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Frogger’s Adventures: The Rescue Review
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Developer |
Konami
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| Publisher |
Konami
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| Genre |
Action
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Frogger, while originally a simplistic arcade game involving crossing a street without getting hit by oncoming traffic, has turned into a franchise that spawns several games each year for next generation consoles that are a little more complex than the original. However, the number of titles beginning to hit the shelves is alarming; while not near as high in count as the Army Men franchise, Frogger games can be found on just about every console. Long time fans have grown weary of lackluster games in the past (Frogger Beyond, anyone?) and are expecting a quality title out of Konami with Frogger’s Adventures: The Rescue.
These fans, sadly, will be greatly disappointed. The Rescue, though not terrible, is incredibly linear, with limited movement, mediocre visuals, and repetitious sound. To make matters worse, the story is incredibly unbelievable, hindering any enjoyment from the get-go. The kids, however, should get a kick out of it for a number of reasons.
Gameplay - Frogger: The Rescue features only three gameplay modes: Story Mode, Challenge Mode, and Multiplayer. The first in the list involves, as the title would indicate, playing as Frogger in the story and progressing through the levels. The second, Challenge Mode, puts the gamer in a level and tests how quickly they can make it through the level. A code is given at the end, and, depending on how well the player did, gamers can compare themselves to others online, something Konami is noted for. And finally, there’s the multiplayer option which invites players and up to three of their friends to play minigames.
Granted, there has never been much of a story in previous Frogger games, but The Rescue is a quality example of what not to do with a story. Firefly Swamp, where Frogger and his chums reside, is under attack by Tyrannical Reptiles In Power (T.R.I.P.) who have obtained an ancient weapon which they look to implore on the defenseless (or so they think) inhabitants. Frogger, along with other “resistance fighters”, so to speak, aim to rid these terrible reptiles from their home.
Right away, basically anyone can tell this plot is aimed at the younger audience, although I heavily doubt the majority of the eight year olds in our country can define the word “tyrannical”, let alone spell it. Still, it tends to be an involving story for children, but don’t expect an adolescent or someone older to be remotely interested. It at least provides a good laugh, thankfully.
The actual gameplay is, above all, sub par. It follows the same pattern Frogger games have in the past: moving on an imaginary grid system with limited movement, and no methods of attacking enemies. Players can only walk to one grid at a time, and by utilizing the jump feature, Frogger will jump over one full space. And still the biggest mystery in all of the Frogger games; why is it that Frogger can’t swim? Naturally, it would defeat the purpose of the game of hopping from land-to-lily pad, but what frog does not enter the pond?
Apparently, he had a tragic accident that hampers his ability to even float. Thankfully, Konami added the option of using his tongue for grabbing, pushing, and as a grapple. If a random box prevents Frogger from reaching the goal, simply push it out of the way with the tongue. If there’s an impossible destination that is two “imaginary” grid places across, use the tongue to wrap around a pole and bring Frogger to that part of the map. Even though it’s relatively simplistic, it’s a cool feature that works rather effectively.
The controls, sadly, are unresponsive when in the heat of a battle (though it’s not really a battle since you can’t fight back). Though the directional pad is much more beneficial, most gamers have already adopted the analog stick as the preferred method of controlling the character. With only four possible directions (front, back, right, and left), there isn’t much to talk of. Disappointingly, Frogger has to physically be facing the direction he wants to move, which can be controlled by the L1 and R1 buttons. It would be much easier to give gamers the ability to simply press left to turn left. It was implemented, however, to face certain objects like the poles to attach the tongue to.
The levels themselves can be quite tricky in later stages of the game. Little mind-puzzles are scattered all over the map that require limited intelligence, but extreme patience. If players act too quickly, one of those precious lives are lost --most of the time by Frogger drowning in the water. There is a lot of variety with the levels, which is, generously, one of the finer points in the game.
The enemies are very simplistic in movement as well. While there are all sorts of different kinds, they all move either left to right, up and down, or a combination of both at such a slow speed they’re really not a problem at all. The bosses are much more mobile and fun to mess with, and they can actually move a lot more. It’s a shame that all you can do is run away from them.
Graphics - Just like the story, The Rescue’s visuals come up short of the finish line. The game is quite colorful, but there isn’t much to look at other than drifting enemies here and there, lily pads, and the land. The enemies, while diverse, aren’t particularly detailed. Frogger and his friends have quite a lot of detail compared to the enemies, but falter when compared to other titles on the market. In the next Frogger title, which is inevitable, there will hopefully be a brand new engine with a lot more detail. We can only hope…
Sound - The mediocrity of Frogger: The Rescue is even more evident with the sound. The voice acting is terrible. Frogger’s voice, while young, is at least tolerable, but the people he comes into contact with simply annoy me. It is, however, “cute” listening to Frogger drown in the water (I’m not a sick individual, I promise). And, depending on how much players like hearing a frog jump will determine how aggravated he will become after the first level. The music is, thankfully, audibly pleasant, though it’s nothing special.
Bottom Line -
The Rescue simply seems like a game marketed towards the younger audience. While they will certainly be entertained, many will simply overlook it, and with good reason; there isn’t anything found in this edition of Frogger that would justify a purchase. A rental is certainly an option, especially for the aforementioned fans of the franchise, but this one should definitely sit in the children’s section; I suppose the goal of reaching that particular market was reached, though.
Review by Brian Williams
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