"Disappointing to say the least."

Introduction: When I bought this game I was really looking forward to playing it. However, after seeing how long the load time for just the first movie was, I began to have my doubts. After playing the game I can tell you that I was right about my worries were justified. The game is very disappointing, especially if you've played the other games in this otherwise great series.

Gameplay 5/10
The most important factor in any game, this game would probably get a better grade in this category if it was the first in the series and not the fourth. The game is easy to pick up and play, but only if you can get through the extremely long load times. Then there's the slow frame rate and hit detection. After you accept all those flaws, there's the glitches that plague the game, some are so serious they can force you to have too completely restart the whole game. Other than that the game is fun, but not as fun as the previous games. The game is pretty short too, even if your trying to complete the game 100%, a task that took month's to do in the previous games.

Sound 7/10
The sound in this game is reminiscent of the previous games. However, the music does skip sometimes and often there are way sounds happening at once, especially in the honey marshes. Also, the sound seems to get really out of sync sometimes. The dash is pretty noticeably behind the action and sometimes sound effects, like smashing pots, will randomly occur.

Graphics 6/10
The graphics in this game, while a step up from the PSX, are not nearly as good as other games on the system. They definitely could have done better.

Story 8/10
Basically, Ripto has come back and has tried to capture the dragonflies. Being Ripto though, his plan doesn't go as well as he hoped and the dragonflies are merely scattered. While the stories not bad, I do kind of miss the little cut scenes from two and three. Also it lacks a little in the originality department. It's really just a combination of two and three.

Rent or Buy?
Neither, the game's not anywhere near the $50.00 you'll have to pay, and with all the load time problems, it's unlikely you'll beat it in a rental. If you have a Gamecube, buy the glitch free version.If not, buy one of the first three games. You can probably get the first three games for the price of this one, and they're worth it.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 11/16/02, Updated 11/16/02