The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer

"It's as bad as one might expect."

The Incredibles was not a bad film. But it was directed a a younger audience, even if older people still enjoy it. Many movie to game transitions don't go very well, with titles being rushed just to cash in on a popular title. Then there are kid games, designed for kids who probably don't know what a good game is, and always end up being a big waste of money. Combine the two, and you're asking for trouble. Which is just what this game has done.

-Story-

There's no reason to worry if you haven't seen the movie and want to understand what little story there is in this game. But if that's the case, there's no reason for you to get this game. On the other hand, if you have seen the movie you'll recognize the "Underminer" from the last minute of the film. Three members of the Incredible family abandons Mr. Incredible and leaves him with his best friend Frozone to defeat the villain, while they go and do something else.

-Gameplay-

With the departure of the rest of the family, you're left to play as either Mr. Incredible or Frozone. This game would have been a lot more fun for the fans if you could play as all four members of the Incredibles family, but because of the reason (or lack of) said above, you can't. The two characters are quite different, Mr. Incredible being your average muscle headed hero, and Frozone playing the role of the quick and agile sidekick.

The game requires you to use both to complete the 9 levels it offers, but when it comes to combat both heroes can take down enemies with similar amounts of ease. The enemies you face are little robots working for the Underminer, and they're very weak and prove little to no challenge. The levels themselves are the things you would expect to see from an NES game. It's a repeated trend of killing enemies, dodging traps, breaking computers and freezing blocks throughout the whole game.

And before I forget, there is a 2-player mode where each of you takes control of either superhero, but good luck finding another person willing to play this game. It added nothing to the game for me, as it's so easy that you really won't need a second player to help, and it's not exactly my idea of a fun pair activity either.

-Graphics / Sound / Music-

The game is played in 2D, and the graphics are very bad, even by DS standards. The music is not bad enough for you to want to mute it, but it's not good enough for you to enjoy listening to it either. The sound effects get really old, really fast. In all three of these aspects the game is very mediocre, if not worse.

-Conclusion-

You're either a very big fan of the movie to even be considering playing this game, or just 'incredibly' bored... Heh. Save yourself two hours (the time it takes to complete this game) and forget that this game ever existed. You'll be glad you did.

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 01/28/08

Game Release: The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer (US, 11/01/05)