{"id":23568,"date":"2023-06-02T00:01:11","date_gmt":"2023-06-02T00:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/?p=23568"},"modified":"2023-06-02T01:58:56","modified_gmt":"2023-06-02T01:58:56","slug":"zool-redimensions-ps4-xbox-one-pc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/2023\/06\/02\/zool-redimensions-ps4-xbox-one-pc\/","title":{"rendered":"Zool Redimensioned (PS4, Xbox One, PC)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Back in the 90s, 2-D mascot platformers were all the rage, thanks to Sonic.\u00a0 There were so many that I got downright tired of them and skipped out on quite a few.\u00a0 Also this was about the time I was really big into 16-bit RPGs like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, so yeah.\u00a0 Anyway, one of these mascot platformers I missed out on was Zool.\u00a0 He was a ninja gremlin guy who tromped around 2-D levels based on themes like candy, tools, toys, music, and more.\u00a0 Zool was on pretty much all the consoles at the time, but hasn\u2019t been heard from since.\u00a0 There\u2019s a rumor that the infamously bad Wii game Ninjabread Man was originally going to be a 3-D Zool title, but I\u2019m not 100 percent sure on that.\u00a0 Anyway, now Zool is back on some modern consoles and PC (reviewed on PS4 here) with all sorts of new modes and features.<\/p>\n

Like any good 2-D platform hero, Zool can run, double jump, throw ninja stars, climb, slide, and more.\u00a0 He\u2019ll travel through all sorts of 2-D worlds collecting items and defeating baddies.\u00a0 Each world is based on a theme like candy, toys, etc.\u00a0 There are four levels in each themed world, with a boss at the end of the fourth area.\u00a0 Scattered all over the place are goodies for Zool to collect for points, and he\u2019ll get a badge at the end of the level if you collect enough. There are also three hidden giant collectables as well.\u00a0 Defeated enemies will drop power-ups like healing hearts, screen clearing bombs, and more.\u00a0 If you get hit, you\u2019ll lose energy, and if you lose all your energy you\u2019ll have to start at the last checkpoint or area depending on how many lives you have.\u00a0 But there are unlimited continues so it\u2019s not too frustrating.<\/p>\n

There are two ways to play the main game.\u00a0 Redimensioned Mode gives you a wider view of the screen, thanks to TV resolutions being better now.\u00a0 This mode also adds a double jump the original game didn\u2019t have.\u00a0 Just turn off the feature that makes it look like you\u2019re playing on an older TV.\u00a0 It just looks ugly.\u00a0 If you play in Ultimate Ninja mode, the graphics are zoomed in more like the original game and you can\u2019t double jump.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure if the levels are EXACTLY the same as the original, but they seem close.\u00a0 Rounding out the package is a Party Mode for up to four players.\u00a0 You\u2019ll challenge each other in single screen arenas where you try and collect the most goodies, hold a crown the longest, or bounce a ball through a goal.<\/p>\n

You know what\u2019s weird is that back in the day, I would\u2019ve avoided this game like the plague.\u00a0 But after playing it now, I don\u2019t think it\u2019s THAT bad.\u00a0 Sure it\u2019s no Sonic Mania and the gameplay is a bit sloppy and slippery sometimes.\u00a0 But it also reminded me of Jazz Jackrabbit, a mascot platformer I did like back then.\u00a0 And since there\u2019s not a glut of these types of games out now, it\u2019s kind of welcome.\u00a0 So if you like 2-D mascot platformers, you may want to check this one out.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Kid Factor:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Zool Redimensioned is rated E for Everyone with an ESRB descriptor of Mild Fantasy Violence.\u00a0 You can jump on cartoony bad guys and throw ninja stars at them, but they just explode into pixels when defeated.\u00a0 When you get hit, you just make a \u201cwah\u201d sound and you flash out of existence when you lose all your energy, but that\u2019s about as violent as it gets.\u00a0 Reading skill is helpful for some of the text, but not necessary just to play.\u00a0 Younger gamers may need help with the tougher spots, though.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back in the 90s, 2-D mascot platformers were all the rage, thanks to Sonic.\u00a0 There were so many that I got downright tired of them and skipped out on quite a few.\u00a0 Also this was about the time I was really big into 16-bit RPGs like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, so yeah.\u00a0 Anyway, one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":23565,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-game-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23568"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23575,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23568\/revisions\/23575"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.gamerdad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}