The Adventures of Mighty Max

"Lacking the mightiness"

Okay, I admit it, I never grew out of cartoons. Mighty Max caught my attention because while it, like any show, had a number of clunker episodes, it also had quite a few that managed to defy my expectations. In one a demon trapped in a tree was set free when it was cut down. Any other show would've talked about the problem of deforestation, but in a nice bait and switch Mighty Max instead focused on the problems of being desensitized to violence (not to mention how scary the show was willing to be for a kid show--in the first minute the demon chainsawed a pair of lumberjacks to death! Not that we saw it, but tell me another American kids show that ever did that!). It had another where Max got the help of a bunch of legendary heroes to help him fight his arch enemy and I felt like crying when they gave their lives to give Max time to get away at the end. So when I saw a copy of the game based on this awesome show going for $20 in a Kay Bee Toys, I snatched it right up. But I got burned.

The plot of Mighty Max is about this kid, Max, who is a legendary champion against evil. With the aid of semi-wise bird Virgil and barbaric Norman, he travels around the world with a network of magic portals opened by his magic baseball cap battling all kinds of menaces from mad scientists to demons to alien invaders. He does that in the game, too, in search of the pieces of an ultimate weapon with which to fight his enemy, Skull Master. It's a lot more dull in the game than it sounds, though.

Graphics-4/10
Eh, below average. If you're familiar with the Mighty Max show you'll be able to recognize the major characters, and the rock monsters in the volcano level, but just barely. The game over screen, with Skull Master's face on it, is very creepy however, so good work on that one graphic at least. One question about the title screen though: it looks like the kids are running away from Norman. What gives? He's on their side!

Sounds-5/10
Passable, I would say. They're not too good, but not too bad. The sound effects are okay. It has one song I liked, though, which was the one that plays during the end sequence where the heroes take on Skull Master (and which is not heard in the SNES version!).

Gameplay-3/10
You go to a variety of generic levels (volcano, jungle, Egypt, etc.), and once you're there you need to find all the weapon pieces and then chuck them into portals before being able to escape through one yourself. Normally Max and his pals from the show can jump about thirty feet in the air, but not when they're carrying one of the pieces. Can't jump at all then. This means having to use teeter-totters and balloons to move the machinery around where you need it, and it all gets tedious after a while.

You have a ping pong ball gun to fight the numerous monsters. Those must be some hella ping pong balls, as they can knock out any monster they hit for a while. Not permanently, though (unless you pick them up and throw them, which the manual doesn't tell you about). There are various power-ups to be had like a pill that restores life, a bullhorn that calls Norman to follow you around and kill enemies with his sword, and a wishbone that calls Virgil to give you vague and unhelpful hints. As well as a diamond, and that concerns the biggest lie I've ever encountered in a game manual, which says that it gives you a million points and three extra lives. I remember getting 1000 points from that thing and that's it.

Simply put, this is not a very fun game.

Overall-2/10
This is a lame game in every way that a game can be lame, and I even like the show it was based on. Unless you eat, sleep and breathe Mighty Max, you will probably want to look for a better platformer.

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 02/07/04, Updated 01/10/05