M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E… Come and join the jamboree!

When I was a youngling, most of my time was spent watching Disney, and I even recall innocently mispronouncing Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang to the bemusement of my parents. At some point in my adolescent journey, I received the message that Disney was uncool and I started to distract myself with other more “grown-up” themes and buried my Disney childhood deep within my subconscious.

Subsequently, it was with much adult trepidation (and ironically, also a little repressed childish anticipation) that I received G-Force for review. You know from the moment you lay eyes on the smiling rodent on the cover that this is a kiddie’s game, but nonetheless I was intrigued to check out the “awesome 3D” (it’s very important at this point that I point out that I am not familiar with the G-Force “franchise” at all, save for a few theatrical trailers I’ve seen, which looked cool, I shamefully admit). I went straight into this game as a guinea-pig, so to speak.

The bundled manual (read: G-Force Field Guide for Agent Operations) is an insult to tree-loving folk everywhere. It’s pointless, having only the controller layout and a bunch of warnings and legal stuff. I suppose they really didn’t expect 7 year olds to want to read the manual. The main menu, much like the manual, is sparse. You get to change a few settings, but otherwise you’re thrust straight into the game.

Gee Whiskers, look at all the gadgets, gizmos, and guinea pigs!

First impressions of the game are that it’s promising. The graphics range from acceptable to very good. The detail on the guinea pigs is very good, with a lot of attention to fine details (a fidget here, a raised eye-brow there, and a cute set of hamster teeth), but the environment is a bland mix of darker tones which is totally uninspiring. I thought kids enjoyed colour?

The game starts with the now obligatory training session, followed by your first mission - the stealthy infiltration. This level does well to show off the variety in the game and the multitude of abilities and gadgets that agent Darwin has at his disposal. Unfortunately, this stealth factor doesn’t develop enough as you delve further into the game, and after an hour of play the game started to feel more like a button-mashing action adventure. The promise that was, was short-lived as the game essentially became a “move from room A to room B, defeat baddies, solve a puzzle and flip a switch,” rinse, and repeat. Occassionally you discover silver disc upgrades which can be used to unlock better weapons, ammo capacities, health, etc. at the kiosks scattered throughout the game. Of course, you need currency for this, and that is obtained from defeating enemies or smashing - you guessed it - crates.

Despite this repetitive process, the experience is still mixed up by a welcome variety of gameplay, with the player often taking control of time-bending housefly commando Mooch to fly through confined spaces and slowing time to obtain objects, unlock inaccessible areas, and deciphering codes. Additionally, there are some RDV (read: hamster-ball) sequences where you are basically pod-racing to the end of the level, but I found this experience was short-lived and it was difficult to figure out what was going on before you were at the end of the level. I don’t think it helps that one can button-mash through these levels, but I have to remind myself that this is ultimately geared at younglings. There’s also a lot of nice touches like sections that require infra-red vision to navigate through them, as well as oil and ice levels, where Darwin can get stuck to the floor, or skid and scramble all over the place because he lacks traction.

Yippee-ki-yay, Coffee Maker!

The action in the game is varied and challenging. Darwin and Mooch will come face-to-face with Sabertech machinery ranging from CPU Cooling Fans to hungry Microwave Ovens to edgy Coffee Makers, all with unique powers and weaknesses. The variety in adversaries lends them to each develop their own characters, and I couldn’t avoid chuckling at the way some of the nasties were portrayed. Darwin and Mooch will have to employ a host of different tactics and weaponry to overcome their enemies, and the action is fast and satisfying. There are moments where a lot of action happens at once, and this can lead to some frame rate issues, but it’s never enough to ruin the experience of delivering a Shot Bolter coup de grâce to an enraged CD Player.

The control of the main characters is standard; left stick to move, right stick to “look around,” and there are a few simple “combo” controls thrown in for good measure.

Adding more dimension to gameplay

The G-Force world comes to life in 3D. It really makes things jump out, and when I wasn’t suffering from a stereoscopically-induced headache (which wasn’t often), my head was still left reeling from the dynamic display of things that appeared to be lingering outside of the screen’s normal boundaries. The only setback is that the two pairs of 3D glasses included with the game are not the best quality, and their blue/red combination leaves most things in the game feeling a bit purple, and I think they may be a bit big for most seven year olds. Nonetheless, the 3D effects work wonderfully, but it will take some stamina to overcome the nausea of an extended sitting, and the washed out purple haze that everything carries.

Generally speaking, playing in 3D was a much more rewarding experience, but the relative richness of colour in the 2D version left a lot to be desired for the 3D companion. The 3D is especially brought to the fore in an unexpectedly annoying but still amusing way with the presence of your trusty housefly commando, Mooch. Mooch actually feels like he’s buzzing around your head, and at least a couple of times it will feel like he zooms right out of the screen! Those sort of nice little touches score my approval, and even at times when the gameplay started to feel a bit stale, the 3D kept me going to find out what visual display was awaiting me around the next corner.

To the developers’ credit, the characters in the game, and their interactions with one another, coupled with frequent upgrades and unique adversaries, add a lot of relief to an otherwise potentially stale and more-of-the-same game. The graphics detail on the main characters and Sabertech nasties is far superior to the human characters and environment, with a lot of attention being placed on getting little nuances and fidgets and blinks right. As I’ve mentioned already, I really enjoyed Darwin’s teeth. An example of the sort of attention to detail evident in the gameplay is the ability to jetpack over patches of oil and ignite them!

A fly in the ointment

Not all is roses with this game, however, and in my view, one of the major flaws with this game, is the inability to save more than 5 slots, and not being able to access specific levels in the game - you have to play through the entire campaign, and you can’t go back to repeat a level to unlock missed achievements or grab those extra silver-disc upgrades lying around the place.

I think Disney really missed out in not allowing some form of multiplayer option - this type of game lends itself to multiplayer - you’ve got Mooch the housefly commando, and a bunch of other furry agents involved in the G-Force team. It would have been a much more entertaining game if a buddy could drop in and take over Mooch or play as Blaster.

The levels can sometimes be frustrating in their length, because whenever you think you’re about to accomplish your objective and finish the level, the game throws a curveball at you and you now have to accomplish another mini-mission to get to the next stage. The entire game should take about ten hours to complete, with an achievement if you do it in under eight.

The progression through the campaign, although sometimes reaching moments of staleness, is livened up with a constant introduction of new adversaries, weapons, and abilities. Even up to the very end, I was discovering new abilities (the vaccuum cannon is only available right at the end, and is both cute and fun). The finale is thoroughly entertaining and if, like me, you’ve by then warmed up to the cute critters, you’ll also be rooting for the team, and your new-found and unsung hero (no spoilers here). Without giving too much away, the ending sequence - albeit brief - is classic campy cheese (fitting for a game with rodents) leaving it open for a sequel, and will unlock a SPECIAL AGENT difficulty setting.

The G-Force is strong with this one

As a kid’s game, I think the energy and cleanliness of the game itself is great - I can’t comment on the tie-in with the movie, but I get the impression that a lot of effort went into maintaining the detail and characters for the game, and I have to admit I have even started to fall in love with the little guys. The voice acting was great, and the plot itself was both dynamic yet simple enough for a youngster to follow. For a kid’s game it was spot-on. The graphics, sound, and music are all of a good quality, but unfortunately at times the gameplay became a drag. Its appeal is mostly in the potential that it keeps promising throughout the game, and for the most part, it delivers. If I were a parent, I’d feel quite safe letting my little ones get a hold of this game. You can do far worse.

The Good: 3D; character details; Mooch!

The Bad: Frame Rate problems when there’s lots of explosions and action; tedious moments.

Purchase: