Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action!
Score: 78% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: Ignition Entertainment USA Developer: Warthog Media: Cartridge/1 Players: 1 - 2 Genre: Platformer
Graphics & Sound: It's been a long time since we have been able to enjoy the zany fun that is Animaniacs, but the Warner brothers and their sister Dot are back again in Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action!. Everything from the scenery to the various characters come across exactly like they did in the series. You will get to visit or play as characters like Pinky, Brain, Slappy Squirrel, Dr. Scratchansniff and of course Yakko, Wakko and Dot as well as pretty much any other major character you can think of. The large, cartoony models come off clean and clear as you move them through the three movie sets, while the worlds themselves take on a classic, isometric perspective that should be familiar to pretty much any gamer. Although Lights, Camera, Action! doesn't have any voice acting to complement the authentic visuals, the music and sound effects seem to be straight from the show's soundtrack.
Gameplay: Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action! starts off with the Warner Brothers CEO, Mr. Plotz, deciding that the crazed toons have cost the company too much money and they need to be put to work in order to pay WB back. In order to earn the right to stay in their beloved water tower, the Warner brothers and their sister Dot must each take a role in one of the movies currently in production. You will play through the various scenes of movies like "Treasure Iceland", "Martian Assault" and "The Castle of Dr. Scratchansniff". Instead of playing through each movie one at a time, you shift between each set and play all of the "scene ones", then all of the "scene twos" and so on. Yakko, Wakko and Dot aren't the only characters at your disposal. There are several times when you need to take control of Pinky or The Brain in order to get by certain obstacles. This changes things up occasionally and keeps the game from seeming like the same repetitious acts over and over again. Animaniacs also features a 4 player single-card mode. You and three of your friends (with only 1 cartridge between you) can get together and play a keep-away game where you try to hold onto a crown as long as possible in order to gain points.
Difficulty: Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action! isn't horribly difficult. Each movie has its own baddies and obstacles, but all in all, it is the same thing over and over again without much of a difficulty hike. The most difficult part of the game is keeping the various movie plots and scenarios straight since, instead of playing through one move then moving to the next, you work through the different movies at the same time (basically). You play all of the first scenes then all of the second scenes, etc. Because of this, it gets to be a bit disorienting when you move from the pirate-ridden Treasure Iceland to the futuristic Martian Assault and then the dark Castle of Dr. Scratchansniff.
Game Mechanics: Once again, we have a game that comes out for the DS and GBA, but there are no real advantages to getting the DS version. Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action! has no extra control features or anything that uses its touchscreen. As soon as you start the game, you might as well put the stylus away because the only thing you could use it for is to tap the large Pause button in the center of the lower screen... and yes tapping the start button still pauses the game. The only other thing the touchscreen is used for is to display how many of the various pickups (ice-cream, cake, hot dogs, etc.) you've collected. So not only does this game not use any of the advantages that the DS offers, but it also uses the password system instead of just having a save game feature. I could have sworn that with the coming of the DS, we would have finally gotten past things like this. So is Animaniacs a good game? Yes -- it's fairly fun and is highly memorable for any fans of the Warners' antics. There just isn't any real reason to get the DS version. If you are interested in this game, then pick up the GBA cartridge instead.
-J.R. Nip, GameVortex Communications AKA Chris Meyer
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