Spongebob "Lights, Camera, Pants!" GBA Review

Oh God, a licensed game! It's better than it seems.


     Spongebob Squarepants is a cartoon on Nickelodeon, the longest running one on the network. If you haven't heard of it, you've lived in the same place as Patrick, under a rock, for more than 10 years. There are many games based off of Spongebob, most of them by THQ. This one, as you know, is called "Lights, Camera, Pants!" The plot is that an episode of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, a show about Spongebob's two favorite super heroes, is being filmed in Spongebob's city, Bikini Bottom, but the titular heroes have gone missing, so Spongebob and friends have to save them. It's nothing special, but it works. You can play as either Spongebob, Patrick, Sandy, or Squidward. I honestly don't know why Squidward would be there, but okay. Each character has their own set of attacks. The areas from the show are represented fairly well. For instance, there's a minigame where you're at the Krusty Krab making Krabby Patties. The sprites look great, but they're recycled from a previous GBA game "The Spongebob Squarepants Movie," and they would be recycled again in "Atlantis Squarepantis" for GBA. The level design is okay, but a bit iffy.

     All the minigames are great. They are very fun, except for the ones where you have to drive. Nothing much, just your average bad driving stages. You can collect gold stars on the way, which are essentialy money. You can buy extra lives and optional minigames. This game has boss battles, but they're pretty dang weird. It's like Dance Dance Revolution with buttons. Not a very good choice. The game has a good choice of bosses, from the show, however, like Man Ray. Eventually, you have to fight baddies from the Flying Dutchman, as well as Jellyfish, and other random things. He wants his dining sock back, and it was stuck to Mermaid Man's back from static cling. Stupid plot point, isn't it? The soundtrack to this game is mediocure. Not much to say, just kinda bland. The final level is you filming the episode, as the heroes of the game get parts in it. It's pretty fun, but, as far as I know, you can't lose. Overall, this is a game that's slightly better than mediocre, but nothing special. Get it if you're bored and/or curious.