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Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt

Score: 100%
ESRB: Everyone
Publisher: THQ
Developer: Realtime Associates
Media: Cartridge/1
Players: 1 - 4
Genre: Board Games/ Family/ Platformer


Graphics & Sound:

The graphics in Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt are really good. If you've ever watched the Rugrats cartoon on Nickelodeon, then you will be amazed at how accurately the characters and artistry are reproduced in the game. The background music in the game sounds just like the music from the cartoons, and helps to set the right mood. Not only that, but the game includes authentic voice acting from the cartoon. If you like the Rugrats cartoon, you probably love the hilarious 'slightly wrong' misunderstandings that the babies all have, from calling a secret passageway a 'secret sausage-way,' to thinking that a 'dust bunny' is an actual bunny. I love the insight into the way these babies see the world. The game is an excellent translation from the Rugrats cartoon.

Gameplay:

Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt is a unique game. It's clearly accessible to the youngest of players, but I find it interesting that it is one of the few games that is rated by the ESRB as Everyone, that actually could be fun for everyone. Usually a game marked 'Everyone’ should be read 'Little Kids ONLY,' but I found myself enjoying this game immensely. I played this game with my brother, even though we are both above the age that we would want to let anyone KNOW we had played the Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt game. We played all the way through each of the three games on the cartridge, and were about to play some more, when he had to go to a baseball game. It was actually pretty fun... and VERY entertaining.

The basis of the Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt game is that the babies are going to play board games... each one of the three games inside is a different board game. If that was the end of it, and if the board games were handled in the normal way, the game might possibly be a boring game, not just a board game. HOWEVER, the Rugrats get all involved in the board games in the same way they get involved in their adventures in the cartoons. In Reptar Rally, the babies look like (adorably cute) mutant dinosaur versions of themselves, and have to collect as many sweets as possible to win. In the Pirate Treasure Hunt, the babies don deep-sea diving suits and search for hidden treasure in a sunken ship (in their fish's aquarium, no less). And in Angelica's Temple of Gloom, the babies have to find all of the pieces of a broken Aztec statue before Angelica does, or else...


Difficulty:

The game is a breeze to learn. It is just as easy to play. There are a few simple rules which must be followed, but the entertainment crosses the age barrier, and the game interface has been nicely designed to cross the age barrier just as well. This would be a good game to play with your younger sister (or brother, or cousin). Just be careful - they might want to play again, and again, and again...

Game Mechanics:

The 3D graphics engine works very nicely in Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt. One thing that really jumps out at me is how well the dialog fit the mouth movements when the characters speak. This really allows the player to sit back and accept that they are being allowed to interact with a Rugrats cartoon. The gameplay is pretty straight forward; simply a translation of board games into a video game media, but with the original voices and music, the videogame achieves a much better representation of the cartoon than a board game could ever hope to.

-Geck0, GameVortex Communications
AKA Robert Perkins

Sony PlayStation 2 Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy Nintendo 64 V-Rally Edition '99

 
Game Vortex :: PSIllustrated