SpongeBob SquarePants: SuperSponge

"Life is good in Bikini Bottoms...."

SpongeBob Squarepants, one of my favoritest Nickelodean cartoons ever! They collaborated with THQ to make this hilarious game for the playstation console, and saved me from an otherwise boring night. Besides, what self respecting person doesn't want to play a game that takes place in a town called Bikini Bottom??

The story revolves around our hero, Spongebob Squarepants, a big yellow cartoony sponge that lives on the bottom of the ocean, in none other than Bikini Bottom. (snicker) His best friend is a starfish named Patrick, and Patrick's birthday is coming up. Spongebob decides that the best present he could get Patrick is an autograph from the resident superheros, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, who live in the Shady Shoals rest home. (they're superheroing days are long behind them) When Spongebob asks them for a simple autograph they hem and haw for awhile, and send him off on a series of quests before they can ''find the time'' to grant his request. What follows is about an hour and a half of pure hilarity.

Ok, so maybe this game was intended for kids, but I'm not exactly a mature adult myself now am I?

The game itself consists of five ''chapters'' or levels, in which you must gather different items for the decrepit superheros. First they want a sandwich, then a facial kit, (presumably to get rid of the huge starfish painted on their faces) new uniforms, a snack, and a new TV. At the end of each level you face a boss which are suprisingly hard for a kids game. (or maybe I just suck, who knows?)

Throughout the levels you have to collect golden spatulas, sort of like the rings in Sonic. In fact the game play is a lot like Sonic, in that if you get hit by a bad guy you lose all your spatulas, and if you get hit without any spatulas you die. You can also pick up underwear for an extra life, and a huge foam hand that lets you do karate chops. One of my favorite past times was using my net to catch jelly fish and launch them randomly around the screen.

The graphics are sharp but cartoony with bright colors all over, however since this game is a spin off of the cartoon it fits perfectly. There are an inordinate amount of loading screens, but even they are fun to look at. (well, the first few times anyway)

Tom Kenny and friends make the jump from the cartoon to console game as the voice actors for the loveable characters, and the music is suitably cartoony as well. In fact, this game looks and sounds exactly like the cartoon, and playing lets you know how fun it would be to storm the Nickelodean studios and take over production for a few days.

The controls are adaptable if you don't like the standard set up, and the vibrate function works wonderfully. Moving around does get a bit annoying at times, since you have to use a different contraption on each stage, and the only button that stays the same is X for jump, the others change depending on which contraption you're using.

Overall this game is great fun for a rainy day, especially if you're a big kid who loves cartoons like myself. The graphics and voices are right off the TV, and the background music is well suited to the theme. Controls can be a bit hectic, and lots of loading screens are an annoyance, but if you have the patience and a love of Spongebob then buy it as soon as possible. This game is definitely going to be part of my favorites collection for when I'm having a bad day.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/13/01, Updated 11/13/01