James Pond: Codename RoboCod (Game Boy Advance) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

Like many older gamers I first encountered James Pond over two decades ago when he appeared on a whole host of 16 bit computers and consoles. Like most games of the time it disappeared, never to be seen again, except when displayed at the odd retro fair as a demonstration of 'how good things used to be'. Imagine my surprise then when, some five years ago, German publisher SWING announced that they were to bring out a GBA version of this classic game. However as the release date approached SWING suffered some rather damaging financial problems and only months later disappeared without a trace. Fast forward to 2005 and budget PS2 label Play It not only push out a DS version but this GBA game. The vision I played half a decade ago was simply wonderful but have the years been kind to our underwater hero? Read on and see...

Gameplay

Without divulging too much of the rather strange plot let's just say that James Pond is a platformer / collect 'em up, which takes place in a pretty bizarre world. The collecting element is everywhere and James (or is that Mr. Pond?) will pick up just about anything to rack up the points. Where he actually puts this stuff is a bit of a mystery but this was the 80s and clearly people were so excited they were playing a video game all sense of logic went out the window. Your real mission though is to free the captured elves, of which there are an increasing number on each level. As rescuing them is simply a case of walking by them, the real challenge is actually finding them in the first place and… well that's it really. Simple, engaging gameplay. If there's one real downside to the game it's the 10-digit password save but as most games of the time had no 'save' facility at all even this could be viewed as a positive addition.

Controls

Not only is this incredibly simple and responsive, there's even an option to change it via the options menu. That's right, for jump you can select either the A or B button. Yes, it really is that simple.

Graphics

While some gamers may find the visuals a little dated they have actually been given a full overhaul for this outing. The result is a much bolder, brighter game than the original and like the forthcoming Alien Hominid, perfectly suited to the GBA platform..

Sound

As with the visuals the sound here has its roots way back in the 1980s but the developer update again provides some above average tunes. Don't get me wrong, it's not a patch on the latest Shin'en composition but nor is it nearly as irritating as some of the latest game audio.

Final comments

There's no question that both the games and film industries are running out of original ideas and if it isn't a sequel it's some old TV program or SEGA game getting a bit of an overhaul for a new audience. Clearly this provides mixed results for you, the gamer but James Pond proves that some games should be resurrected and if the majority of GBA platformers were half as entertaining as this then handheld gaming wouldn't be in the rut it's currently stuck in. It's not without its problems though and while the first play through is tremendously satisfying there's little reason to re-visit the game but back then all games suffered from this rather obvious flaw. That said, this is a budget game and, as a result, well worth the asking price.

Pro: Retro Gaming at its Best, Budget Price.
Con: Password Save, May Be Too Simple for Some, No Replay Value.
Final score: 7.1

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