Cool Spot

"Come here if you think you're cool!"

Ever seen a red sweet with a couple of arms and a couple of legs. And that's not all, since that out-of-the-ordinary good-looking 'alien' wears sunglasses and sports big gloves like those Digimon characters who have too big hands for too little arms. Oh, that would be Cool Spot then. Cool Spot lets you control that description that I've just given you in a platformer where many ennemis will try to make your life hard before someone accidentally eats you.

Your first objective is to collect a certain number of bonuses. These can be found everywhere. To the left, to the right, high up or in a few secret passages which, by the way, are not so hard to find. Once you've managed to collect the required number, other objectives appear which you need to fill in a limited time otherwise, prepare to be eaten. Some of those include finding clocks and they can be quite a pain to find sometimes considering how you can go anywhere you want in certain parts and you're bound to get lost.

As Cool encounters enemies like rats which will throw cheese at you or the very diversified marine folklore, his level of coolness decreases. In English, that means that he become less cool and starts to ressemble Bill Gates. In order to prevent him from becoming another Bill, he must quickly look around for some liquor…er, I mean 7-UP which will give him a major boost like Popeye and his spinach which I hate by the way. Otherwise, the game is not truly that diversified since all the objectives ressemble too much although the stages each take place somewhere different like at the beach or in a sunken boat (yeah, the same one where Hyoga used to go see his mother !).

The game boasts very good graphics though and the backgrounds do boast a 3D appearance about them. Cool's animation is very 'cool' and the way he walks,jumps, crouches and reacts when he meets some enemies is very funny. I particularly like his looks - truthfully, have you ever seen anything of the genre - and how he seems to be laughing all the time and having fun even though he doesn't even have a mouth, let alone a nose. And I do think he doesn't even have eyes which is why the developers have given him sunglasses so that we do not freak out.

Good graphics for a good game. The options and bonuses appear a bit blurred though as if the programmers ran out of colors when they decided to work on this section and seem to mix with the background. This makes things look weird in certain parts of the game but the game is so fun you'll soon forget about that and move on to the next level. A password system allows you to continue the game later but the game is not that long though and doesn't take so much time to beat even though the last levels are so packed with enemies who seem to hold a grudge against you that you'll want to return to the first level which is taken care of in less than five minutes.

Cool can jump over his enemies and can shoot at them to make them think a lot before thinking of attacking him. The sound effect when he does so make me think of a can of Pepsi being opened more than everything but you'd be better jumping instead because the enemies take a lot of munitions - which come illimited - to understand. The music is pretty lame though. It tries to be light and give a fun atmosphere to the game but I'd be better without it. The only reason I leave the sound on is to hear the enemies die and their pityful attacks.

Otherwise, the game offer a solid gameplay although it lacks replay value and you'll most likely play the game a first time and then forget completely about it. The game is also not that hard to beat and the gameplay itself is quite linear with no secret or hidden objectives although you need some time to locate what you're looking for in certain stages.

So, if you think you're cool and just want to play a fun game without having to pause and think or consult FAQs to move on, just play Cool Spot. Cool will make you spend some pleasant time and will make you become cool. COOOOOOOOL !!

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/12/01, Updated 11/09/02