Review: Ms. ‘Splosion Man

When Pac-Man proved to be an arcade success, North American company Midway went and did what any money-hungry corporation would do: made an unauthorised sequel called Ms. Pac-Man. The gameplay was largely unchanged, save a few tweaks here or there based on recommendations from Pac-Man fans. The thing is, that unauthorised sequel proved so popular that Japan-based Namco, Pac-Man‘s original licensor, made the game part of the official Pac-Man “canon.” Aaaand there’s your history lesson for today.

An Xbox LIVE Arcade title, Ms. ‘Splosion Man shares only half the history of her female yellow-orb counterpart. The game was created by Twisted Pixel, responsible for the original ‘Splosion Man, so no dodginess there. What the Ms-es do have in common is an unashamed improvement on the original premise of their games, altering gameplay mechanics to create a more enjoyable experience.

In the single-player campaign, you control Ms Sarah ‘Splosion, who plays identically in every way like her male counterpart; every button on your Xbox 360 controller is a button to ‘splode the character. Sarah is able to perform three ‘splodes before losing her…charge(?)…so essentially the game is a puzzle-platformer. Utilising her ‘splodes, plus ziplines and ‘splode-propelling barrels, Sarah sets off on a mission to rescue ‘Splosion Man, who’s been captured by the evil scientists at the Big Science corporation (incidentally, who are responsible for creating both of our heroes).

The hot: The humour and quirkiness of the original ‘Splosion Man are still just as fresh in Ms ‘Splosion Man. I actually found myself laughing more in this iteration of the game; the title is worth a purchase alone JUST for the tutorials that are littered throughout the single-player and multiplayer campaigns. You can’t help but feel bad for Ms Debbie ‘Splosion, one of the three extra multiplayer characters in the game — she just can’t catch a break in those tutorials. Add to that the “Mandy song” that plays as you take over the aforementioned plump lady to avoid pitfalls in a level — think the donut song from ‘Splosion Man – and you’ve basically got a must-purchase.

The pop culture references are fast and furious in this game. Sarah ‘Splosion only speaks in them, and while they do get a bit repetitious, I found myself giggling every time she sang out, “All the single ladies…” I picked up on references to the Spice Girls, Beyonce, No Doubt, Total Recall, TLC, Britney Spears…and as you can probably tell, the list goes on and on. The title even has its own version of Mario‘s “Star Road,” which also nets you a couple achievements when you find it.

As indicated, the game has two separate modes, one single-player and one multiplayer. It’s an entirely different experience (with different challenges) in each mode, so both are definitely worth a play-through. My partner and I did fairly well in two-player mode, but were starting to get a bit frustrated at one another as time wore on. I wonder how those engaging in four-player mode will fare.

The game seemed to me to be a bit friendlier than ‘Splosion Man (embarrassing gamer fact: I have NO idea how to beat the first boss and refuse to use a guide). By using a Mario Bros.-style World Map, you can use a branching path to skip past a level you’re having trouble with. Additionally, there still is an option to skip past levels you’re stuck on in mid-play, at the expense of being given a 999min “clear time;” and a bit of extra weight that you character packs on.

The meh: I know it’s Ms ‘Splosion Man, but do we really need the heavy-handed “THIS IS A WOMAN CHARACTER” sexist crap? She doesn’t collect cake, she collects shoes. If she skips a level, she gains weight. Not a huge problem, I know, but still…it didn’t quite sit right with me.

The cold: ‘Splosion Man took place entirely inside a laboratory; rightfully so, the game was criticised for repetition. While Twisted Pixel has injected some variety into the title by setting the game in a multitude of locations, the gameplay is pretty repetitious throughout. I found I could only sit through five or so levels at a time before petering out.

Overall, I’ve already used the words “must-purchase” in this review, so you know this game is worth it. At 800 Microsoft Points, it’s a steal, and the amount of variety, comedy, and gameplay packed into this title makes it well worth every point.