he artists at Pixar have done more than anyone in the movie business to make CG animated films a genuine art form. Sadly, as original and inventive as their films are, the games made based on them more resemble cookie-cutter Pixar rip-off flicks like Surf’s Up and Ice Age. Mario and Ratchet & Clank aside, the once-proud platformer is in dismal shape these days, and Ratatouille will do little to lift its sagging fortunes.

It’s largely a rote recycling of the film, and, although it does feature real voiceovers from the cast, it does little to expand the experience. You may not own Ratatouille, but trust me – in a way, you’ve already played it. Almost nothing here is new or unique – it’s the same old jumping, climbing, and collecting various widgets that we’ve all been doing over and over for what seems like forever.

There’s a few slightly more novel gameplay sequences, like some rafting, sliding, and cooking segments that – while no great shakes – at least succeed in not being as bad as the core gameplay. Ditto for the minigames, even if some of them are essentially repeats of stuff you’ve already seen in the main character mode. Pretty uninspiring stuff, but I guess if you’re a parent looking for a (relatively) harmless game to pick up for a small child it might do the trick. I’d like to think your kids deserve better. Either way, no one who measures his or her age in more than one digit is likely to find this entertaining. Note: The Wii version has different (and worse) control.