| Introduction
The first Stuart Little movie took its place in the
history books by becoming the first number one movie
of this century and deservedly so. The game, on the
other hand, was a different story and the GBC version
was so bad it could be completed in under an hour, provided
of course that the player found it interesting enough
in that amount of time. Handheld gaming has moved on
since then and here we have the new game of the new
movie on an equally new platform. The main problem with
the first game was that it fell into the trap of believing
that the public will buy a title because of the name
alone, regardless of the quality of the game. Here then,
is round two. Have Activision learnt from their errors?
Let's hope so.
GamePlay
Although I was expecting a straightforward platformer
I was pleasantly surprised by the variety in this game
and although the framework is running and jumping there's
a lot more to Stuart Little 2 than meets the eye. For
a start, all the platforming sections are mission based
such as having to collect $3 to buy balloons or finding
paint for your airplane both of which require you to
solve puzzles and discover secret doors. One of the
best these though is where you must help your new friend
find a home by clearing the way for her. This includes
turning off taps and switching off fans and as a result
will keep you occupied for quite some time.
Apart from the platforming there's an overhead driving
section where Stuart is hotly pursued by a falcon and
a flying section where you must zoom through golden
rings whilst avoiding apples and bugs. If all that wasn't
enough, the developers have diversified, employing incredibly
inventive means in order to forward the plot whilst
changing the pace and type of gameplay. The drain section,
for example, has Stuart suspended from a piece of string
whilst slowly being lowered deeper and deeper into the
darkness in order to locate his mother's ring. The problem
is everything's out to get him although a shine of this
flashlight seems to scare them off. Then, using balloons
purchased in an earlier section, the action switches
to Stuart slowly floating up a building trying to avoid
cats, birds and barbed wire in order to keep his balloons
intact.
Also included are two different multiplayer options
- a platformer and a driving game. The first is based
on three of the existing platform levels, and the second
is an overhead-driving course much like the actual level
in the game. Both of these are a straight race with
the host playing as Stuart against Margalo, his new
best friend. As usual the addition of a multiplayer
can only be regarded as a bonus to what is already a
stunning title but unfortunately you will require two
copies of the game to enjoy this. Finally the save feature
is both easy to use and sensibly designed and consists
of four pictures. While this always looks nice it's
not so easy to record so as an answer to this problem
the developer has added a corresponding number to each
image. Simple but effective.
Controls
The control system starts out perfectly simple and
some of the sections such as the flying only require
you to use only the 'D-pad'. Everything starts to get
a bit more complicated mid game and by the time you
reach the drain section you'll discover that every single
button is used. Even the shoulder buttons. This could
perhaps be viewed as a little difficult for the demographic
this title is obviously aimed at and it seems a very
steep learning curve from a single control to everything.
Graphics
The visual aspects of this game can best be described
as small but perfectly formed. Anyone who had the misfortune
to play the GBC version will be delighted with Stuart's
second outing as everything from the environments to
the animation is spot on. In addition, as a result of
the close ties the developers had with the studio, you
also get some wonderful stills from the movie.
Sound & Music
One of the things you'll notice about this title
is the dialogue and I'm not talking about the text but
actual recorded voices lifted from the original movie.
It's very popular at the moment to add a FMV intro to
a title and while these are impressive younger gamers
will no doubt especially enjoy the fact that the original
actors speak almost everything in this game. The music
is palatable and while not the most impressive we've
heard seems to suit the gameplay perfectly.
Final Comments
Younger GBA owners have really got it good at the
moment with this and Pinky and the Brain (which we also
reviewed recently) showing a different, more quality
orientated direction, for TV/Movie tie-ins. The fact
is that this game allows you to do all the exciting
things that Stuart does in the movie but rather than
simply translating these to a platformer the developers
have put a little more thought into the whole thing.
It is a little tough at times but arguably most titles
of this nature are a little too easy and as a result
completed incredibly quickly. If you are finding the
gameplay really tough though the 'easy' setting will
give you a helping hand. If you enjoyed the movie and
were completely disappointed by the GBC version you
wouldn't go far wrong adding this to your summer games
list.
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