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Review
Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island (GBA)
Where in the world do I begin? Ahh, well first off you'll be playing as one of three characters - SpongeBob, Timmy, or Danny Phantom. Apparently the only way to save the world is to cross over these characters from the Nickelodeon universe so they can team up and overcome evil. Each character possesses a "unique" ability over the other which will require switching off play time at different points in the level. However I'm not exactly sure how "unique" it is when all SpongeBob can do is send a bubble up into the air vertically.
For whatever reason some giant crab (please no Genji jokes) is the one sending you out on this quest. On said quest you'll make your way through a series of different levels each with its own theme, while encountering a variety of monsters.
The gameplay is incredibly simple, jumping here and there with some backtracking and item collecting thrown in as well. The entire game is basically a ho-hum platformer with mild action, and puzzles that only a blind person could not overcome. Yes, it's a kids game, so sure it should be relatively easy, but should that be an excuse to make a poor game? No. Look at recent releases such as Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime, a game directed entirely at a kids demographic and yet manages to please gamers of all ages by providing fun and unique gameplay. Battle for Volcano Island provides neither and is pushed to the market place with a sloppy design, uninteresting gameplay mechanics, and crap controls.
There was a time in game history when developers did put time and effort into licensed games, but its clear those days vanished ages ago. If you're a parent on the prowl for a birthday present for your son or daughter, there's no real reason they'll enjoy a title like this, regardless of the friendly faces tacked on the box cover. Plenty of other games are available for purchase on the Game Boy Advance (or Nintendo DS if your child has upgraded their hardware) that provide a hundred times more enjoyment and still retain charm that any kid can adore. Super Mario, Klonoa, and Banjo-Kazooie are just three game series that come to mind that share a similar game style to Battle for Volcano Island and manage to one up it in almost every way, despite being released years before it.
Closing Comments
Nicktoons definitely lost this battle.
THQ is still showing no signs of ever putting even the tiniest bit of effort into their licensed games. Every year we see literally dozens of titles released from them and placed on store shelves waiting for unsuspecting parents or kids to make a purchase based on the box art. There's no excuse for game developers to make a half-assed game knowing the game is going to sell, it's one of the biggest plagues taking over the gaming market and it's a shame that things will more then likely continue to get worse. What happened to the days of games like Aladdin on the Super NES? A great game based on a great cartoon. Don't fall into this corporate trap, Nicktoons Battle for Volcano Island is a terrible game that will only make your child hate you for buying it for them.
