Nauty
2014
For better or for worse, it's Toontown Online just like you remember it. Recently, I came back to this game after a massive update that added the long awaited Sellbot Task Force and Field Offices, and while those were fun for a while, I think the glaring issues with the game at its core are astoundingly obvious, and it wasn't long before I put myself on hiatus for this game yet again.
If you've played the original Toontown, you'll know that the game operated on a monthly subscription fee in order to access almost the entire late game. To make the most out of this, Disney, ever so ready to maximize profits, made it so that there were absurd requirements in completing everything. Completely maxing out an activity that required a membership (in other words, just about all of them) could take several months, if not years; gardening alone could take up to several months to max out if you wanted to 100% the game, the rarest fish in the game had less than a .01% catch rate, and getting a suit to level 50 would take ages with how the game awards progression points. It was incredibly obvious that Disney wanted you to keep buying memberships so you could get everything completed on just a single toon.
Unfortunately, as TTR is made to be as close of a replica as possible to the original game, many of these glaring issues didn't see much fixing. The only things I can note that changed progression wise were a few select missions and the requirements to max out certain activities, which are entirely optional if you want to just play the main game. The issue with slow suit progression is still there, meaning you'll have to go through several hours of grinding just to start attempting another boss again. Even though the pay-to-play factor was eliminated, TTR's insistence on being accurate ultimately holds it back in several areas. It's still an incredibly grindy game, and I wouldn't recommend going through it without a friend or without something to watch or listen to in the background.
That said, in an age of gaming where preservation is becoming more and more crucial, I can appreciate the dedication to preserving a project as impactful as Toontown Online was, and going beyond with updates that logically would've happened should TTO have lived this long. TTR is nearing its 10 year anniversary, and thus TTO is nearing its 20th, and I'm glad that this community is still kicking strong all these years later, which is one of the most crucial parts of the game: its community. Without its community, TTR and any other fan projects like it wouldn't exist, and the game would be absolutely dreadful to play. The dedication people have for what looks like a silly game is absolutely astounding. It's a testament to just how far people will go in the name of preserving beloved games, no matter how many will play, how little there is to profit off of, or how the game's quality actually holds up. It's a passion project in every sense of the term. Even if it stopped attracting new players entirely, the sheer amount of people still looking to play the game they loved 20 years ago can easily keep it relevant.
The gameplay isn't anything incredibly special, though its simplicity isn't at all a bad thing; it's a game that everyone can pick up and learn easily, which makes it a fun time to play with friends. It's also not every day you see an MMO with turn-based combat, most people are out here playing something like FF14 or PSO2, which are both action RPGS. I'd personally love to see more MMOs take a shot at the genre, there's a ton of unexplored potential.
Frankly, I'm a bit afraid of TTR's future in the long-term; there's an overwhelming (and for new players, intimidating) amount of grinding to do, with seemingly no plans to have them adjusted later on, meaning the game will likely meet the same fate of TTO of players leaving at a more steady pace due to just getting bored. Though story extensions like the Sellbot Task Force are built to remedy this, I feel like it's a matter of "too little, too late." Updates come at a snail's pace, and adding more things that need grinding won't exactly keep player retention for long. There are core flaws with how TTO was built, and the insistence on being strictly accurate means those flaws likely won't be addressed. Though, I do still come back to the game every several months to check in, and I feel like the nostalgic memories it brings me, paired with the simplistic gameplay it offers, ultimately keeps me from putting it down permanently. If you're looking for an experience just like TTO, TTR is just about the best option out there with a still thriving playerbase. No matter where the players go, the game will likely always be here since this is a non-profit game. As long as there's at least some people willing to play, the game won't be going anywhere, nor will its community.
(If you're looking for a fresh, less grindy experience though, Corporate Clash will probably be more your speed)
If you've played the original Toontown, you'll know that the game operated on a monthly subscription fee in order to access almost the entire late game. To make the most out of this, Disney, ever so ready to maximize profits, made it so that there were absurd requirements in completing everything. Completely maxing out an activity that required a membership (in other words, just about all of them) could take several months, if not years; gardening alone could take up to several months to max out if you wanted to 100% the game, the rarest fish in the game had less than a .01% catch rate, and getting a suit to level 50 would take ages with how the game awards progression points. It was incredibly obvious that Disney wanted you to keep buying memberships so you could get everything completed on just a single toon.
Unfortunately, as TTR is made to be as close of a replica as possible to the original game, many of these glaring issues didn't see much fixing. The only things I can note that changed progression wise were a few select missions and the requirements to max out certain activities, which are entirely optional if you want to just play the main game. The issue with slow suit progression is still there, meaning you'll have to go through several hours of grinding just to start attempting another boss again. Even though the pay-to-play factor was eliminated, TTR's insistence on being accurate ultimately holds it back in several areas. It's still an incredibly grindy game, and I wouldn't recommend going through it without a friend or without something to watch or listen to in the background.
That said, in an age of gaming where preservation is becoming more and more crucial, I can appreciate the dedication to preserving a project as impactful as Toontown Online was, and going beyond with updates that logically would've happened should TTO have lived this long. TTR is nearing its 10 year anniversary, and thus TTO is nearing its 20th, and I'm glad that this community is still kicking strong all these years later, which is one of the most crucial parts of the game: its community. Without its community, TTR and any other fan projects like it wouldn't exist, and the game would be absolutely dreadful to play. The dedication people have for what looks like a silly game is absolutely astounding. It's a testament to just how far people will go in the name of preserving beloved games, no matter how many will play, how little there is to profit off of, or how the game's quality actually holds up. It's a passion project in every sense of the term. Even if it stopped attracting new players entirely, the sheer amount of people still looking to play the game they loved 20 years ago can easily keep it relevant.
The gameplay isn't anything incredibly special, though its simplicity isn't at all a bad thing; it's a game that everyone can pick up and learn easily, which makes it a fun time to play with friends. It's also not every day you see an MMO with turn-based combat, most people are out here playing something like FF14 or PSO2, which are both action RPGS. I'd personally love to see more MMOs take a shot at the genre, there's a ton of unexplored potential.
Frankly, I'm a bit afraid of TTR's future in the long-term; there's an overwhelming (and for new players, intimidating) amount of grinding to do, with seemingly no plans to have them adjusted later on, meaning the game will likely meet the same fate of TTO of players leaving at a more steady pace due to just getting bored. Though story extensions like the Sellbot Task Force are built to remedy this, I feel like it's a matter of "too little, too late." Updates come at a snail's pace, and adding more things that need grinding won't exactly keep player retention for long. There are core flaws with how TTO was built, and the insistence on being strictly accurate means those flaws likely won't be addressed. Though, I do still come back to the game every several months to check in, and I feel like the nostalgic memories it brings me, paired with the simplistic gameplay it offers, ultimately keeps me from putting it down permanently. If you're looking for an experience just like TTO, TTR is just about the best option out there with a still thriving playerbase. No matter where the players go, the game will likely always be here since this is a non-profit game. As long as there's at least some people willing to play, the game won't be going anywhere, nor will its community.
(If you're looking for a fresh, less grindy experience though, Corporate Clash will probably be more your speed)
2010
An absolutely tragic game, not because of the story or anything, but because of what it really could've been. I really wish Disney offered a little bit more freedom on the project, since, as many followers of the game probably know by now, a ton of the scrapped concepts were 10x more interesting than the game itself. Much darker twists, much darker designs, and your decisions would have much more actual impact. Granted, many of these scrapped ideas were simply to test how far Disney was willing to go, but seeing so many of them go to waste is such a shame.
The execution of the world as it is, creating a dilapidated landscape of iconic DisneyLand rides and Mickey Mouse products is such an unsettling thing to see in a fully licensed game. Exploring these locations to see all the details of how a wreckage of an iconic Disney landmark would look adds a lot to the game, partly making up for some of the ideas that had to be scrapped from the final product. Mickeyjunk Mountain being a pile of trashed Mickey Mouse merch is actually quite disturbing in a sense, showcasing how Mickey himself just amounts to something so corporate and ultimately, will one day be just as forgotten as Oswald was. That location alone is this game's strongest moment, and nothing else really quite compares.
The soundtrack lends itself quite well to the game's atmosphere, opting for an eerie orchestral soundtrack that gets progressively darker the more you use thinner. As far as I'm aware, this is one of the only remnants of the "your actions have lasting impacts" that ended up in the final game, and I think it was executed exceptionally well. Again though, it would've been nice to see actual consequences come from what tools you used, rather than just changing the music and slightly changing the end scene based on what quests you finished.
The gameplay isn't anything to write home about, it's a simple platformer with incredibly simple combat, and because it's the Wii, it has simple and also annoying motion controls.
It's sad to think we'll never see another shot at a game like this again; should the devs and artists have gotten the liberty to make a game closer to what they wanted, I think Epic Mickey could've held up as a real gem.
The execution of the world as it is, creating a dilapidated landscape of iconic DisneyLand rides and Mickey Mouse products is such an unsettling thing to see in a fully licensed game. Exploring these locations to see all the details of how a wreckage of an iconic Disney landmark would look adds a lot to the game, partly making up for some of the ideas that had to be scrapped from the final product. Mickeyjunk Mountain being a pile of trashed Mickey Mouse merch is actually quite disturbing in a sense, showcasing how Mickey himself just amounts to something so corporate and ultimately, will one day be just as forgotten as Oswald was. That location alone is this game's strongest moment, and nothing else really quite compares.
The soundtrack lends itself quite well to the game's atmosphere, opting for an eerie orchestral soundtrack that gets progressively darker the more you use thinner. As far as I'm aware, this is one of the only remnants of the "your actions have lasting impacts" that ended up in the final game, and I think it was executed exceptionally well. Again though, it would've been nice to see actual consequences come from what tools you used, rather than just changing the music and slightly changing the end scene based on what quests you finished.
The gameplay isn't anything to write home about, it's a simple platformer with incredibly simple combat, and because it's the Wii, it has simple and also annoying motion controls.
It's sad to think we'll never see another shot at a game like this again; should the devs and artists have gotten the liberty to make a game closer to what they wanted, I think Epic Mickey could've held up as a real gem.
2018
A masterpiece in game design, everything blends together perfectly; offers great challenges to over come and a great sense of progression in just about every area. Becoming stronger, uncovering more of the story, deepening your relationship with other Underworld denizens, ramping up the difficulty every playthrough, and just making the house look appealing; there's almost no reason to stop coming back for more, there's always going to be something significant to push for. I haven't seen many rougelikes do anything like what Hades has accomplished, making every run feel like you're actually coming closer to another huge long-term goal, and that's what I think makes this game stand out so prominently. That, and its incredible presentation in the art and music department, and its acute attention to Greek lore all mix together to create this absolute treasure. A phenomenal game that I can't sing enough praise for, and deserves all the love it gets.
2004
Went back a couple months ago to try this game out with some friends. Was it a fun time? Yes. Was it a fun game? Maybe? It's very sloppy in a lot of areas, and I don't think I'd ever play it by myself, but if you just want a game to have stupid fun in with likely drunken friends, this would be it.
BFBB but MUCH more linear; less to explore and no hub area makes it a downgrade in those regards, but it's still great in its own rights. The added slide challenges are a fun time, but the Patty Wagon segments could've been better. Easily has one of the best soundtracks of any licensed game, I'm seriously shocked how well composed Spongebob games tend to be regardless of their quality.
So far an inaccurate reflection of capitalism, customer interactions, and loan sharks. Otherwise a fun addicting little game
2020
I'm honestly shocked there haven't been more games that are just like Fall Guys; a game where you run around in a giant Wipeout-styled playground set is such a fun idea. The charm of the game's ragdoll physics quickly become more annoying than fun, and the lack of movement options kinda just makes me wish this game had Mario Odyssey controls or something similar; a race through a playground set sounds much more intense when everyone has tight controls with plenty of options for momentum. As it stands, this is just a dumb-fun game that is enhanced a bit by playing with friends, but not by much seeing as how there's almost no interaction between your team members while in a game.
2013
I 100% this game 3 times already, enjoying myself much more each time. Playing through the game casually is definitely fun, you can get enough enjoyment out of understanding basic movement and just trying to reach the goals, but the game truly excels in giving you great movement capabilities. You have so many opportunities to gain just a bit more speed, and mastering your movement options makes pulling off impressive speedruns and tricks feel so satisfying. This is also one of the prettiest games I've ever played, its mix of cartoony character designs and beautiful landscapes that look painted will ultimately make this game's art timeless.
The game's entire appeal comes from the charm of basically being a playable Looney Tunes cartoon. Most of the games are serviceable enough, just don't aim for 100%.
Ranges from fun times destroying everything with a Giant Plankton, to just being an absolute chore to play through. A few levels last only 30 minutes, others might last you a couple hours, which makes missing a collectible absolutely gut wrenching. Levels having unique aesthetics to them was a charming touch, ranging from a rat fink inspired world of car parts, to Bikini Bottom in a flattened comic book world, to pure psychedelic nightmare induced race tracks. The music is shockingly well-composed, and perfectly fits each level.
2011
A charming game with fun visuals and an incredible, dynamic soundtrack dependent on the paint you use makes this one of those "style over substance" games. On a gameplay level, there isn't much to it and it can get repetitive really fast if you're going for max completion.
I assure you, whatever Nintendo has in mind for Splatoon 3, none of its single player content will ever compare to Octo Expansion.
My ADHD brain gained rushes of serotonin whenever a huge chunk of parts fell off and I'd get combos that lasted for minutes. A fun demolition derby, a pretty subpar kart racer.
This is honestly one of the weirdest games to exist. The game itself is just a run of the mill collection of minigames that all feel kinda the same, but 90% of the cutscenes are just batshit insane and barely feel like they make sense, let alone feel like they belong in Spongebob.
It's got a nice soundtrack tho, gotta give it credit there
It's got a nice soundtrack tho, gotta give it credit there
2005
This review contains spoilers
A series that never got the love it deserved, not by the public nor Nintendo itself. As a concept, Chibi-Robo is an absolute brilliant idea, putting you in the eyes of a 3 inch robot exploring a big house, discovering nooks and crannies with secrets to be uncovered, all while you clean stains with your musical cleaning utensils. Not enough games play with size quite like Chibi-Robo does, putting a relatively small character in what will seem like a huge world.
The game's writing is charming all throughout, the characters are all endearing, even all of the side-characters are fleshed out enough to add a lot to the game as a whole. In fact, the enjoyment I get from the game's writing is almost entirely from side-character related content, it takes up the majority of the game. Even then, the main story is also a fun one to play through, putting you in the middle of a domestic squabble in which you have to save the marriage of a manchild addicted to anime to the point of putting his family in debt. Trust me when I say it's goofier and more fun than it sounds.
The game's sound design is top notch, giving you different pieces of music to fit each NPC's personality, fun riffs every time you use a tool, and every time you walk on a different type of surface a different instrument will play along to your footsteps. The use of voice clips from assorted media spliced to construct the voice clips of the characters in game adds a lot to the whole goofy and wacky feel of the game, and is honestly something I don't see talked about among the people who have played this game. It's such a cute little touch.
All in all? The game is great, it's fun to play, it's fun to explore, it's fun to listen to, it's fun to look at, the stories are all fun, everything was just so well done. One of the most endearing games I've ever played.
The game's writing is charming all throughout, the characters are all endearing, even all of the side-characters are fleshed out enough to add a lot to the game as a whole. In fact, the enjoyment I get from the game's writing is almost entirely from side-character related content, it takes up the majority of the game. Even then, the main story is also a fun one to play through, putting you in the middle of a domestic squabble in which you have to save the marriage of a manchild addicted to anime to the point of putting his family in debt. Trust me when I say it's goofier and more fun than it sounds.
The game's sound design is top notch, giving you different pieces of music to fit each NPC's personality, fun riffs every time you use a tool, and every time you walk on a different type of surface a different instrument will play along to your footsteps. The use of voice clips from assorted media spliced to construct the voice clips of the characters in game adds a lot to the whole goofy and wacky feel of the game, and is honestly something I don't see talked about among the people who have played this game. It's such a cute little touch.
All in all? The game is great, it's fun to play, it's fun to explore, it's fun to listen to, it's fun to look at, the stories are all fun, everything was just so well done. One of the most endearing games I've ever played.