Sabrina The Animated Series: Zapped! Game by Simon & Schuster/Knowledge Adventure/Wayforward Technologies Reviewed by The Avardancer (Philip Wesley) Size: 8 megabits Save: Four Icon Password Released: 2000 Works with: Game Boy Color ONLY! **************************************************************************** Opening Snide Remarks: What type of gamer are you? You must ask yourself this question before you proceed with reading this review. If you are an idiot, you most likely saw the name of the game and automatically consider the game to be stupid. If that is so, you most likely believe the Play Station is the best system ever, Final Fantasy 8 is the best RPG ever made, and are eagerly awaiting the Microsoft XBox. If that is so, you have no reason to be reading an intelligent review. Go read reviews at EGM or Game Spot, you will find them to be more appropriate for your mental capacity. If you looked closer and saw the words "Wayforward Technologies" before making a judgement on the game, then you are an objective gamer and I am glad you are reading this review. If you need to know, Wayforward Technologies is to Game Boy what Treasure is to the home consoles. Treasure is a software development team that makes truly superb platform games. Wayforward Technologies makes good Game Boy games for the most part. I will now proceed to review this title and see if it stands up to Wayforward Technologies track record of Game Boy games. **************************************************************************** Gameplay Descripion: The formula here is "Liscense + Platforming"; but unlike so many other liscensed platform games on Game Boy, this one feels more thought out. The gameplay is not standard "Point A to Point B" platform action. The idea is that Sabrina was presenting a Variety Show for her School and ran out of "variety". So, ever helpful Gigi.. I mean Salem suggests that our blonde protaganist use her magic to wow the crowd! As fate and cliché would put it, all Holy Heck breaks loose and she transforms all her fellow classmates into animals: Dogs, Cats, Monkies, etc. No one can really tell the difference anyways, but Sabrina sets out to right what once went wrong. Sabrina explores large areas searching for animals that once were kids. Then she brutally jumps on top of their craniums and then zaps them back into what remotely passes as humans. That is the game play in a nutshell, hunt through levels for animals, bop the animals, zap the animals, and then when all the animals have been zapped.. run to the exit. That would make a mildly entertaining game, if it were not for the fact that Wayforward Technologies put various kinds of obstacles in your way. In many of the levels, you have to find an item to help you find all the animals. There are four types of power ups: a bubble, a space jump, warp pads, and a "butt stomp" that breaks through rocks. I always knew Sabrina was hard-ahhhh never mind. You can also control Salem the Cat to break "cat bricks" and to fit into tight places. Uh huh. The levels start simple and get rather complex near the end of the game. The game also has large, somewhat easy bosses to contend with. However, the game is too short. It really could have used a couple dozen more levels, but what we have here is excellent. Liked: The gameplay is fun, and slightly challenging. Hated: Like the hooker said to Bill Gates: "Damn. That was short." **************************************************************************** Graphics Description: Sabrina is cute, and she's quite tall for a Game Boy sprite, Salem is cute too. But Salem isn't Luna, nope. Not Luna. Mmmm.... Luna. Oops. Anyways, the animation for the main sprites is top-notch, but the kids are monochromatic freaks. That's okay, as most kids and people I know are monochromatic freaks too. The backgrounds are nicely detailed and the game is colorful. It's a tad darker on Game Boy Advance though. The graphics are as good as many Super Nintendo games. Very nicely done. Sabrina and Salem have lots of animation, from Sabrina jotting down notes on the password screen, to Salem's little strut. Very nice. Liked: Nice, colorful, vibrant, large. Hated: Monochromatic Freak Children. **************************************************************************** Sound/Music Description: The sound effects are rather unnoticeable, but the music is catchy and well done. Overall, you won't be seeing the music in the Top 40 rack, but you won't want to turn down your Game Boy volume. Liked: It's nice! Hated: It's kind of unextravagent? **************************************************************************** Play Control/Game Design: Sabrina tends to drift slightly, but I think that was intended. Overall, this has great play control. Game design wise, I applaud Wayforward Technologies for doing a GOOD liscensed game. Thank you for such an entertaining game! Liked: The GAME! Hated: Nothing. **************************************************************************** Improve: Make it longer, and get a battery in there. RIYL: Metroid, a little bit of Lost Vikings, platform games. And Sabrina? **************************************************************************** Final Words: It'll cast a spell on you. Sorry, I could not avoid the cliché. **************************************************************************** Score Gameplay: ***** Graphics: ***** Sound/Music: **** Play Control/Game Design: **** Personal Opinion: ***** Total: 23 out of 25 Final Score: 92% **************************************************************************** Currently Known Codes: Put in the Cat, Sabrina, the black haired kid, and then the cat for a sound test.