Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures
Encyclopedia
Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures is an episodic
series of adventure game
s by Telltale Games
based around the characters of Wallace and Gromit
created by Nick Park
and Aardman Animations
. The first episode was released on March 24, 2009 for the PC
. The Xbox Live Arcade
version of the game was released on May 27, 2009 starting with Episode 1: Fright of the Bumblebees.
Episodes are developed by Telltale Games in collaboration with Aardman Animations to develop the story, characters, and setting. Players control both Wallace and Gromit at times through the gameplay. Ben Whitehead, Aardman's official backup voice actor, portrays Wallace, instead of Peter Sallis
, who has voiced the character in all screen appearances.
A playable demo of the first episode was made available on March 16, 2009 and can be downloaded from the official site as well as Yahoo Games. It is also included on the Region 2 DVD and Blu-ray releases of A Matter of Loaf and Death
as DVD-ROM content.
While initially, the second episode was due to arrive on Xbox Live on September 8, 2009, the announcement was shortly retracted; instead, the final three episodes was released simultaneouly on the service on November 4, 2009.
, but the weather both spoils their plans and creates a small flood in the cellar. Wallace comes up with the idea of converting the water-logged cellar into an indoor holiday resort for the rest of the townsfolk, and seeks to keep them all happy, though Ms. Flitt's two puppies raise much havoc. When Ms. Flitt's boyfriend, Duncan McBiscuit is mysteriously injured, Wallace and Gromit deduce that the puppies, upset at having their chew toy taken away from them, attacked Duncan. In the episode's finale, the cellar drain becomes dislodged, and the puppies, chasing after their chew toy, follow it and end up in a prison cell, while Wallace starts to clean up the mess. Just as everyone leaves, a whistling man with a mustache posts a flyer for a charity fair through the door to Wast Wallaby.
as an engagement ring and a marriage proposal from him.
, Prickly Thicket, which Ms. Flitt's aunt loathes and soundly rejects her niece's marriage to Wallace. The local constable, jealous that Wallace was admitted over him, uses an obscure bylaw
to threaten the club with closure since it does not have a golf course–or rather it does, but members do not know where it is because the deed is missing, safely held in a security system designed by Wallace's (apparent) ancestor, Goodman Witless (and his faithful dog Gimlet). Using his detective equipment Wallace manages to find the deed, but discovers that the entire town was built on the golf course, and a vengeful Duncan decides to have the town destroyed in order to rebuild the course. Wallace challenges Duncan to a golf tourney so that he may become chairman and tear up the deed, saving the town, and manages to win with Gromit's help. However, as he goes to tear the deed, the security system traps him and the other townsfolk in a room, and Gromit is forced to disable the trap and free everyone. Wallace tears up the deed, and is thankful to find that Ms. Flitt has cancelled their engagement and gone back to Duncan, who her aunt now approves of since he is no longer the club chairman.
Episodic games
An episodic video game is a video game of a shorter length that is commercially released as an installment to a continuous and larger series. Episodic games differ from conventional video games in that they often contain less content but are developed on a more frequent basis.Such a series may or...
series of adventure game
Adventure game
An adventure game is a video game in which the player assumes the role of protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and puzzle-solving instead of physical challenge. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based media such as literature and film,...
s by Telltale Games
Telltale Games
Telltale Games is a leading independent digital first publisher and game developer founded in June 2004 as Telltale, Incorporated. Based in San Rafael, California, the studio includes designers formerly employed by LucasArts...
based around the characters of Wallace and Gromit
Wallace and Gromit
Wallace and Gromit are the main characters in a series consisting of four British animated short films and a feature-length film by Nick Park of Aardman Animations...
created by Nick Park
Nick Park
Nicholas Wulstan "Nick" Park, CBE is an English filmmaker of stop motion animation best known as the creator of Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep....
and Aardman Animations
Aardman Animations
Aardman Animations, Ltd., also known as Aardman Studios, or simply as Aardman, is a British animation studio based in Bristol, United Kingdom. The studio is known for films made using stop-motion clay animation techniques, particularly those featuring Plasticine characters Wallace and Gromit...
. The first episode was released on March 24, 2009 for the PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
. The Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
version of the game was released on May 27, 2009 starting with Episode 1: Fright of the Bumblebees.
Episodes are developed by Telltale Games in collaboration with Aardman Animations to develop the story, characters, and setting. Players control both Wallace and Gromit at times through the gameplay. Ben Whitehead, Aardman's official backup voice actor, portrays Wallace, instead of Peter Sallis
Peter Sallis
Peter Sallis, OBE is an English actor and entertainer, well-known for his work on British television. Although he was born and brought up in London, his two most notable roles require him to adopt the accents and mannerisms of a Northerner.Sallis is best known for his role as the main character...
, who has voiced the character in all screen appearances.
A playable demo of the first episode was made available on March 16, 2009 and can be downloaded from the official site as well as Yahoo Games. It is also included on the Region 2 DVD and Blu-ray releases of A Matter of Loaf and Death
A Matter of Loaf and Death
A Matter of Loaf and Death is an animated television short created by Nick Park, and the fourth of his shorts to star his characters Wallace and Gromit...
as DVD-ROM content.
Episodes
| # | Episode | Release date (PC DVD-Rom Game) |
Release date (Xbox Live Arcade) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Fright of the Bumblebees" | March 24, 2009 | May 27, 2009 |
| 2 | "The Last Resort" | May 5, 2009 | November 4, 2009 |
| 3 | "Muzzled!" | June 16, 2009 | November 4, 2009 |
| 4 | "The Bogey Man" | July 29, 2009 | November 4, 2009 |
While initially, the second episode was due to arrive on Xbox Live on September 8, 2009, the announcement was shortly retracted; instead, the final three episodes was released simultaneouly on the service on November 4, 2009.
Episode 1: Fright of the Bumblebees
Wallace has opened a new business, "From Bee to You" specializing in delivering freshly made honey to his customers. He takes up the offer to provide fifty gallons of honey in repayment to the local grocer after his electric cheese-detecting machine accidentally rampaged through the store on a test run. However, Wallace has used up all the flowers in his garden, and is forced to improvise a growth formula to turn some daisy seeds provided by his neighbour, Ms. Flitt into giant flowers. The formula is a success, and he meets his client's demand but things soon go wrong when the bees react to the growth formula, becoming huge and terrorizing the town and Wallace's home. Gromit is able to trap most of the bees, but Wallace is stolen away by the giant queen bee. Gromit gives chase in Wallace's honey tanker truck, and is able to rescue Wallace. The two work together to feed the queen more honey dosed with more of the growth formula, forcing the bee to become stuck in a tunnel. Wallace works out an antidote to the growth formula to restore the bees to normal, though he accidentally shrinks himself in the process.Episode 2: The Last Resort
Using their profits from the honey business, Wallace prepares to take Gromit to BlackpoolBlackpool
Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...
, but the weather both spoils their plans and creates a small flood in the cellar. Wallace comes up with the idea of converting the water-logged cellar into an indoor holiday resort for the rest of the townsfolk, and seeks to keep them all happy, though Ms. Flitt's two puppies raise much havoc. When Ms. Flitt's boyfriend, Duncan McBiscuit is mysteriously injured, Wallace and Gromit deduce that the puppies, upset at having their chew toy taken away from them, attacked Duncan. In the episode's finale, the cellar drain becomes dislodged, and the puppies, chasing after their chew toy, follow it and end up in a prison cell, while Wallace starts to clean up the mess. Just as everyone leaves, a whistling man with a mustache posts a flyer for a charity fair through the door to Wast Wallaby.
Episode 3: Muzzled!
Shortly after the holiday season, a charity fair comes into town, run by Monty Muzzle, to raise money for a new dog shelter, the old one being destroyed in the storm last episode. After dealing with three strays in their home, Wallace and Gromit go to the fair with Wallace's new invention to create any flavor of ice cream. At the fair, Gromit discovers that Mr. Muzzle is actually attempting to steal away the townspeople's donations and using the strays as manual labor for the fair. When Wallace and Gromit uncover Mr. Muzzle's intentions, he escapes on a makeshift balloon, but Wallace and Gromit give chase, denying Mr. Muzzle of his ill-gotten money while saving all the strays. Ms. Flitt, who dumped Duncan McBiscuit earlier in the episode and has grown to admire the "bravery" of Wallace (unaware that it was actually Gromit that stopped Muzzle), mistakes his confusion at finding a loose fastening nutNut (hardware)
A nut is a type of hardware fastener with a threaded hole. Nuts are almost always used opposite a mating bolt to fasten a stack of parts together. The two partners are kept together by a combination of their threads' friction, a slight stretch of the bolt, and compression of the parts...
as an engagement ring and a marriage proposal from him.
Episode 4: The Bogey Man
In order to defuse Ms. Flitt's mistake, Gromit manages to make Wallace a member of the local country clubCountry club
A country club is a private club, often with a closed membership, that typically offers a variety of recreational sports facilities and is located in city outskirts or rural areas. Activities may include, for example, any of golf, tennis, swimming or polo...
, Prickly Thicket, which Ms. Flitt's aunt loathes and soundly rejects her niece's marriage to Wallace. The local constable, jealous that Wallace was admitted over him, uses an obscure bylaw
Bylaw
By-law can refer to a law of local or limited application passed under the authority of a higher law specifying what things may be regulated by the by-law...
to threaten the club with closure since it does not have a golf course–or rather it does, but members do not know where it is because the deed is missing, safely held in a security system designed by Wallace's (apparent) ancestor, Goodman Witless (and his faithful dog Gimlet). Using his detective equipment Wallace manages to find the deed, but discovers that the entire town was built on the golf course, and a vengeful Duncan decides to have the town destroyed in order to rebuild the course. Wallace challenges Duncan to a golf tourney so that he may become chairman and tear up the deed, saving the town, and manages to win with Gromit's help. However, as he goes to tear the deed, the security system traps him and the other townsfolk in a room, and Gromit is forced to disable the trap and free everyone. Wallace tears up the deed, and is thankful to find that Ms. Flitt has cancelled their engagement and gone back to Duncan, who her aunt now approves of since he is no longer the club chairman.
Voice cast
- Ben Whitehead/Peter Sallis - Wallace
- Struan RodgerStruan RodgerStruan Rodger is a British actor who has appeared widely in a range of supporting roles. His first feature film role was as Eric Liddell's friend and running coach Sandy McGrath, in the Oscar-winning 1981 film, Chariots of Fire....
- Monty Muzzle - Heather Coombs - Felicity Flitt
- Peter MarinkerPeter MarinkerPeter Marinker is a Canadian actor well known for his role as Kiichi Goto in the Patlabor series and his many audio book recordings. He currently resides in the UK.-Filmography:*A Wind Named Amnesia as Simpson*Angel Cop as Dr...
- Mr. Paneer - Dean Willamson - P. C. Dibbins
- Emma Tate - Mrs. Gabberley
- Glenn McCready - Major Crum
- Mark Estdale - Mr. Gabberley
- David RintoulDavid RintoulDavid Rintoul is a stage and television actor.Rintoul was born in Aberdeen, Scotland. He studied at Edinburgh University and won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London....
- Duncan McBiscuit - Suzy Westerby - Prudence Flitt
Reviews
Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures has gained favorable reviews.- Adventure Gamers review (4/5)
- IGN review (8.5/10)
- GameZone review (7.7/10)
- 62 West Wallaby Street Telltale Games section with reviews (positive)
- VGGEN.com review (8/10)
- Telltale Games' "Fright of the Bumblebees" review roundup (positive)