E3 2005: Level Up
THQ's Toon Titles
Product: THQ's Nickelodeon Games
Company: THQ
Date: 05/28/2005
Avaliable On:

Leading publisher THQ furthers its Nickelodeon line with new games from Tak, Spongebob, Fairly Odd Parents and Danny Phantom.

Danny Phantom: The Ultimate Enemy features one of the newest Nicktoons in his first game and in an adventure that has Danny fighting to protect the future. Coming from a family of ghost hunters, Danny accidentally activated one of his dad's inventions. Now Danny Fenton is half human and half ghost, and has vowed to use his new-found powers to capture ghosts and send them back to their own dimension. That's the setup for the show. The Ultimate Enemy introduces a new ghost with a plan to turn Danny against the world. Clockwork (a time-controlling ghoul) knows what it will take to turn the halfa (a term for half-ghosts) into the evil Dan Phantom. In order to prevent this tragedy, Danny must learn newer, better powers and stop Clockwork before it's too late. The Ultimate Enemy game corresponds with the 1 hour special TV episode of the same name.

Timmy and his two crown-clad companions take on another adventure for the GBA in Fairly Odd Parents: Clash into the Anti-World. This game brings back characters introduced in the Friday the 13th episode, "That Old Black Magic", the anti-fairies. Anti-fairies are fairies that get joy out of doing harm and causing bad luck. They come from a world that is (supposedly) only accessible through a locked door in Fairy-World. But because of an experiment gone wrong, Anti-Land has taken over the normal world. The world has flipped and now everything is reversed. Timmy, Cosmo and Wanda must turn the world back to normal -- but their opposites are working against them. You can play as Timmy and his Godparents in an action-packed game that will turn Timmy into a melee-attack-filled action hero. As you travel through Anti-Land, you will meet up with many of the typical Fairly Odd Parents characters, but flipped around and backwards.

The yellow guy who lives in a pineapple under the sea returns in another action-packed game this year. Spongebob Squarepants: Lights, Camera, Pants starts off with the filming of a "Merman and Barnacle Boy" episode that is going on in Bikini Bottom. And to top it off, the citizens of Spongbob's home town are going to be actors in the show. It's a dream come true for our yellow friend. But getting a spot on the show isn't as easy as driving your boat onto the set. The talent scouts have set aside a series of challenges. Spongebob, Patrick, Sandy, Squidward, Mr. Crabbs and Plankton compete for the lead role in Lights, Camera, Pants. This game will have great replay value because you will want to go through the game as each of the playable characters and see how they perform in the starring role. Lights, Camera, Pants is going to be released for the GBA, Xbox, GC, PS2 and PC.

Tak returns in an all new adventure as well. Featuring a 2 player co-operative mode, new Shawmen Upgrades and Bonus Blessings, Tak: The Great Juju Challenge will let you and a friend mold Tak and Lok into the characters that fit your personal style. Tribes from around the world are preparing for the Great Juju Challenge. Tak and Lok join the challenge as representatives of the Papanunu Tribe, and together they will face Jujus, wild animals and other tribes all in the hopes of getting a huge award from the Great Jujus. Following the trend set by the past two Tak games, The Great Juju Challenge features unique puzzles, time-based strategies and a robust combat system. Not only will Tak be on the GameBoy Advance, GameCube and PlayStation 2, but it will be one of the first Nick Games to come out for the Nintendo DS.

The other game to come out for the DS is Nicktoons Unite. Taking a cue from Marvel's Sinister Six, Professor Calamitous has gathered some of the top villains from the Nicktoons universe. Calamitous, Plankton, Vlad and Crocker have joined forces and formed "The Evil Syndicate". Now Retroville, Dimmsdale, Bikini Bottom and Amity Park are in trouble because this dark foursome are terrorizing these towns in an attempt to take over the Nicktoon Universe. Jimmy Neutron decides to gather his own group of toons, and with the help of Timmy Turner, Danny Fenton and Spongebob Squarepants, the heroes will try to stop the Syndicate and their evil doomsday device. The Nicktoons line is unique in that it is the only game series to allow all of your favorite Nickelodeon characters to interact together. Nicktoons Unite will also come out on the GBA, GameCube and PS2.

Nickelodeon Barnyard puts you in control of the new cow at the barn. In this game, you will get to see how farm animals really behave when humans aren't around. The game will have you forming alliances with other animals, as well as competing in physical challenges and sporting events. This party game gives you the ability to roam around the fully 3D farm and do everything from goofing off to guarding the grounds from hungry coyotes. Barnyard will come out this January along with the new Nick movie of the same name. Barnyard will be released on the PS2, GameCube, GBA and PC.

Look for reviews of all of these exciting Nick Games as they hit the shelves.

J.R. Nip aka Chris Meyer

GameVortex PSIllustrated TeamPS2