The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie

I thought that the first The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie was fantastic and the video games based on it were pretty damn good too. The one I am looking at today is for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance. One thing that I feel really needs to be mentioned is that while it would be so easy to just pass over all of the SpongeBob games. The fact of the matter is this little dude has appeared in far more “good” games than he has bad ones.

King Neptune’s Right Hand Man…. Sponge!

The story of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie follows the plot of the movie pretty closely. SpongeBob is mad as hell at getting passed over for a promotion so when King Neptune needs help finding a special spatula, SpongeBob jumps at the chance to prove he can do it. The game is not as cinematic as the console versions, but the story is told well enough through text and still pictures from the movie.

Just Like On TV

One feature that all of the SpongeBob games seem to share is a slick level of presentation and that is the case for The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie game on the Game Boy Advance too. This is a 2D platformer and the game looks pretty damn solid. There are six worlds that are based on various locations from the movie and not only do they all look unique from each other. I also like how bright and colorful everything was.

SpongeBob, Patrick, and the rest of the cast all look good and are animated really well. The soundtrack is what you would expect from a SpongeBob game and in all, I have no complaints about the way the game looks. Although, if they could have put a few actual cut scenes in the game I do feel that would have been cool.

SpongeBob & Patrick The Ultimate Team

The gameplay is that of a 2D action/platformer. You can play as both SpongeBob and Patrick and they each have their own set of moves for you to make use of. You can collect coins as you go and there are also some fun mini-games and boss battles as well. What The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie game does may not be groundbreaking stuff in the genre, however, I would say that it does what it does very well.

The game is far more challenging than you would think. Some levels have different ways you can go through them and one of them is always much more challenging. So, while it is what you would call a “kids” game. It is one that is going to provide you with more of a challenge than you would think. The game does not have any kind of save game feature which for the time this game was released is pretty ridiculous in all honesty. It does have a password system, but I really do think that they could have allowed you to save your game.

Pros:

• It follows the plot of the movie pretty well
• I liked how bright and colorful it was
• You can play as both SpongeBob and Patrick
• It is providing a pretty solid challenge
• I liked how there was room for exploration in some levels

Cons:

• Some very young children may find it a tad hard
• Why does a game, released in 2004 not offer a save game feature?

Nostalgia incarnated

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is a very nostalgic game for probably a lot of people out there who liked SpongeBob SquarePants. You play as SpongeBob through the story of the film and if you were a kid when this came out, you’ve probably played this and loved it, if not, where were you?! It was amazing!

Simply but still pretty sponge

The plot is a very simple one but before reading there are some spoilers so be prepared for spoilers you have been warned… Plankton has stolen the crown of Neptune, the King of the Sea and SpongeBob and Patrick are tasked to bring the crown back to Neptune because Neptune blamed Mr Krabs and froze him as punishment. So, to save Mr Krabs, they must retrieve the crown from Shell City where Plankton has sold the crown to the highest bidder. It’s a simple story but it adapted from a kid’s movie so don’t expect anything ground-breaking for a storyline.

Who cares its SpongeBob SquarePants!

The graphics in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie remind me of other film video game adaptations like The Incredibles and Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue which was made by THQ Studios the same studio that made this. It's very basic but you are playing as two very iconic cartoon characters so that mostly makes up for it to a certain degree.

Simple as a starfish

The gameplay is very simple, you move around an area, you fight a villain with a spatula and your collection of Goofy Goober Tokens which can be used to buy new power-ups and moves. If the player loses, they simply just go back to the last objective. There’s also a couple of parts through The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie video game where you get to drive the Patty Wagon around different areas usually trying to catch something. These parts are low key the best parts in the SpongeBob SquarePants movie game as its just pure fun and that’s what this game really is about, nothing special behind it, just some good old fun!

Maybe more sponge than pants

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie isn’t anything out the box. It’s a simple game that’s not made to break any limits, it’s made for fun and that’s really it. There are no massively hard parts to the game, there’s a lot of nostalgia for the older player and for the younger player you get a chance to play as a character you watch on TV or if they don’t watch get to know some iconic character which will make you want to watch the show. So be ready kids! Aye, Aye, Captain!