Scene It? is best known as a raucous party game, but with Scene It? Movies, the series expands to the iPhone with a well-produced package that maintains much--but not all--of what makes the DVD and videogame versions such a blast. Like those more robust predecessors, Scene It? Movies tests your knowledge of films with questions and mini-games, some of which use actual video clips from blockbusters. Memorable moments from numerous films appear in these scenarios, followed by multiple-choice answers that are quickly selected with a touch of the screen.
What would the Coen brothers think?
Though the clip-based challenges make the biggest impression, the other queries mix straightforward questions with brief games built with the iPhone in mind. Some use childlike drawings or retro-style pixel art to see if you recognize a film, while others have you rearranging movie posters by release date or drawing a line between the names of heroes and their respective antagonists. With rare exceptions, the question types are well executed, and the diversity keeps Scene It? interesting over the course of each game.
Many questions deal with films released within the last several months.
But half the fun of Scene It? has always been laughing through a contest with friends and family, so it’s disappointing that Scene It? Movies is primarily a single-player experience. It’s a well-built trivia game, no doubt, but the lone multiplayer mode, which has you passing around the iPhone to answer simple, text-based questions, pales in comparison to both the standard play and playing a TV-based version with others.
If you've never seen Disney's Enchanted, this will seem nonsensical.
Aside from that, the only other annoyance is the little pause between questions (seemingly meant to draw your eyes to the “Buy Movie” ads), and that doesn’t drastically weigh down an otherwise enjoyable app. With luck, Scene It? Movies will lead to a snappier, more robust future iteration--preferably one with a wireless multiplayer option.
Wide variety of questions and question types. Strong presentation with clips of popular films. Many questions pertain to very recent films.
Lacks particularly worthwhile multiplayer options. Brief pauses between questions to highlight small ads.
