| Introduction
Anyone who's ever seen the 'The Ripping Friends'
are well aware that the plots are never straightforward
and this latest THQ offering is no exception. Rip, Chunk,
Slab and Crag knew that something was up when they heard
the evil Citrasett was heading their way, determined
to put his most diabolical plot ever into effect. It
had just been too quiet recently in Ripcot. Bent on
destroying the Ripping Friends way of life, Citrasett
and other arch rivals are teaming up to challenge them
in a climatic final. Got all that? Good, on with the
review then.
GamePlay
Your first task is to decide which of The Ripping
Friends you wish to play as each of them has their own
special moves. You won't really notice a great deal
of difference between them; there are no clever combos
to learn, as it's all simple beat'em up fun. The game
features 7 huge levels and 5 additional sub-levels but
these are only available once you've completed the previous
one. They are all task-based, such as defusing a bomb,
and follow the story line whilst getting more complicated,
not to mention bigger, as the game progresses.
It's important to kill everything, as it's not always
apparent who's holding keys or pass cards and in addition
to your own abilities and skills you'll also find the
odd weapon lying around to aid your progress. These
include a Blaster, Freeze Ray and a Popgun, which allow
you to pick off enemies from a distance and so save
valuable energy. These are also useful in the latter
levels when there are hidden traps and hazards everywhere,
restarting a whole level just when the end is in sight
is highly frustrating.
Using the link up facility and increasing the number
of players is great fun and it reminded me of the old
Double Dragon arcade experience. Working together to
battle with the various minions is incredibly satisfying
and you'll find yourself screaming to your friend 'get
the snake, get the snake' as you're pinned against a
wall by a trench coat wearing henchman. Finally there's
the password system, which is refreshingly easy to use.
Rather that the usual alphabet, numbers and various
other characters that most developers seem to favour
Ripping Friends simply uses the GBA's controls such
as 'A', 'B', 'up', 'down', etc. which are both easy
to record and input.
Controls
This is a simple arcade interface and no one should
have any trouble at all getting to grips with it. As
I mentioned earlier even though this is a beat'em up
there's little in the way of special moves or combos
to learn so mastering the control system is easy. You
also have a helpful compass in the top corner, which
points you to where the action is so you can avoid wandering
around aimlessly looking for something to beat up.
Graphics
As you'd expect from animators Spumco everything
has a very 50's retro feel, so if you enjoyed the visual
feel of Ren and Stimpy you'll no doubt get a kick out
of this too. The developers have also tapped into the
GBA's superior graphical power and the first level features
a Doomsday Bomb flying high over a heavily populated
area, which looks outstanding especially when you knock
someone over the edge. The character animation is also
well above average and everything you encounter has
that touch of humor and zaniness that Spumco is famous
for.
Sound & Music
The audio complements the graphics perfectly and
as with all Spumco productions, you're treated to a soundtrack
which would feel very at home in a kind of 'Jazz Corner'
TV program. The sound effects, though not as strong,
still do their job and the smacks and grunts of both
friend and enemies in battle make for a pleasing experience.
Final Comments
Whilst Ripping Friends is a thoroughly enjoyable
beat'em up, it does get a little repetitious . It's
not strictly a beat'em up either so if you're really
interested in defeating an opponent with a selection
of clever moves, look elsewhere. It does, however, boast
some of the most original design I've seen in this type
of game, although this is partly down to Spumco's unique
visual style. A real 'try before you buy' type affair
then but great fun as a multiplayer game and for fans
of the show.
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