Pinocchio Review by: Zlinqx - 5.5/10
Pinocchio - A forgotten classic?So it looks like I'll be releasing this review a lot earlier then I originally anticipated, which I'm guessing is because I remembered that this game is short. When I say short, I mean really short. But we'll get to that. I'm a bit more nervous about this review then I was about the other 2 due to this being my first review of a game that isn't a Pokemon game.
So you might be asking yourself... Why Pinocchio? Well you see when I was a mere 5 years old, I wasn't nearly as big on gaming as I am today, I barely even knew what Sega or Nintendo was, but then I got my very first console: a Sega Mega Drive (also called Sega Genesis in North America).
On this console I mainly played 3 games: Aladdin, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Pinocchio. Out of these Pinocchio was probably the one I played the most, most likely because I was a big fan of the movie and because I also found it to be the easiest out of 3. Eventually this became the very first game I completed and despite it being a fairly short and easy game, I was still very proud of myself. So this is why I figured I'd revisit this game almost 10 years later to see how it holds up today.
Graphics: 8
I found the graphics in this game surprisingly good. One thing I noticed in particular was that the developers put in a lot of time into making the animations for the characters. Pinocchio in particular exhibited this, which I thought was quite nice. And while I wouldn't consider it one of the best games on the system, graphics-wise it is still one of the better I've seen.
Sound: 6
The sound in this game isn't particularly amazing but it does the job and some of the soundtracks are a bit catchy. The sound effects on the hand, while okay most of the time will get annoying after a while which does make me have to lower the rating a bit.
Addictiveness: 5
This game is somewhat addicting but it really depends on the stages. Some I find fun and some not as fun... I did find myself somewhat determined to complete the game, but once you have (and you will if you spend just a couple of hours on it) there is little reason to play through it again. The gameplay will be pretty much exactly the same as it was the first time. (Unless you're like me and played it when you were young and want your shot of nostalgia :P).
Story: 6
The game somewhat loosely follows the plot of the movie, with Pinocchio trying to become a real boy. Though there are a few differences.
For example here he's trying to earn the 3 badges of truth, courage and unselfishness in order to become a real boy. Almost all the story progression is done through dialogue that is displayed using books in between stages. While it's nothing special it does the job alright.
There certainly could've been room for improvement though, as I feel that adding some of the more iconic moments of the movie could help.
Depth 2:
This game is short and if you've ever beaten any old school platformer before, you'll probably get through this fairly quickly. I myself got through the game in just a little bit more then an hour (and keep in mind I'm not the best when it comes to platformers). The stages are fairly linear so there is no significant extra content as far as I know. After you've played through it once, you could probably beat in around half the time I did without too much trouble.
Difficulty: 4
This game is pretty easy. There are a few moments where it might take a few tries until you beat the stage however the game is usually plentiful with continues and lives, so it doesn't matter that much. Even if you did run out of continues, getting back to the point you were at probably wouldn't take too long considering the general difficulty and length of the game.
Overall: 5.5
I would've given this a higher rating if it was longer, as it stands however for what it is, while not particularly great it isn't that bad either. I'd rank it somewhere in the middle and recommend it to people who are fans of the movie and are looking for a short distraction to relieve their boredom.
As always don't forget to tell me if you agree with my review or not, and to rate the review (fairly of course). I would especially appreciate it in this case as this is my first non Pokemon game review and I really want to know what people think about it. Also, if you have any suggestions on a game I could try reviewing feel free to tell me!
Graphics
8 Sound
6 Addictive
5 Depth
2 Story
6 Difficulty
4