When
companies start using their mascots for games it's usually a good idea to steer
clear. This time round though somebody actually put the game first and the
product placement second, resulting in a very good game. What's even stranger
is the fact that the starring mascot is none other than that small red spot on
the 7-up bottle. This isn't really his first game but since the original NES
game was such a hideous product it's best to forget about that and move on.
The reason
for Spot giving up his cozy little niche on the 7-Up bottle to run around
killing things is because his friends seem to have been kidnapped and locked up
in small cages. The only way to free them is to run around the levels
collecting tokens. After getting the right percentage of tokens to unlock the
cage you race back and free your little buddy. There is a time limit too so you
don't have forever to search for all the tokens but they are scattered all over
the place so finding them isn't so hard. If you go above and beyond the call of
duty collecting more tokens than needed you get to visit the bonus level. Here
you jump around the inside of a soda bottle, collecting tokens and lives. At
the very top is a "continue" to find so getting to the bonus levels
is very useful.
The
graphics in the game is quite cool and Spot himself is a highly animated little
fella. Leave him alone for a while and he'll whip out his yo-you to amuse
himself. He also packs a quite a few funny animation's for a small red dot and
can put many other mascots to shame with his antics. His enemies range from the
usual spiders and crabs to some strange toyshop robots, chattering teeth and
ducks. The graphical style of the game is very whimsical so you'll be battling
mice that throw cheese at you while in their pajamas and crabs that run around
in little boxer shorts when you shoot their shells off. The levels are very
detailed and contain some nice backgrounds. Most of the levels are more
vertical than horizontal so your jumping skills are taxed to the max.
Fortunately there is restart points scattered about that elevates the tedium of
falling of a high ledge.
While most
levels has you running around collecting tokens and killing baddies there are a
few levels that show some originality. On one level you make your way across a
toy train before jumping up to the balloons that are tethered to it. Another
sees you making your way through the inside of a very complicated machine.
There are no enemies', just ramps stretching in all directions. With three
difficulty levels nobody should have any trouble playing the game and the bonus
levels give you something extra to aim for.
The music
in the game was an unexpected highlight and some of the tunes are very good.
The song playing on the train stage especially stands out with some western
style riffs and a few familiar sounding bars. The other tunes vary from a surf
tune to a rave tune so you'll be sure to find something cool. The sound effects
aren't too bad but could have been a little better. Spot has a screechy little
voice for saying things like "OK" and "Whoah" but not much
else. Controls are spot on and jumping around is a breeze. Spot does seem a bit
sluggish while he's walking but considering all the holes and gaps you can fall
off this is probably a good thing. You can change direction while jumping which
is always good and I never had any issues with collision detection or button
presses not registering.
Although
Coolspot is nothing new or really original it has enough style and flair to
make it a classic. The whole interface and look of the game is very polished
and the gameplay is unoriginal but solid. Coolspot is also a character that I
would like to see a lot more of and hopefully there will be future games where
you actually battle a few boss creatures. If you don't like platform games then
this isn't going to convert you but for platform fans this is a fun and
addictive little game.
[9/10]
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