Barney's Hide and Seek

"Suddently, the movie "Death to Smoochy" comes to mind..."

Back in 1992, Barney was big. The purple dinosaur was almost everywhere you looked: Toys, videos, books, and TV. Because the Sega Genesis was also big at the time, it was a no-brainer to release a Barney game on the Genesis. Is it any good, though?

Story
Barney & friends decide to play Hide & Seek one day, so the kids & Baby Bop hid along with some toys, as Barney searched for them and the toys.

Because it's geared towards little kids, I wasn't expecting a story on par with Phantasy Star II, but this somehow manages to be more shallow that the generic "Save (Princess) from (Villain)" storyline. However, it's geared towards little kids, so I'll let it slide with what I consider an average score.
Story: 5 out of 10

Graphics
I'll admit, the graphics are decent. Though it doesn't have much detail, it gets the job done, though the animation isn't very smooth (The kids wobble towards Barney once they come out of hiding).
Graphics: 5 out of 10

Music \ Sound Effects
It's not that great. The music mainly consists of songs from Barney and other little kid songs, looping like a broken record. The sound effects do fit well with the game, so that's a plus. The game also has many voice clips of Barney, which having multiple voice clips is impressive. However, Barney doesn't seem to know when to shut up; he'll constantly say what he sees, which will annoy most everyone else (By the time the game is over, you'll get sick of hearing "Look! It's a fish!", "Oh, look! A balloon!", "...And remember, I love you", and "Stop! Wait until its safe!").
Music \ Sound Effects: 4 out of 10

Controls
For how basic they are, it's not that great. All you can do is move Barney and use your magic, which is "super-dee-duper" easy for little kids to get used to. However, you can't pause, so if you have to use the bathroom, you'll have to set the controller down and let Barney beat the level for you (I'll explain that later). However, the controls do work, but are a little slippery
Controls: 6 out of 10

Gameplay
The gameplay is very simple: All you do is find kids & toys hidden through the game's 4 stages, then walk to one of the far edges of the screen to end the level. You can easily do it yourself, but only if you want to, because I'll let you in on a secret (Well, it's not really a secret; it's mentioned on the back of the game's box as a feature, after all): You don't have to find anything, or even touch the controller to beat it! Set the controller down, and after a few seconds, Barney will dance, and then he'll start walking through the stage on his own! If you really feel like it, you can interact with things on your way, like throwing away trash, watering plants, playing with the animals, and using a balloon to reach high up places. The game isn't hard at all; in fact, it's incredibly easy, because the toys are in gift-wrapped boxes out in the open, and the kids are half-hiding behind an object in the background, making them easy to spot. It's also very short; with only 4 levels, anyone can beat this in one sitting. Also, the one thing older gamers hoped for (The ability to kill Barney) was not included (If you try to walk off a cliff, he'll stop, get out a stop sign, and say "Stop! Wait until its safe!"). The game is probably the shallowest game I have played, making Reader Rabbit 1 look like Final Fantasy VIII. Yeah, it is a game for little kids, but most little kids would probably want to watch the show instead of playing this.
Gameplay: 1 out of 10

Overall
This game is best ignored.

Reviewer's Score: 1/10, Originally Posted: 07/02/08

Game Release: Barney's Hide and Seek (US, 1993)