Happy Feet Review (gamezone)

- gamezone -

I’m a sucker for kids’ animated features and this year the theaters were packed with movies for every tastes whether you like loveable talking vehicles (like Cars) or talking animals (like Barnyard, Over the Hedge or Open Season just to name a few). One of the late entries is Happy Feet, a sweet little tale about penguins. And what would you know? This also means that a game of the movie will eventually show up and it has. Happy Feet might find itself on the PS2 as well as the GameCube but it’s the Nintendo Wii that does things just a little different … but that still doesn’t make it a better game.

Happy Feet follows the life of a penguin named Mumble who was born with a talent for tap dancing. The penguins on this iceberg all have a Heartsong that they were born to sing and Mumble, well, he doesn’t exactly have the voice of an angel. In fact, when he starts singing it sounds like a baby seal is getting tortured. Then again, he can certainly dance and this sets him apart from the other penguins including his best friend Gloria. We watch as Mumble grows up, waiting for the day he does discover his Heartsong.

Of course, what separates this game from the other versions is the Nintendo Wii’s remote and you’ll be using it throughout the game but, unfortunately, not in the most inventive ways. We start the game’s story mode with a Dance Dance Revolution-styled rhythm game as baby Mumble attempts to break out of his shell. While your dancing skills won’t be tested (although thanks to the tunes you’ll find yourself dancing anyway), you’ll be swinging the Wii remote in time with the arrows that scroll up on the screen. This is actually the most challenging part about Happy Feet since it’s all about timing.

The rest of the game is composed of a belly-sled race that has Mumble sliding down a path filled with environmental hazards that can slow him down. The races are fast and you can even jump some ramps (later in the game there are even boosts for extra speed) and try to beat your opponent before they reach the finish line. Sledding has you twisting the controller on its side much like you do for Need for Speed Carbon for the Wii. To turn left you twist the remote to your left and vice versa. You can even jump with the A button for some aerial tricks. Then there’s swimming, a game that has you navigating Mumble underwater in an attempt to collect items like shrimp. Really, there’s not much to this mini-game.

Sadly, that’s all there is to this game. The same mini-games are repeated again and again with very little variety in terms of the gameplay or mini-games. There are moments where the game does attempt to give gamers something new such as the time where baby Mumble attempts to escape a hungry, winged predator during a belly-sled race or underwater as he attempts to escape from the jaws of the vicious Orcas. I find it hard to think even the younger gamers will want to repeat the same mini-games this often. There is a Family Mode that allows two players to compete in any of the three main mini-games but expect the belly-sled race to be a popular multiplayer game. There are even some collectibles but I don’t see gamers coming back for more after finishing this game.

Graphically speaking, Happy Feet excels in bringing the movie’s characters to life and they look amazing compared to the GameCube version. Up close or far away the characters look great in action and this makes the cutscenes really stand out. What doesn’t look as good are the backgrounds that really don’t match the detailed characters. While it’s cool to find some destructible environmental details, such as icebergs you can break during the sled racing, things could have looked much better on the Wii.

The game’s music is something of a highlight especially since it comes from the movie itself. There’s the film’s original score that is pretty good but the star of the show are the licensed dance tunes that include a Gloria Gaynor song, two cool tunes from KC and The Sunshine Band and a rendition of “Somebody To Love” by actress Brittany Murphy, who also voices Gloria in the game as well as the movie. It’s also great to find Elijah Wood (Frodo from the Lord of the Rings trilogy) voice an adult Mumble, like in the movie.

Happy Feet for the Wii is a repetitive game with little to offer gamers young or old and, while the game does use the Wii controller well, this isn’t the reason you should be buying this game. Sadly, the game doesn’t do anything to stay fresh and there’s very little to come back to when the game is over. If you’re a major fan of the movie you might want to consider owning this game but I don’t recommend it. Rent first before even consider buying this game for your young gamers.

Review Scoring Details for Happy Feet

Gameplay: 4.5
The game will start feeling repetitive rather quickly and the Dance Dance Revolution-inspired dancing levels could have been a lot better. Still, the controls are simple, fun, and easy for gamers of all ages to quickly get comfortable with without having to read the manual.

Graphics: 6.5
The character models look great on the Nintendo Wii and you’ll feel like you’re watching a scene straight out of the movie. Meanwhile, the environments look so-so and the effects could have been a lot better. Still, it’s slightly better than the GameCube version.

Sound: 6.5
The Happy Feet soundtrack is made up of some great songs by artists like KC & The Sunshine Band, Gloria Gaynor and “I Wish” by Stevie Wonder. There are even songs from Brittany Murphy, who also provides the voice of Gloria along with Elijah Wood, who voices Mumble.

Difficulty: Easy
There are three difficulty setting but the game is easy no matter which one you pick. This isn’t a bad thing considering that this is a kid’s title but the game should be this easy either.

Concept: 4.0
The movie’s theme and characters are here and kids will get a kick out of the belly-sled races but other than that the repetitive nature might not hold their attention for very long. At least they could play with a friend via some wireless multiplayer.

Multiplayer: 4.2
Two players can participate in the sledding, swimming or dancing mini-games for a little competitive fun. This is the only aspect of Happy Feet young gamers will keep enjoying after they finish the single-player mode.

Overall: 4.5
Kids who loved the movie will be slightly disappointed by Happy Feet for the Wii. It’s great too see the movie’s characters like Mumble and Gloria but the Wii controls are used in a gimmicky way that adds very little substance to a game that could have been really fun. Unless your child is a huge fan of the movie you might want to consider skipping this one and buying other kids’ title already available.

GameZone Reviews

4.5

GZ Rating

Gameplay	4.5
Graphics	6.5
Sound	6.5
Difficulty	Easy
Concept	4
Multiplayer	4.2
Overall	4.5

Happy Feet for the Wii is a repetitive game with little to offer gamers young or old and, while the game does use the Wii controller well, this isn’t the reason you should be buying this game