A full fledged single player romp
| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| Wii | 8.50 |
| Overall | 8.50 |
|
I started playing Rabbids and I couldn't stop, despite being on no sleep and with a bad stomach. I find it so addictive and easy to play. For some reason on 4:3 Tvs its in letterbox mode, so set your wii to widescreen for fullscreen. Let me get the bad out of the way. There are very minor technical issues. Screen tearing is horrible, in most games I absolutely ABHOR it. In Rabbids Go Home however it is very, very minor. But it's there and is a black spot on what could be a near faultless presentation. If we're talking a black spot then the framerate is another. It's not bad, it doesn't occur often or make the game unplayable or anything else silly like that, but in a game which can look so good and so stylised, you just want it to be perfect like Mario Galaxy. It runs at 30 with minor dips here and there. The reason why these very minor technical complaints are felt is because the art, lighting and more importantly, the animation is so imaginative and well lit and often gorgeously fun to watch in motion. Anyhow the game is deceptively simple. It's actually simple and repetitive but in a very good way. It's like a concept that has been distilled into something anyone can play and find instantly engaging and the rabbids are hilarious too. It's not even the obvious stuff, not blatant jokes but the way the childlike character react to new situations. The dialogue is precious too, reminiscent of GTA when you accidently bump into someone their distressed yelps of Rabbid fear are nearly always chuckle worthy. There are even absurd touches like a re-occuring Santa character who you can savage to receive giant burgers. Some humans hide in lockers or bushes and you have to flush them out. Dogs chase you, you can bounce off pinball style or career around the place like a crazed driver, later gaining a boost mechanic. It starts off simple but gradually adds more and more elements to make the game engaging. The levels are huge too. They almost have to be considering how fast you can move through them. It's a shame they didn't just pull off the GTA concept. I mean you have a hub world and very large levels that all cohesively exist within the world and yet rather than linking them in a large open world the hub world leads to a menu list where you select your levels. A real shame. It's hard to describe what this game is, its not an adventure game but its not really a platform game either. This is another Wii gem, along the lines of De Blob or Endless Ocean, something completely unique that everyone should experience. But this time its not one of these love or hate it games. There's a reason why nearly every review has been over an 8/10, Rabbids has an inherent quality to its production and an easy irrestible charm. Also the Rabbids channel is pretty great, its a combination of the Mii channel and Mii Contest channel, except the rabbids character editor is remarkably robust. It connects to the internet and you can submit your designs for competitions. Or view the entries and vote. But impressively like mii parade you can pick the best designs, download them and use them in game. Some of them are amazing, there was a halloween and zombie competition and the designs are extremely good. Game definetely shows some mario galaxy influence. Its all in the level design which is steadily getting cleverer and more difficult (though never harder than mario galaxy). I did this level which was in complete darkness inside a nuclear reactor, you walked into puddles of goo which makes you radioactive for a few seconds. And then they started this gauntlet of explosive balloons. And then they had this complex maze of explosive balloons that expanded and deflated. Very clever. There are literally tons of levels which is impressive, especially given that they aren't mario galaxy style planetoids but full levels with floors and walls, not just a space backdrop. Now I'm playing more and more I think a few reviews were quite deceptive with their comments on repitition. Like Soul Bubbles it seems like a simple concept that you think is going to repeat itself ad nauseum throughout the game but it keeps adding new things. Like I said the level where you walk between radioactive goo in the darkness. I also played this level where you desperately hang onto a jet engine, what makes it work is that it has perfect controls. Then there is this level where you are in a rubber ring and on a cliff going downwards, bouncing off the sides. Recentely I found out I can now jetski on water. The game adds little things like being able to boost, or shoot into ceiling fans and flip around. The city hub suddenly gets populated with verminators out to stop you once you are a few levels in. Then it starts introducing mario galaxy style bullet bills and as you play more and more the patterns get more and more tricky to get past. Got to say I'm suprised at this game, its good and I'd welcome a sequel with open arms. If you like funny platformers, try it out. The levels are also huge, I mean if you put all the levels together it would rival a GTA size city in real estate terms only each area designed to be platformed through. Fun stuff. I absolutely could not believe it when you walk into the morgue section of a hospital wing There were lifeless bodies on the slabs all greyed out and the Rabbids, bless them continued on collecting goodies, completely oblivious to where they were. Genius! The game has this vocal announcer like Leo mentioned which points out how banal our lives can be and she is brilliant. She gets annoyed when you aren't listening to her and comes out with some lines good enough for Sam and Max hit the Road. Also the challenge has ramped up again. Its never going to have you crushing your controller in your hand or cursing but its a notable and welcome step up. I really hope further down the line there is the opportunity for speed runs and incentives to do so because this game is made for that kind of thing. I dont even like speed runs but I would actually want it in this game. They dont make cheery platformers like this anymore, we used to have Rare for these sorts of games other than mario. It's great to play something like this among all the po-faced seriousness of modern games. 8.5 |
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Posted by gamingeek Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:20:06
Awesome review.
It has a presentation, controls, variety, Audio, Depth, Value and Fun?
Best.review.ever!
"For some reason on 4:3 Tvs its in letterbox mode, so set your wii to widescreen for fullscreen."
Bwahhhhhhh?!!!
Nevar!
Most games like rabbids or Madworld have your character centralised so it doesn't matter if you miss the side bits as long as you get a full screen. I hope this works for NSMB.
This is some lazy BS. Back in the Genesis era we PAL guys got huge borders on our games rather than proper conversions. Now we get letterboxed on 4:3.
Offending games? Red Steel, Rabbids Go Home, Cursed Moutain, Madworld, NSMB.
Are there more? Its not easy resetting the picure ratio in the options when you want to change games, damnit.
*translated* "Who gives a fuck about screen proportions besides superduper anal Gamingeek?"