Shark Tale – GC – Review

Simultaneously with the movie release, Activision has released console and computer versions of Shark Tale, a continuance of the movie adventure. Here, players will help Oscar make money so he can get out of debt, and live the life he wants to become accustomed to. Edge of Reality developed the Xbox, Gamecube and PS2 versions, and DreamWorks Animation is also listed in the credits. The result is one beautifully animated game that offers a different type of gaming environment for a movie-to-console release, a mix of four different types of games that are usually encountered as “mini-games” imbedded in a platform-style game, but in this game are the focus instead of the distraction.

There are four basic types of gameplay: dancing, ala Dance Dance Revolution; adventure, which is where Oscar searches areas in stealth mode; racing, which is, you guessed it, racing; and finally fighting, which is the boss battle mode. There is not even a pretense of tying these various modes of play together; instead, players are hustled from one game to another at a frantic pace.

Each game is a “chapter”, and is introduced by means of newspaper stories and news interviews on the street. The mission objectives are listed, usually a trio of basic, bonus and elite tasks. If the basic objective is successfully completed, it’s immediately on to the next type of game in the following chapter. The instructions for each chapter are of the bare bones type, and players will basically have to feel their way around with a minimum of instruction or help. What instructions do exist are provided by Crazy Joe, the hermit Crab. However, most of the action is fairly simple as this is a kid’s game, and the gameplay isn’t that hard to learn after a few dry runs.

Players are thrown right into the action in the beginning of the game with a frenetic race from a shark. Once Oscar escapes, it’s immediately on to the next challenges, an adventure mode where Oscar has to find some hoodlums who’re spray-painting nasty comments about him, and a dancing game, where players have to match the directional arrows on the spinning wheel Oscar is dancing inside with the corresponding directions on the control pad. Racing follows, then more adventure/stealth games, more dancing and finally a fight with a boss, in a kung-fu like game, complete with taunts. Then more racing, adventure, and dancing again.

Each of these types of games are mostly fast-paced arcade experiences, except for some of the stealth/adventure missions, which are leisurely, unless they’re timed. The racing is definitely a wild roller-coaster type of racing, similar in style and feel to the racing in Star Wars Episode 1 Racer. Oscar must negotiate hair-pin turns at a frantic pace, following a trail of bubbles through all sorts of obstacles, constantly adjusting his depth.

The games are simply designed and fairly easy to play, but because of the lack of direction and instructions, it may take a few run-throughs of the levels to know what to do. The gameplay, while designed for younger players, still can present some challenges because of the emphasis on arcade play which requires fast reflexes, specifically the racing and dancing modes. The slower among us may have more trouble than others. However, once a level has been played one or two times, it’s not too difficult to at least attain the basic mission objective and move on to the next chapter.

Except for the timed levels, the adventure modes for the most part are the slower paced games and allow players to catch their breath. This is also where the collection part of the game takes place, as Oscar can gather pearls for use as currency to purchase extras. He can also earn pearls in the other modes. The adventures mainly consist of Oscar either swimming around trying to find the end of the level, while avoiding hazards, or have him in “stealth mode”, where he’s sneaking to the end of the level, trying to avoid being seen by guard fish. These guard fish are pretty easy to avoid, for the most part, as they can only see Oscar if their light shines on him.

Oscar can really get down, and I mean get down, as much of the music is old disco tunes from my younger days. The first dancing game is to the song “Can’t Touch This” by MC Hammer, and is a hoot. The action is so fast paced, though, that those of us who are more arcade-challenged will miss much of Oscar’s cool dance moves, as we’re too busy watching the arrows and mashing the buttons. Most of the tunes are great, but for some reason the song “Car Wash” is not the original version, but instead is a blah remix. I don’t know why the original wasn’t used, unless there were money or copyright issues. Surely it wasn’t a preference for the remix version.

In fact, this whole game is chock full of great tunes, and players will have a great time playing to these songs, whether they’re familiar with them or not (most little kids aren’t going to know them). I’ve enjoyed the music in this game much more than the usual fare offered in console games. The sound effects, on the other hand, are very minimal and don’t really add anything to the gaming experience. Besides the occasional sound of bubbles popping as Oscar swims along, there’s not much going on in the aural sense.

The game looks incredible, and is one of the best animation efforts I’ve seen yet on the
GameCube. Everything takes place underwater, and the affect is what someone may assume swimming in a shallow lagoon in the South Pacific might be. The water is clear and luminous, with great visual touches like a different opacity of the water in different spots, and sunlit areas in the upper layer of water. The buildings are drawn equally well, and evoke the movie wonderfully. Oscar and his friends (and enemies) move around just like fish should. Edge of Reality have outdone themselves and should be proud.

The game is 3D, and the action is solidly designed with great attention paid to visual details. The racing modes feature action that runs into the screen, but the adventure games are actually side-scrolling. However, the design of the game is illusionary, and the gameplay looks like Oscar is moving toward and away from the screen, when he’s actually not, but instead is moving either right or left.

Activision has had a pretty good year with their movie-to-game releases, and for the most part, they’ve been far and above what these type of games usually are. Shark Tale compares well to other movie-themed children’s games, and offers a good variety of different types of fun and interesting gameplay, mixed with incredible graphics, that will appeal to kids. However, the emphasis on arcade-style play and the lack of direction, plus the missing storyline to tie it all together, limits the attraction to kids who mainly like fast-paced action, rather than playing a story-driven game. Children who like a more leisurely gaming experience with a story will enjoy Activision’s Shrek 2 or THQ’s SpongeBob Squarepants: The Battle for Bikini Bottom better.

A fun way to revisit Oscar’s undersea world!

Gameplay: 7
While the four different styles of gameplay are fun, they are still limited in appeal because of the focus on fast reflexes and arcade skills. It’s basically a collection of games that kids have to play in a fixed order to advance, without much of a story and minimal collection goals between gaming chapters. Still, the games are well-designed for the most part, and won’t frustrate too much, as the levels are fairly short and even if kids have to begin again a few times, it won’t be a daunting task. Also, there are plenty of health regeneration features in the adventure modes, and even a few in some of the other types of games.

Graphics: 9
Awesome graphics! Easily some of the best I’ve seen on the GameCube.

Sound: 7
The music is great and features some well-known and popular songs from the past, and also the present. The sound effects are way less impressive, mainly because of a lack of.

Difficulty: Medium/Easy
This is a children’s game, and as such has been designed to be easy to play, while still presenting enough challenge to maintain interest. Very young children may have a hard time with the arcade elements and the lack of direction, but most kids will be able to play with ease, and maybe better than the adults.

Concept: 8
A refreshingly different approach to a movie-themed game for kids. Mostly, it works, but it definitely could have used a stronger story to tie it all together.

Overall: 7.5
A good children’s console game that falls into the category of either love it or hate it. The music and fast action is exactly what many kids will love about this game. However, parents, be sure you know your kid’s gaming styles and preferences before picking up this game, because if your kids don’t like fast, timed arcade play, then they won’t like this game. For the rest of the young crowd, though, this may be just the ticket. Renting may be the best way to figure out if it is a good fit for the family.