In 2009, developer/publisher Frozenbyte released a curious 2D puzzle/adventure game called Trine. It didn’t take long for the public to see this amazing game and know they needed more, thus two more titles—Trine 2 and Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power—were to be released over the next few years. With the last Trine game being released in 2015, it has been now four years since Trine has released and we know that a fourth Trine game is coming this 2019! That’s why for those who want a refresher course or those who haven’t played it, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power has found its way to the Nintendo Switch and we here at Honey’s Anime have re-entered its world once more! Let’s find out together if Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power still holds up despite its long hiatus in our full review down below!

Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power is an action/adventure/puzzle title where players take the role of three unique characters. Zoya, Pontius and Amadeus all have unique classes that need to be utilized to progress in the game. Play alone through a deep single player experience or grab two friends for a three-player co-op experience! Save the world from the destruction you created and become the heroes you are forced to be in Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power!

Our three heroes have been through numerous adventures and perils over the course of their lives and a lot of the more recent journeys have been due to the Trine. Long ago, these three strangers Amadeus, Pontius and Zoya all ended up meeting one another once they got involved with the Trine. Now—once more—the heroes must reunite due to the special artifact but now are beginning to grow tired of the Trine’s randomness. However, when the trio try to rid themselves of the artifact, they end up causing an evil force to be released and destroy the Trine’s power! Our group now will have to save the world—again—and see if they can fix what they ultimately started.

Let us assume for a minute that you’ve never played a Trine title before. In Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power, players utilize the skills of three heroes who each have a class/role. Amadeus is a master magician—kind of—who can summon boxes to solve puzzles and levitate objects to help with movement. Zoya—the thief—has her trusty bow to hit far off objects and her grappling hook helps traverse various locations as well as hook items together. Lastly, Pontius the heroic knight can use his strong armor and sword to bust through enemies with ease and can even break walls/floors with no problem. Like the first two prior Trine games released years back, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power excels at delivering a third person adventure title that shows off the beauty of fantasy and puzzle gameplay. However, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power isn’t without its faults and that’s why we need to truly dive into this interesting experience in our full review of Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power for the Nintendo Switch!

First, we should talk about what Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power does right. In terms of gameplay, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power works pretty darn well. Unlike most fantasy games, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power doesn’t try to be overly serious or filled with action every second. Instead, there’s a nice calm to Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power thanks in large part to dozens of checkpoints, calm puzzle solving and fun platforming. Yes, you’re going to die often—more on why in the negatives of Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power—but you’re rarely going to yell because of a death. Nothing in Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power feels like it forces you to play seriously and that is noticeable when you begin to really dive into the controls.

Unlike Trine 1 or Trine 2, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power removes the original 2D feel and adds a 3D element for a more robust experience. Players will still be pushing boxes onto levers to open gates, killing the occasional baddies in small areas and jumping from hook to hook to get across a ravine. Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power is basically a clone—in terms of gameplay—to the originals and that makes sense. Why fix what isn’t broken, right? Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power gives you a vast amount of liberties in how you wish to play as it doesn’t hold your hand and tell you how to break open a room to nab collectible pieces or how to get onto that far off platform. You ultimately can mash abilities together—alone or with friends—to make a solution work and that is why Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power is fun!

The negatives in Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power come when you see the age of this game and realize the 3D still has issues even now. Back in 2015, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power suffered from mixed reviews due to its strange shift into 3D territory that left fans a bit annoyed at the random deaths occurred from trying to jump to a ledge or move towards the screen. Even in 2019, that issue remains and Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power suffers from the 3D perspective. The other negative comes from the visuals which are…showing age. Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power originally was a spectacle of a title in 2015 being vibrant and colorful with some truly well voice narrative bits and beautiful visuals to match. In 2019, Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power looks okay at best but only when on the TV. In handheld mode—which is where we spent the most time—Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power looks dated. Are these two negatives a problem that makes buying the twenty-dollar title not worth it? No, but they are negatives that might cause flashbacks for fans of why Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power isn’t the best in the series and might make newcomers question why Trine is so popular in general.

Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power wasn’t the best of the three Trine games, but we still enjoy its free motion adventure feel. Being able to solve puzzles and fight with a freedom of choice is liberating and its one element we loved about the original Trine games. While the 3D element of Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power still leads to some occasional headaches, we equally love the higher level of immersion offered by removing the 2D focus. Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power holds up quite well 4 years later after its initial release but graphically the game is showing its age and its more noticeable on handheld mode versus on the big screen. If you played Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power originally it might be hard to recommend re-entering the fantasy world for another perilous journey. Newcomers however will find Frozenbyte’s third entry in the Trine world a fun adventure/puzzle game with a lot of depth and excitement!

With Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince being released sometime this year, it’s understandable why Frozenbyte would release Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power now on the Nintendo Switch. Fans and newcomers can enter the world of Trine and get ready for a new adventure that should be quite exciting! Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power won’t appeal to everyone—and fans might find no reason to download this Nintendo Switch port—it’s still an amazing title with a lot to love. Are you excited for the new Trine title and/or are happy Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power has been released for the Switch? Comment below to let us know as we always want to hear from our readers! For even more gaming related articles, keep stuck to our amazing hive here at Honey’s Anime!