| Game Reviews From a Parental Perspective! | |
|
|
|
| Home | Forums | Review Archive | Columns | Feature Articles |
|
Home >
Review Archive >
Video Games
> Results: Viewtiful Joe
Format For Printing | Tell A Friend | Digg | Slashdot | del.icio.us Scroll down for our Kid Factor. 
True Action-Platform Gaming ReturnsThis has truly been a great year for gaming and it wouldnﾒt be surprising if some of the titles released earlier this year ended up overshadowing some of the Christmas fare. On Gamecube alone thereﾒs the specter of The Wind Waker looming over every new game coming down the pike and F-Zero GX is close behind when it comes to sheer entertainment value. But the year hasnﾒt closed out yet and with Viewtiful Joe, Capcom has staked their claim to be the ﾓbest Gamecube game of 2003ﾔ and maybe even the best action game of the year on any platform. Viewtiful Joe is a return to the roots of Nintendo consoles with lots of running, jumping and attacking on a side-scrolling playfield. However, this isnﾒt your GamerDadﾒs side-scroller. Technology has come a long way since Mario ate mushrooms and jumped into our hearts and this game proves it with full 3D environments that scroll as smoothly as anything from those bygone days of 16 bits. Joe, the star of the game is a Fred Durst (Limp Bizkitﾒs singer) look alike with a great love of the movies. Heﾒs definitely no plumber, but he takes his turn in the sewers as any good action hero must do. His girl has been kidnapped and heﾒs got to get her back with the help of Captain Blue whoﾒs at the end of his superhero rope but wants to turn Joe into his red clad, pink caped successor. This game oozes style from the moment you turn it on and see Joe flip kick the Capcom logo. Thereﾒs lots of fantastic artwork that flows steadily along, revealing intricate detail within bold strokes of the electronic brush. The visual style and color selection used give the game a signature that remains burned into your mind long after you stop playing. The action never slows down on screen either unless you pull the trigger to do just that. As an action-platform game it seems fairly mundane at first. Evade attacks and then land your own in punch/kick fashion on your attackers. But after you get a bit further into the game, the true genius of Viewtiful Joe is revealed. Itﾒs not enough to just beat your enemies, you need to beat them ﾓviewtifullyﾔ. This requires you to create situations where you can destroy the maximum number of robots at one time. This racks up the Viewtifuls allowing you to unlock even more viewtiful moves for you to execute with Joe. The key to earning all the rewards is slowing down or speeding up time along with zooming in on the action. This creates even more exciting battles that youﾒll actually hear the movie audience cheer for when you execute flawlessly. What could be better than a game that cheers for you when you do well?! If the combat was all you got, it might be enough but there are some great bosses here as well. The character design and especially the voice work are top notch. You also have to think carefully about how to approach each challenge the game throws at you. Often you are required to use Joeﾒs various powers in unique ways to easily pass obstacles. So though itﾒs not a mindless beat ﾑem up, thereﾒs plenty of button pounding to go around. One major defining factor of the game is its fantastic sense of place and its action cartoon style. Here you can be a superhero and have a ton of fun while doing it. The difficulty levels are named Kids and Adults but donﾒt let that dissuade you from playing Kids mode first. Seasoned gamers will be challenged on Adults while more average players should definitely play on Kids despite the name. Apparently itﾒs the developerﾒs way of poking you in the ribs by asking you to bone up on your skill to become an ﾓadultﾔ. Thatﾒs ok because youﾒll want to play through this game more than once. Thereﾒs a pile of entertainment value packed into Viewtiful Joe and while itﾒs a game style weﾒve seen before, it hasnﾒt been executed this well on a home console in a long time. Kid Factor:Kids will love Viewtiful Joe because being a superhero is still one of the most liberating things for their young minds. The game is rated T because it is a bit edgy at spots and it definitely has a more adult vibe throughout. It might not be a good one for smaller children though theyﾒre assured of loving the fisticuffs. This game has exuberance for youth that seems lost on many similar titles. Itﾒs just plain super cool to be Joe and to take on the world. Henshin-a-go-go baby! GamerDad Weighs In This is one of the best games ever!  Reviewer Recommended Ages: 8+ Genre: Action/Platform ESRB Rating: T-Teen Publisher: Capcom Developer: Team Viewtiful Reviewer: David Long Score: 5 of 5 
Kids will love Viewtiful Joe because being a superhero is still one of the most liberating things for their young minds. The game is rated T because it is a bit edgy at spots and it definitely has a more adult vibe throughout. It might not be a good one for smaller children though theyﾒre assured of loving the fisticuffs. This game has exuberance for youth that seems lost on many similar titles. Itﾒs just plain super cool to be Joe and to take on the world. Henshin-a-go-go baby!
Kid Factor by Dave Long
Format For Printing | Tell A Friend | Digg | Slashdot | del.icio.us Home > Review Archive > Video Games > Results: Viewtiful Joe |
Read the GamerDad 2007 Holiday Guide!
|
Please Note: GamerDad is not intended to be read by anyone under 18. We stay clean, but be warned! Content Management System developed by Redbird Solutions. |
