Fans of Trine have no doubt longed for a new entry in the series, especially after Trine 3 was met with some less than favorable reviews. Thankfully, we here at Honey’s Anime have some good news for you fans of the franchise! Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince has finally arrived and you can bet we grabbed our controllers and jumped into this latest entry. Is Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince a proper return to what we loved about the original two titles or does it falter like the third entry and end up being an only okay experience? Find out with us in our full review of Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince for the PS4!

Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince returns players to proper form by bringing back our heroes to yet another adventure. Once more control Amadeus the Wizard, Zoya the Thief and Pontius the Knight as they try to find a prince named Selius! Unfortunately, their newest journey won’t be a simple one as a new threat looms in the shadows! You’ll need to master our three character’s various skills—and new abilities—to save the kingdom again and bring back Prince Selius save and sound. Play alone or with several friends to really make for a true adventure! Those who love the Trine series will no doubt love Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince!

Once more our Trine heroes are being summoned to arms. A prince has unfortunately gone missing after dabbling with magic beyond his skills and our heroes have been called to save him. Together, they must journey to find this missing prince and stop a new threat that could destroy the kingdom! Can our original Trine party save the day or has time caused their skills to falter? Find out in their latest journey called Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince!

Many of you we assume have played past Trine titles—seeing as how this is the fourth entry—but we know that maybe some of you haven’t. Don’t worry, reader; we’ll break down what you can expect from Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince bit by bit. Let’s start with the basics. Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince has you controlling three heroes—Zoya, Amadeus and Pontius—each embodying a different set of skills. You’ll need to use these various skills to not only fight off baddies that appear in set areas but to navigate various traps/platforming puzzles! Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince isn’t a game that will make you rip your hair out in frustration as you try to solve brain wracking puzzles but instead focuses on solving puzzles with a myriad of solutions.

As you journey through Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince, you’ll often notice numerous puzzles that involve platforming skills and quick thinking. The beauty of the Trine series is that puzzles can often be brute forced—when the need arises—or be done in creative ways. Amadeus is able to make blocks and levitate items to reach high areas or block off certain paths. Zoya—the thief—can use her bow to not only attack enemies but create tightropes, pull boxes together and/or swing from hooks above giant ravines. Pontius—the knight—might seem like he’s only able to swing a sword and protect the party using his shield, but in Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince, he can do numerous other things such as reflect light with his shield and even use his shield to travel across gaps as a makeshift glider! The beauty of Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince is that because it’s a game less focused on challenge almost any level of gamer can enter this adventure and feel skillful!

While the ideas of Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince sound cool what matters the most is gameplay and Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince does a great job there. Everything in Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince feels smooth from jumping to a swinging platform to fighting a giant skeleton boss. The Trine series has only ever faltered with the ho-hum third game—which wasn’t horrible mind you—but Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince stays close to the original games to really make for the perfect gameplay experience. You can still try to find tons of collectibles or just run through Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince for the excellent—and comedic—story and neither way is a wrong way to play. If you want to go on a solid single player romp, then go for it. You can easily switch between all three heroes at any time—unless the story dictates otherwise—and never feel the need for another ally. If you want to play co-op, you and three other friends—for 4 players in total—can pick your favorite heroes and try to solve puzzles together by working out who needs to do what and when. It can lead to a bit of chaos and overly simplified puzzles but co-op makes Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince feel like a different game which is always intriguing to us.

Visually, Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince has improved immensely with stronger graphics all around. We played the PS4 version of Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince and were blown away by the vivid settings, amazing art design and truly immersive world that exists in this new Trine title. What helped us get even more immersed was the absolutely hilarious—and sometimes somber—narrative of Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince. Thanks to returning voice actors—who we never grow tired of— Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince feels like another entry in a whimsical storybook series.

Now if we have any complaints to mention during our time with Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince it would be on two fronts. The first issue—and mind you, it is a small one—is the fact that Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince feels too familiar. Trine games are beginning to feel like repeats of one another just with different stories and while that isn’t a bad thing, we do wish there was a bit more depth to these games. Our last gripe with Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince also can be linked to its déjà vu-like gameplay. Often, puzzles and fights seem to be repeated too much. We never struggled to fight a boss or solve a puzzle with brute force and that is an experience we’ve learned is mimicked in every new Trine game. Trine fans won’t hate these minor issues—at least we don’t—but we do pray Trine 5, when it eventually releases, changes this formula up just to surprise us a bit.

Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince can feel a bit like déjà vu—seeing as how most Trine games play the same—but unlike the last entry, this one does it right. The puzzles have more freedom than previous titles, the action is more fluid, the 2D elements have returned with stronger stylings and overall Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince plays more like the original 2 games which is a blessing. We do hope Trine 5—if it comes out—changes up the story, characters and gameplay a bit as we don’t just want more of the same but even then we’re sure we’ll have a good time. Ultimately, Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince is a fun game whether you’re alone or playing with friends. Clearly, even if Trine keeps releasing well into the future, as long as it keeps this smooth gameplay going we’ll doubt the series will ever feel flat despite the repetitive nature it follows. Trine fans, don’t hesitate to buy Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince!

There are some games where repeating the same process a dozen times over can lead to the feeling of been there…done that. Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince escapes this feeling by still following the same format—more so of the first two titles—but by being fun and exciting. Yes, Trine needs to eventually do something different to keep fans wanting more but even now, it’s hard to feel as if Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince is weakened by being a familiar experience to the past games. In our minds, Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince is fun and captivating which is all that matters when it comes to a series being solid. Do you plan on buying Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince now that you’ve read our review? Let us know via the comments below! More video game reviews and anime themed articles await if you continue to follow us busy bees here at Honey’s Anime!