"Fun, strange game, despite grievous shortcomings"

Graphics =(4/10)= I'm actually being generous here. The style itself -- everything, from the models of the creatures to the water ripples to the sun and moon, is a rectangle of some sort or another -- is actually quite cute. And I have to give the game designers props for sticking with the design to the bitter end, as you certainly can't say that the game looks like anything else.

That being said, there's something about the game that's just hard on the eyes. I can't even imagine why the developers didn't take a little more time when porting the game from the N64 to the GCN to clean it up. Textures are blurry and just downright ugly in some spots, and though I appreciate what was being attempted, there's no excuse for how ugly this game can be (such as the screen for ''Mating,'' which is nothing more than a pink field; there are many times when this solid color field technique is used, and it makes the game look washed out.

On the plus side are the aforementioned neat little touches. The sun and moon are plastered onto the side of a giant cube on the side, water ripples in a square, etc.

Control =(4/10)= After only an hour so of gameplay my thumbs began to hurt. My main gripe is that since the levels are quite big, you'll spend a considerable amount of time running and exploring. The problem is your Cubivore doesn't walk very fast, and using his ''dash'' only lasts for a little while.

There is also the problem of the camera. The camera sucks. It's focused at an unforgiving angle, and though pressing down on the C Stick will tilt the camera up for a bit, there's no way to keep it that way. Also, sometimes during boss battles and the like it's hard to keep track of everything on the screen, allowing for the enemies to take cheap shots, and also disorient you quickly and easily.

It's fairly easy to target enemies, but there's no way to select who you want to attack (a problem when the baddies gang up...which they love to do), and after an attack, whether you succeeded or failed, you'll have to reorient yourself and target again.

Sound =(7/10)= My only problem with the sound is that it's inconsistent, specifically the music, the best bits being the wonderful classical music played during between level bits (kinda like the menu music in The Sims). And though the music will respond dynamically to a situation, the game gives priority to some types of music than others. For example, once you bump into a boss, ''Boss Music'' will play. If you run away from him for whatever reason, the music still plays, and the simple loop gets a little grating after a while.

Gameplay =(9/10)= Cubivore gets by on sheer quirkiness and a surprisingly great execution of said quirkiness.

For those not familiar, in the game you play a Cubivore that wants to become the King of All Beasts and Return Wilderness (Color) to the land. You do this by attacking other creatures and eating their body parts. Do this enough and you can mutate, gain experience and buffs (horns, scars, fangs, etc.), mate, and evolve.

Your Cubivore consists of a head and Meat -- one to six colored panels (and as the manual puts it, ''The Meatier, the Mightier''). You'll tackle bosses to gain ''Raw Meat'' which give you new abilites like Dash and Block and Blend In, and after eating Raw Meat you can then mate; your old form will die, and you can choose which one of your successors (by one of the many females who mated with you, drawn to you by your success as a hunter), to play as next.

There's also a good deal of strategy involved, as the beasts you ingest are composed of colored panels, and, as you might expect, different colors give you different powers (purple, for example, allows you to escape quickly). Eating enough of one color -- or different combinations of colors -- will cause you to mutate into a different arrangement of panels, with a new set of abilities.

Boss battles are a pain, most of the time, usually due to the controls, and hordes of little enemies smacking the crap out of you while you try to focus on the Big Boss.

Overall =(7/10)= Cubivore is not for everyone, and even those who really like the premise and gameplay (like myself), may be turned off by the awful control and sometimes tedious gameplay (namely running across open fields...slowly).

On the other hand, the game is an eccentric gem that I'm frankly surprised ever made it to the States (they bring this and not Doshin the Giant?). If you're looking for a one of a kind game, you can't go wrong with Cubivore. Just remember that it really is as weird as it sounds.

And three final things I couldn't fit anywhere else in the review:

1.) I really hope there's a sequel, where they improve upon the control and graphics, and create a more open-ended game.

2.) The manual is a work of art. It's really well written, and some of the illustrations -- like a rather graphic anatomic drawing of the ''insides'' of a Cubivore -- are as gorgeous as they are bizarre.

3.) If they do make a sequel, I'd like to see online play, even if it was only something like Pokemon Stadium...although I'd want to control my Cubivore...

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/28/03, Updated 01/28/03