] |
| GameStar | N/A | 59%[21] | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| GameZone | 7/10[22] | 5.5/10[23] | 7.9/10[24] | 5/10[25] | 7/10[26] |
| IGN | 7.8/10[27] | 7.5/10[28] | 7/10[29] | 7.5/10[30] | 7.6/10[31][32] |
| Jeuxvideo.com | 11/20[33] | 11/20[33] | 11/20[33] | 11/20[33] | 11/20[33] |
| NGamer | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6.9/10 | N/A |
| Nintendo World Report | 6/10[34] | N/A | N/A | 7/10[35] | N/A |
| PlayStation Official Magazine – UK | N/A | N/A | 5/10[36] | N/A | N/A |
| Official Xbox Magazine (UK) | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6/10[37] |
| Official Xbox Magazine (US) | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6/10[38] |
| PALGN | N/A | N/A | 6/10[39] | N/A | N/A |
| PC Gamer (UK) | N/A | 5.9/10[40] | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Pocket Gamer | 6/10[41] | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| PSM3 | N/A | N/A | 5/10[42] | N/A | N/A |
| TeamXbox | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4/10[43] |
| VideoGamer.com | N/A | N/A | 8/10[44] | N/A | 8/10[45] |
| Absolute Games | N/A | 65%[46] | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Nintendo, Le Magazine Officiel | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5.5/10[47] | N/A |
| Official PlayStation 2 Magazine (UK) | N/A | N/A | 7/10[48] | N/A | N/A |
| PC Action | N/A | 67%[49] | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| USA Today | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6/10[50] | N/A |
The Spiderwick Chronicles received "mixed or average" according to review aggregator Metacritic.[51]