Game Review: SpongeBob SquarePants: The Battle for Bikini Bottom
Rated by 2 members
What Parents Should Know
This is pretty cute and benign, as show's fans would expect.
If anything, parents could talk to their kids about tie-ins and
how this game promotes the entire SpongeBob empire.
Common Sense Media Review
Evil Plankton has unleashed a mass of malicious robots on
Bikini Bottom (though SpongeBob thinks he inadvertently invited
this disaster). Now they're wrecking havoc from Goo Lagoon to
Jellyfish Fields, and SpongeBob and friends are on a quest to
stop them (and save the denizens of their underwater home).
Along the way, players collect precious golden spatulas and
Patrick's dirty socks, and complete other side missions.
Changing among the popular show's three main characters,
players swing above the city on Sandy's lasso, use Patrick to
toss around a variety of "throw fruit", or turn into SpongBall
to bowl over enemies.
Creative stuff, but the anticipated audience here is unclear. The missions are difficult to complete and simultaneous, and younger players may lose track of what they're trying to accomplish, never mind actually trying to finish a level. Conversely, more experienced players may tire of the repetitive moves required to complete the almost 100 tasks. Overall, if you just want to see SpongeBob and his friends frolic around Bikini Bottom, there's plenty to soak up, but accomplishing missions requires a level of expertise that may outpace the show's young fans' skills.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
