|
|
|
POLLY POCKET! SUPER SPLASH ISLAND (GBA)
|
Publisher: Zoo Digital.
Developer: Digitial Illusions. Released: 2003 (Europe); 2006 (UK, unconfirmed). Genre: Party. Posted 8th April 2022. By Tom Clare © 2022 |
|
Created by British toymaker Bluebird, the Polly Pocket range was particularly popular among girls growing up during the nineties. Taking the traditional dolls ‘n’ dollhouse idea and miniaturising them, each one encapsulated a small scene within a container designed as a large locket. Diminutive enough to fit in the hand and shaped like hearts, stars and shells, these scenic microcosms were a source of fascination. Within, lay detailed recreations of familiar domestic or holidaying locations. A bedroom, dining area, garden or beach ornately realised, with tiny figurines and furnishings that could be played with, independently of the base.
So what became of it? In its original guise, Polly Pocket ran for just under a decade before Bluebird went under in 1998 and the rights were snapped up by Mattel. Polly and co. were then subjected to that most dreaded of inevitabilities, a ‘cultural reboot’. The distinctive lockets took a backseat, as Mattel sought to thrust Polly and her pals into the mainstream. The result was a super-sizing of the dolls, a 2018 TV series and, prior to that, the enlisting of Pinball Dreams developer Digital Illusions to create a video game for the Game Boy Advance.
Polly Pocket's racing mini-game is a nifty surprise, though it's hamstrung by dodgy handling
Perhaps dishearteningly, the Polly Pocket we see in Super Splash Island very much mirrors the glossy, apparently contextless lifestyle of a socialite, an image engineered to maximum exaggeration by the Paris Hilton’s and Nicole Ritchie’s of the celebrity world throughout the noughties. Still, I shouldn’t grumble. Video gaming is all about entertainment and escapism, after all. Super Splash Island centres around a trip to a water park, as Polly rather fortuitously wins a radio phone-in competition, granting tickets for herself and five of her most-highly-regarded friends. The park is a little less bombastic than its name suggests, consisting of a modest array of mini-games. The majority of these are modelled around simple, accessible arcade titles of yesteryear. There’s high scores to beat and, uh, different coloured swimsuits to be unlocked. Totally fab etc!
So what about the activities in question? There’s ‘River Rapids’, a rather half-hearted take on Toobin that sees Polly gliding along in a dinghy, collecting balloons, avoiding occasional rocks and taking jumps. This is perhaps the most uneventful of the games, its layouts feeling sparse and unengaging. ‘River Crossing’ is essentially Frogger and if you’ve played that, you’ve played this. Instead of avoiding cars, Polly has to hop, log-to-log, croc-to-croc, keeping out of the water/jaws of local wildlife. I can’t help thinking such an assault course wouldn’t have been endorsed by the theme park, save for if it was being run by a Bond villain.
So what about the activities in question? There’s ‘River Rapids’, a rather half-hearted take on Toobin that sees Polly gliding along in a dinghy, collecting balloons, avoiding occasional rocks and taking jumps. This is perhaps the most uneventful of the games, its layouts feeling sparse and unengaging. ‘River Crossing’ is essentially Frogger and if you’ve played that, you’ve played this. Instead of avoiding cars, Polly has to hop, log-to-log, croc-to-croc, keeping out of the water/jaws of local wildlife. I can’t help thinking such an assault course wouldn’t have been endorsed by the theme park, save for if it was being run by a Bond villain.
|
|
‘Water Blaster’ involves a slightly finicky grid-based gallery shooting setup, as Polly must blast various kids popping up from under the water, with jets of water. However, the colour on her super-soaker must correspond with the colour of the dinghy worn by the kid in question. This one grew on me, offering a sterner test of reflexes. ‘Tube Trouble’ sees Polly running around collecting balloons and jumping between three tiers of platforms, occasionally dodging waves by grabbing onto overhead netting. There’s plenty going on here too, resulting in some ultra short-term enjoyment, though you’ll soon tire of it.
A couple of the activities are a little more interesting, albeit neither is fully realised. ‘Bumper Boats’ is fun: realistically the nearest we’ll ever see the Polly Pocket brand come to vehicular combat, with a couple of power-ups that can be used to smash your pals’ boats. This might have worked better with a ranking/elimination system to underpin it. However, like most of the other activities, there’s not much beyond the initial premise and no real endgame: just bash opponents to amass tickets, until the time runs out. ‘Jet Boat’ is easily the most impressive from a presentation point of view, with big jet skis and impressive effects bringing to mind the Game Boy’s Wave Race. The trouble is, whilst delivering a surprising degree of challenge, some really poor handling lets down this activity. Partly, this is due to a limited range of directional animations, with cornering proving stiff and difficult to judge.
A couple of the activities are a little more interesting, albeit neither is fully realised. ‘Bumper Boats’ is fun: realistically the nearest we’ll ever see the Polly Pocket brand come to vehicular combat, with a couple of power-ups that can be used to smash your pals’ boats. This might have worked better with a ranking/elimination system to underpin it. However, like most of the other activities, there’s not much beyond the initial premise and no real endgame: just bash opponents to amass tickets, until the time runs out. ‘Jet Boat’ is easily the most impressive from a presentation point of view, with big jet skis and impressive effects bringing to mind the Game Boy’s Wave Race. The trouble is, whilst delivering a surprising degree of challenge, some really poor handling lets down this activity. Partly, this is due to a limited range of directional animations, with cornering proving stiff and difficult to judge.
|
|
The purpose of collecting tickets is to open up additional portions of the ‘Water Slide’, which looks and plays uncannily like the bonus stages from Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Fans of SEGA’s classic will find this a serviceable if unexciting reimagining. Whilst the music is horribly grating, the game does look nice. Surprisingly, the weakest aspect of the visuals are the cut-scenes and dressing room outfit selections, which look pallid and naff, a long way short of their cartoon counterparts. Other than that, Digital Illusions created a look fitting of a sun-soaked water park.
Super Splash Island certainly isn’t the worst use of a casual license. It plays okay, for the most part. There’s nothing terrible here, no glaring bugs, no ridiculous faux-pas, it’s all just a bit middling. Girl gamers deserved more endeavour and given the distinctive nature of the brand, plonking a bunch of throwback mini-games into a theme park setting cannot help but feel like a missed opportunity. Polly Pocket would likely have suited a mystery, adventure or hidden object game, all of which would have better satisfied the inquisitive minds that made her popular to begin with. Not for the first time, a license that fails to make use of its brand’s strengths.
Super Splash Island certainly isn’t the worst use of a casual license. It plays okay, for the most part. There’s nothing terrible here, no glaring bugs, no ridiculous faux-pas, it’s all just a bit middling. Girl gamers deserved more endeavour and given the distinctive nature of the brand, plonking a bunch of throwback mini-games into a theme park setting cannot help but feel like a missed opportunity. Polly Pocket would likely have suited a mystery, adventure or hidden object game, all of which would have better satisfied the inquisitive minds that made her popular to begin with. Not for the first time, a license that fails to make use of its brand’s strengths.
|
VERDICT
"given the distinctive nature of the brand, plonking a bunch of throwback mini-games into a theme park setting cannot help but feel like a missed opportunity. Not for the first time, a license that fails to make use of its brand’s strengths." OVERALL: 4/10 |