Reviewed: December 3, 2004
Reviewed by: Matt Gonzales

Publisher
THQ

Developer
Heavy Iron Studios

Released: October 27, 2004
Genre: Platform
Players: 1
ESRB: Everyone

8
7
7
8
7.5

Supported Features

SpongeBob Squarepants and its deepwater denizens are actually rather similar to characters of the infamous Ren and Stimpy cartoons found on Nickelodeon back in the day. Only with SpongeBob the humor is more about celebrating the uniqueness of individuals through a filter of innocence that manages to avoid being smaltzy. Still, the characters and situations are so zany it appeals to more than just children for reasons not necessarily realized by either camp.

But let’s not forget that this is after all another game based on a popular movie. This normally screams “bargain bin”, but it’s not impossible for such games to be done right (for instance, the new The Incredibles game). In fact there’s been a recent windfall of great movie-based games to come out that have almost single-handedly put that old axiom to rest, that all movie-based games suck. And for every Spider-Man or Lord of the Rings game that makes it big, it gives us jaded reviewers a little glimmer of hope.

There’s a couple of ways to go about a movie-based game, either stick very close to the script of the movie, or use the film as a staging point for the game you’d really rather make. These two schools of thought are not necessarily opposed however.

SpongeBob Squarepants: The Movie (the game) follows the movie about as closely as one could even to the point that telling too much about the game would actually fall into the area of spoiler material. Seriously, my nephew has seen the movie and confirmed it for me, since I was more interested in seeing humans blow things up. But let’s get to the game, shall we?

SpongeBob Squarepants is a yellow nerd of a sponge living in the ocean community of Bikini Bottom where he manages a comfortable living working at the Krusty Krab restaurant where Mr. Krabs (who is quite crusty and crabby) works him like a dog. By the sheer power of his sunny outlook on life, however, SpongeBob remains ever bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

In his umpteenth plot at world domination, a megalomaniacal squirt named Plankton (for obvious reasons) steals Neptune’s crown, framing Mr. Krabs for the crime. Cue SpongeBob to the rescue with his pal Patrick, a starfish with more arms than brains. Gamers follow the thickheaded twosome as they go through the paces in a traditional platformer that is steeped in the zany humor of the titular character’s popular show.

Basically, the game is a platformer designed to cash in on the coveted Nick property, which is not as bad as it sounds. The game itself is actually pretty good as you control either The Bob or Patrick, his echinodermic partner in their quest to save Mr. Krabs from the wrath of Neptune by the machinations of the evil Plankton’s Plan Z.

Your standard compliment of moves are in tow as SpongeBob can spin kick enemies while Patrick Cartwheel Attacks all who oppose him. True, it’s not exactly Tekken, but it gets the job done the way it should for the game’s target audience.

Since SpongeBob Squarepants is quite keen on fostering his “manliness” through heroic exploits, the imperturbable invertebrate makes use of said mechanic in the form of the game’s power-ups. Sure, it’s really the same old same old in the vein of Ratchet & Clank’s bolts, but SpongeBob is just so darn likeable you more or less find yourself doing it for him as much as yourself. Actually, you have to collect enough certain tokens in order to upgrade your character in order to reach other areas of the game with enhanced techniques that include his Electric Guided Sonic Wave Guitar attack.

As a guitarist for the last 20 years, I get a cheap thrill every time I whip that thing out and see Bob make his wacky gyrations. That’s a big component of this game, by the way; SpongeBob is so goofy, you can’t help but smirk, even laugh out loud at times at his (and by extension, the game’s) loony personality.

Driving missions, which might not make a lot of sense in a game that takes place underwater, mix things up a little and are actually kind of fun as a break from the run and jump, Crash Bandicoot style gameplay that makes up a majority of the game. The image of SpongeBob and Patrick behind the wheel of the Patty Wagon (what appears to be a motorized Big Mac) is admittedly rather amusing.

NPC’s, as in most movie-based games, play a big part in the story and go the longest way towards tying the two properties together in people’s minds. What should be a no-brainer in game development is often sacrificed because of the high cost of corralling the big names of your average blockbuster. Lucky for us (and the actors on the show), Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob assets are in full effect here.

Load times are kept to a bare minimum, which will make hyper kids in check between levels, and the overall look of the game is a refreshingly effective transition from the 2D environment of the show to the ubiquitous 3D realms of the PS2.

Little touches like animations and sound effects from the movie/show really sell the game, and I think that’s the real draw of the game from a reviewer’s standpoint. Kids will most likely want the game as a Pavlovian response to the movie.

All of the principal actors from the show are represented well, so the kiddies won’t be disappointed even without the prodigious use of surround sound or progressive scan so prevalent in today’s biggest action games.

Luckily, Heavy Iron stuck to the highly successful formula of the show and the quirkiness of its characters to make an entertaining experience. Just don’t expect any kind of multiplayer fun with friends. I know, it’s enough to make you yell “Tartar sauce!”