"A decent game that will only appeal to some people."

In this animated dating sim, you can play as either Becky or Brett as they try to win the affection of others, screw up relationships, get advice, prepare for dates, and many other kinds of scenarios at a ski lodge. This is a dialogue-driven game with humor that will either win you over with its crude wit, or lose you... some might even feel offended by it. The bottom screen shows your main character, while the top screen displays the character you're talking to. Conversations are handled between two characters using a multiple-choice menu, which allows you to select what you want to say using the d-pad or touching the dialogue which you want to say. Each dialogue action will either benefit or hurt your character while completing the task, so you have to choose your dialogue tree wisely in order to make it through to win the scenario. Each level has a set objective to follow, but there are various story arcs that can be taken, depending on what dialogue patterns you use during the scenario.

Many times, your character will also strike an animation pose that reflects his/her mood that tells you how he/she will say the dialogue that you choose. This is a nice touch that helps you determine what is best to say, in the right situation, while also sometimes serves to add to humorous lines that your character says. The animations of both on-screen characters have a great range, including happiness, sadness, anger, jealousy, surprise, and many more. This attention to character detail makes up for the lack of spoken dialogue.

The script for this game, from a comedic stance, is well-written, but the humor will only appeal to some people. I found myself laughing a lot, sometimes. I know that some people will find the dialogue to be offensive or not funny at all. It ultimately depends on your sense of humor. Some people will be entertained, while others won't.

The soundtrack usually fits the area that you character is in. In the club, there will be a techno track, out in the forest there will be a warming tune. A few of the songs got on my nerves after listening to them a few times, but from an overall perspective the music is nice for mixing well with wherever your character is.

One of my biggest problems with this game is the fact that you can either start a brand new game or continue a game where you left off last time, but you cannot choose whatever scenario you want after you finish it. This can anger a lot of people, as they will have to start over and try skimming past some levels in order to get to a certain part that they want to go over again.

Another problem I had was with the difficulty curve. The game has no sense of balance, which means it won't start easy and get progressively hard with each passing level as it should. One time you can be playing an easy scenario, while the next scenario might ask you to pick an exact dialogue tree, forcing you to remember lines that you are required to say in order to pass it. The game keeps switching from easy to hard randomly, which can be frustrating.

There is a lot to do in this game, if you become occupied. Lots of dialogue choices help to keep the game fresh, but there are also items you collect depending on your performance in each level that add even more dialogue. There are 100 items you can collect, each of which provide various results when you use them in certain scenarios. There are 52 art pieces you can get for getting different endings in various scenarios. Some of the dialogue that you choose will also open up bonus stages in the game, after completing a level. Even though both Brett and Becky's games are short, there is a fair amount of replay value and lots to unlock, for the gamers who like to find everything. There are various story arcs that change the status of your character depending on the dialogue tree you choose, which helps the game feel fresh if you play the game under a different story arc.

In some ways, Sprung feels rushed, but there are many things to appreciate in this game. I paid $20 for it. I was entertained by the humor and found myself trying to unlock all the items and art pieces after beating both quests. Outside of a few nagging problems and a sense of humor that will amuse some people but bore others, I found Sprung to be worth my money. I know this game won't appeal to everybody, but you might want to look into it if you find it at a bargain price.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 10/24/05