After the success of the Rehydrated version of SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom, Purple Lamp is back at the forefront of THQ with Bob Esponja: The Cosmic Shake. A completely original and 100% unpublished title that will delight fans of the yellow sponge and his crazy friends.
In the pineapple under the sea
Video games inspired by television licenses are nothing new. If the past has taught us anything, it is that these types of products are capable of the best and the worst with a series of very different results that range from the barely acceptable to the great. In this sense, SpongeBob fans have had good luck in regards to games of the brand in recent times. The Cosmic Shake remains in this line with a game offer that, although it does not invent anything new, knows how to achieve the goals it sets with a proposal that maintains the quality of Battle for Bikini Bottom while betting on slightly modifying some rules of the game so as not to offer more of the same.
The Cosmic Shake thus offers an adventure exclusively starring SpongeBob as a playable character. In the company, yes, of his inseparable friend Patricio, who will act as a support NPC saving you from big falls and giving the counterpoint to his terrible jokes and occurrences. An approach that moves away from the multiple playable characters of the previous franchise title and that turns SpongeBob: The Cosmic Shake into something more collected, a title that bets on more limited environments and gameplay without losing one iota for it of epicity in the dimension of his new adventure.
A quiet day in Bikini Bottom
As if it were a movie from the franchise, SpongeBob Cosmic Shake offers a more than attractive story in which our favorite sponge will have to live a great adventure. What starts out as a quiet day in Bikini Bottom soon turns into a cosmic odyssey. A madness unleashed by the visit of our friends to Mundo Glove, where they will get a mysterious object in the also mysterious store of the… you guessed it, mysterious Kassandra. The magic pompero is once again the protagonist of the craziest corner of the reef. After SpongeBob and Patrick use it to play with his friends, his pranks end up having catastrophic consequences for the space-time continuum.
Bikini Bottom has been covered by a strange jelly that has opened portals to different dimensions. With the help of Kassandra, who is still very mysterious, SpongeBob and Patrick will be forced to travel through the different dimensional planes. An excuse like any other to invite the player to visit some of the most emblematic settings of the series. Well-known locations among which there is no shortage of corners such as Mundo Guante, the Campos de Azufre, Fondo de Roca or the Campos de Medusas.
Its yellow body absorbs without more
SpongeBob: The Cosmic Shake is a zoned semi-open world game. A title that recovers one of the most traditional formulas of the platform genre, taking advantage of new technologies to take everything one step further. Jumps, double jumps, spinning attacks and small mini-games they come together with moving platforms, enemies, grappling spots and all the tropes of the genre turning the gameplay into pure frantic action and button mashing. There is no shortage of special movements, attacks and abilities that we will learn as we go along and that will force us to return to previous worlds to gain access to new areas, find some collectible that we missed and repeat a fight against a final boss to get beat our time.
At the controls, the control of our maddening sponge feels luxurious with a more than satisfactory performance and very good rhythm when it comes to connecting movements, special attacks, jumps, double jump, glide with pizza box and hook. As it hits, however, the combats only take into account what is seen on the screen, which forces us to quickly move the camera with the right stick to connect attacks with flying kicks and be able to hook points that we know are there but as they are out of shot they are not detected by the game. A minor bug that once we get the hang of moving the camera while performing our combos and movements is imperceptible.
Are you ready?
As we mentioned above, The Cosmic Shake includes a large number of areas that fans of the animated series will know for their appearance in various chapters and specials. Seven perfectly portrayed and highly recognizable worlds that together with Bikini Bottom make up a total of 8 zones with their own secret paths, bosses, setting and, what is more important, your own rules within the adventure. Far from being a mere backdrop, each location includes different mechanics and challenges that range from trick-or-treating in Rock Bottom to sliding through burning lava in Kelp Forest or running on our seahorse in Jellyfish Fields. The gameplay adapts to each area and their setting to ensure that the six or seven hours that the main part of the game lasts does not feel heavy or monotonous at any time. A success to avoid one of the most recurring problems in this type of game.
The setting of each zone is joined by that of our beloved protagonist, who will change his suit from one location to another with some very welcome nods to the deep lore of SpongeBob. These suits, which will be necessary to open the portals to new dimensional planes, are joined by others that you can buy in the store and whose value is merely aesthetic. The costume for Perla’s party, the vampire costume or the ghost costume are just some of the many examples that will force us to get all the doubloons and a lot of jellyfish jelly with which to unlock and buy all the fun skins of our sponge. There is also no shortage of collectibles related to some of the best episodes of the series and that will serve to win the favor of the friends of the yellow sponge once you have saved them from their respective planes.
spongebob has arrived
Beyond its control, its frantic gameplay and its variety when it comes to embodying its game proposal, what really makes SpongeBob: The Cosmic Shake work is its fidelity to the series and the care with which it has treated all its elements. A fantastic dubbing stands out in which the interest in maintaining the original voices of the Spanish version is appreciated. Removing the registration of Perla and KAREN, who has had several dubbing actresses lending her voice in the series, all the characters have the original voices and the same registers that we can enjoy in any episode of the series. SpongeBob, Patrick, Sandy, Mrs. Puff, Plankton, Mr. Crab… they all have an excellent dubbing that stands out both in the well-cared cinematics and in the in-game dialogues that will unleash the laughter of the most fans with moments like the one in the song ‘we bring a pizza’ or SpongeBob’s complaints about receiving damage.
The Cosmic Shake adds winks of all kinds and moments from the series to justify the use of a franchise that goes beyond the name and design of its world. This makes it one of the best games that you can share with the little SpongeBob fans you have at home., but be careful: this does not mean that it is an excessively easy game. Some elements such as the locators and the checkpoints soften a genre that is usually very complicated, however the fight against the bosses and some platform areas and slides will make things somewhat complicated without turning the challenge into a Souls.
The best friend you can have
SpongeBob: The Cosmic Shake is a good platform title and a great video game for lovers of the famous animated franchise. The care and respect with which he treats the product in which he is inspired joins a correct gameplay and an interesting story that end up forming a game that is enjoyed playing and that it can keep you busy for three or four afternoons if you focus only on what is important or for a couple of weeks if you play it completist. It will not reveal anything new to lovers of the genre, being a title that works correctly with some brilliant moments that alternate with some somewhat repetitive locations, but without a doubt it is a great game for young players who are new to the world of platforms.
One of the best games that you can share with the little SpongeBob fans you have at home
As strong points, it is worth highlighting the dubbing, the inclusion of some mythical themes of the series and the two songs that accompany the final credits, after which the a very well integrated post game with one of the funniest pranks I’ve seen in a video game. As weak points, the non-detection of the elements that are out of shot and the refusal to go further, contenting themselves with a formula that works without any special surprise. Removing this, we are facing a fun game suitable for all types of audiences that serves to rest from the releases that are coming up this month.
