[#15] SpongeBob Square Pants: Creature from the Krusty Krab

Genre: Action
Publisher: THQ
Developer: Blitz Games
Number of Players:1-2
ESRB:E for everyone

The Story

Join Nickelodeon's SpongeBob Square Pants and his partner in crime Patrick the star fish in an all-new adventure suitable for everyone. Embark on a series of "fantastic tales of the bizarre and unusual," and experience the world of SpongeBob "like never before" as you "rampage through Bikini Bottom as a gigantic Plankton, fly as SpongeBob through the savage jaw of the enormous bull worm" and even "blast off into outer space as you survive a high-speed asteroid field as Patrick."

The Facts

Let's start this off by saying I love SpongeBob titles. I don't particularly like the little yellow sponge myself, but after spending hours and hours of time helping my little sister play through her craptacular games, loading up SpongeBob is a bit of a relief. That is to say, the games are actually pretty easy to swallow. And this time around we'll get to see five brand new game play mechanics: Rampaging, flying, skydiving, chasing and hot rod racing. All of which span through nine "deeply outrageous and visually wacky levels." THQ claims that never-before-seen SpongeBob art styles will make an appearance and "change Bikini Bottom forever," and for that I say phooey! The previous titles were full of color and character, but a few of the screens seen for the Wii show a level of cell shading taking hold of the reigns. This, my friends, is a no no. I don't want to see any of that great visual style washed out in the Wii incarnation, and hopefully it wont. And even if it does, I'll get over it.

Most Surprisingly Good Game

The Most Surprisingly Good Game award has to go to Creature from the Krusty Krab, without a second thought. For who these SpongeBob titles are designed for, they're pretty darn good. Trust me, I know from experience! While some of the screens look washed out, others look as vivid and lively as ever. If you're a member of the younger audience, have a kid sister or you're just a bloody SpongeBob fan, Creature from the Krusty Krab will be worth your dough if it's anything like its predecessors. And hey, if you're a little older and happen to have an eight your old, it's a good thing to pawn off to the misses as "for the kid."