Rhino Rumble

"Rhino makes his not so rumbling entrance..."

When Telegames (who also made and published such hardcore titles as Urban Yeti, Soccer Kid, and Santa Claus Saves Earth -- amen.) decided on their next GBC game, I'm pretty sure the first question that came up was, what animal could we use for our new platform game? They probably figured, why not a rhinoceros? Hey, why not. Afterall, we already got a gorilla, a dragon, a bear, a hedgehog, and other unidentifiable animals. Except that, those game characters at least have a bit of originality and personality to them. Rhino Rumble's rhino doesn't have a name, and has no super powers, aside from jumping like Mario. I never knew rhinoceroses could jump that high.

The game map has four areas, part our standard Jungle, Desert, Cave, Snow -- how thrilling. Each area is made of three levels that can be completed within a few minutes, so Rhino Rumble is indeed very short if you're good enough. I'm not sure exactly what the Rumble in the title stands for, as it's your everyday side scrolling platform game that doesn't break through any barriers. The basics are there: jump, jump... and jump. Our Rhino has nothing special to it, it's just an ordinary rhinoceros traveling across the world to find water after eating too much chili peppers. Rhino can't ram through walls with its horn, and can't even defeat enemies by crushing them. Instead, Rhino can shoot fireballs and jump ultra high. In Rhino Rumble, you're shooting enemies and jumping on platforms in the most simplistic platforming design. There's almost nothing to collect, no puzzles, no hidden stuff.

But in the end, Rhino Rumble is kind of fun. Perhaps because it's nice sometimes to play a simple and easy game that doesn't require much skill or attention, and of course, because Rhino defies gravity laws. The graphics look generic and the music is repetitive, but the game is colorful and friendly. It's a decent platformer that could provide a moment or two of fun, but with what's already available, you'd better choose something else over Rhino Rumble. Now why not try Urban Yeti or Santa Claus Saves Earth?

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/22/07