Lilo & Stitch 2: Hamsterviel's Revenge (Game Boy Advance) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

If you've read any of my reviews over the years then you'll be well aware at just how highly I rate the first Lilo and Stitch game and even today the Digital Eclipse coded title has little in the way of rivals. Just why it's just so difficult to produce a decent movie tie-in is still a mystery and while most gamers seem to know where the developers went wrong it doesn't stop them doing exactly the same thing only months later. Arguably the team at work here are certainly in the same league as Digital Eclipse, Climax (formally Crawfish) have more than a few GBA hits to their credit. Hamsterviel's Revenge looks like a kids game which will no doubt make some people dismiss it immediately. It is Disney after all but if it plays anything like the original then the old adage 'don't judge a book by it's cover' will be used on more than one occasion. A classic game for every GBA owner then or simply kid's stuff? Read on and see...

Gameplay

Hamsterviel's Revenge takes place in the same location as the original: Sunny Hawaii. The problem here though is that the various Experiments appear to be reeking havoc on the usually peaceful island. It's up to you playing as Lilo or Stitch, and with a little help from the Experiment?s Special Powers, to bring the island back under control before the Grand Council does it for you. Predictably you start out as Stitch with a handful of Experiments to help you although you're unlikely to use them at the beginning. These are the arcade shooting levels and as in the original there's a great deal of satisfaction in blasting everything in your path whilst collecting the bonus items left behind. It's worth collecting absolutely everything as it is all added to your overall score and you may just need the extra points later to trade for upgrades or various items. Stitch also features in the driving section which is a simple 'A' to 'B' road race against a timer. What makes it a little more challenging is the fact that the Grand Council Guards are firing on you and a direct hit makes the car will slow down.

The Lilo sections are more puzzle centered and here you will require the help of the Experiments. These are detailed in the manual and can certainly get you out of some tricky situations. Experiment 613, for example, can muster up a sonic blast which will blow enemies out the way whilst 523 can create an icy wind which is perfect for freezing things. Obviously this is a little tiring and the Experiments have to rest in order to regain their energy so they can?t be in constant use. The puzzles themselves range from flipping switches and opening doors to a 'pipe puzzle' that took us ages to figure out mostly due to its trial and error design. Finally the save feature, one area where the sequel actually improves on the original, features a battery back-up and with three separate slots there's even room for your friends to have a go.

Controls

This takes a bit of getting used to initially, not for the shooting and driving sections but for the more problematic puzzle sections. This is because solving the majority of these brain teasers requires you to switch characters and you're almost guaranteed to press the wrong button on a great many occasions whilst attempting to summon up help. The other game modes are fine but I can't help feeling that this maybe a little too complicated given the age range the game is aimed at.

Graphics

Visually the game is certainly one of the more impressive I've seen this year and while you could argue that the developers had a wealth of source material they do appear to have put it to good use. The animation is top notch with an impressive number of smooth moving sprites populating the screen at any given time. Multi-parallax scrolling has also been put to good use throughout the various levels giving a real illusion of depth to the proceedings. Most pleasing though (especially for fans of the duo) are the various cut screens which have been lifted directly from the Disney archives. It's not as welcome as the FMV clips were in the original but still a highlight here. On the downside (and there always has to be one) the driving sections feel rushed and whilst the Mode-7 tracks do their job the actual animation of the vehicle doesn't contain nearly enough frames for the required effect. It's only a minor quibble but given that the rest of the games features such smooth animation it's a bit of a mystery as to why this area wasn?t given the same level of care and attention.

Sound

The audio is a very polished affair with incredibly well composed Hawaiian type themes playing throughout the various levels. The sound effects are pretty good too with each happening accompanied by a suitable cartoon sound. Disappointingly though there's still no actual dialogue from the lead characters and whether these assets are too expensive or difficult to license is anyone?s guess but all we know is that we want to hear Stitch speak. He never shuts up in the films and TV programs. We don't understand what he's saying but when has that ever been a problem in cartoon world?

Final comments

This latest outing for Lilo and Stitch is a severe case of progressively diminishing returns from the three separate gaming elements. The shooting sections are excellent, driving portions are average and finally you get to the puzzle sections which are frustrating. It's not a unique problem however as although sticking with one gaming genre is often criticized for being too repetitive, doing the opposite (as demonstrated here) tends to show more weakness overall. It's an age old problem that more development time and/or money would perhaps have solved, but for the time being we're stuck with it. What Hamsterviel's Revenge really lacks though is the sheer quality and attention to detail that Digital Eclipse brought to the franchise so while this is still well above what we've come to expect from movie tie-in's (especially titles aimed at younger gamers) it's just not as much fun or rewarding as the original. Even so it's not a bad game and younger gamers who enjoy the TV series will get lot of satisfaction from the gameplay but if you?re someone just looking for a new game this is definitely in the 'try before you buy' section.

Pro: Great Shooter
Con: Frustrating Puzzler
Final score: 7

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