That said, I wasn't expecting much good to come out of the video game releases of Wall-E, since most of the Pixar game titles have been pretty bad, but for the most part the various developers have done a decent job of capturing a little bit of the movie magic.

First up, the home console titles (PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2) are all more or less identical in how they play, with only variations in control (Wii) and visuals (Xbox 360, PS3) being the biggest changes between the 4 versions. You'll start off with controlling Wall-E himself, right in the middle of the junk world that Earth has become. You'll be introduced to the puzzle-platform element of the game, which has you controlling the diminutive robot across the wasteland, repairing stations and collecting trash to compress into various cubes with different properties, all of which you'll use to overcome the puzzles you'll encounter that impede your progress.

Eventually you'll encounter EVE, which you'll also be able to control in certain sections, allowing you to fly around and fire a laser to destroy obstacles as well. Most of the EVE sections are handled like small races, propelling you thru tubes or tunnels within a certain amount of time. Eventually you'll bring the two characters together which will set the adventure off, taking you from Earth in a similar fashion to the film. The home titles do a pretty good representation of Wall-E and crew, with a decent amount of animation used in bringing all the residents of the film to life, and the controls aren't half bad. I will say that Wall-E feels a bit too loose and light, and you'll often find yourself accidentally propelling him off of a cliff or into some other hazard, which can often be frustrating. Often the camera will try and work against you, especially in some of the tighter areas (like some of the ship puzzles), and you'll have a hard time figuring out which direction you're actually going until you land and the camera sorts itself out.

Outside of that, controlling Wall-E feels a lot like controlling a remote controlled robot, which I imagine is pretty much how it should feel to move the little guy around. You can pick up trash, compress it into cubes, throw those cubes to hit objects or switches, and even turn Wall-E into a cube himself. There's a lot of environmental stuff you can take advantage of, like magnetized walls, and for the most part the level design is really good. In later levels you'll start to encounter enemies at well, so the game begins to take on an action spin too.

I personally preferred the standard controls found on the PS2, PS3, and 360 to the Wii controls, which felt a bit too imprecise to work effectively. Also, the 360 and PS3 obviously have a bit more horsepower to accurately resemble the visuals of the film, and overall both versions feel a bit more polished. That's not to say there aren't some technical issues with these versions, since the framerate can often get bogged down when a lot of activity is going on, which is troublesome in the areas that require a lot of platforming. The unsteady framerate is present in all of the home console versions (and the PSP version as well), and it definitely brings the overall experience down a notch.

For the handhelds, the PSP version resembles the home console titles for the most part, but with the worst visuals of the bunch. The controls also feel completely off, and the entire game is more frustrating to play than the other titles. The DS version, on the other hand, is pretty unique against the other titles, with all the emphasis being on completing puzzles. You'll enter a room that will require you to toss cubes around to get past whatever obstacles are blocking your way into the next room, and the game even uses some custom visuals to represent Wall-E in a different way than the copycat Pixar style of the other games. The puzzles aren't too difficult to figure out, but the title is perfectly geared to younger players, and is definitely the highlight of the bunch.

So, depending on your system of choice you definitely have some options. If you're looking for a decent home console version, then I suggest giving the PS3 or 360 titles a try, and if you're looking for a fun but short puzzle title, then Wall-E on the DS is the way to go. None of the games are particularly excellent, and the PSP title is definitely the worst of the bunch, but for a movie related game they do a pretty good job of capturing the look and feel of the film, and they're not a bad way to waste a few hours if you really enjoyed the movie.

Grade: PS3, 360 - C+
Grade: DS - B-
Grade: PSP - D+
Grade: PS2, Wii - C