Globular Fun

06-01-13 03:09 AM

Singelli is Offline

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Singelli

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Overall: 7.5/10

Sometimes while testing games, I come across a shining jewel that makes me smile, and other times I discover, well, a slimier variety of fun. Such is the case with the game Super Glob... a classic that everyone should try at least once. If you can imagine making pacman less stable, throwing him in a plat forming game, and giving him much cooler enemies.... you'd end up with this game.

In Super Glob, you play a blue blob named Toby who likes to eat... a lot. While I'm fairly certain the designers of this game never meant to promote gluttony, I'm sure they got exactly what they hoped for after the game was released. In fact, this game was so popular that another version called Beastie Feastie was developed many years later. With slightly different graphics, Beastie Feastie quickly became a favorite and even encourages tons of fan art even today.

Talking about Super Glob, however...

For 24 levels, Toby hops around avoiding creatures like gators, monkeys, and pigs, while using elevators to move around each stage and even kill predators. The nemesis sprites are so cute and Toby is so amazing that it's hard to let this game go.

Graphics: 8/10
Did I already mention that the graphics are adorable? For an older arcade game, the graphics really aren't that bad. They're a little blocky of course, but the quality (which only an arcade game possesses) is still quite intact. The colors are bright and cheery, the foods are easily discernible, and the enemy sprites are both recognizable and alluring. Indeed, I find it astonishing that the game artists were so effectively able to exhibit each small character.

Some of the creatures include (but are not limited to) a rabbit, a crocodile, a monkey, and a pig (affectionately? called a porky).

Another thing that's great about these graphics is the fact that they aren't static. What in the world do I mean by this? Well, each creature is impressively animated as it moves across the floor or tries to open an elevator. Whereas many older arcade games display motion using two or three varying sprites, Super Glob breaks the mold by using at least half a dozen for each critter.

Even the levels themselves look pretty amazing. Each one has it's own set of colors, it's own design, and its own trials. They're actually quite pleasing to look at, while not being so busy that they're distracting to the player. Here are a few examples so that you can see so yourself.

As you can see, aside from the ugly squares which block off side tunnels, the levels maintain a charm with their simplicity. In fact, the first level is the busiest of them all due to all of the elevator buttons, and even that level doesn't look too bad.

Of course, we can't forget Toby's whole reason for risking his life throughout the game! With that thought, I'll give you some images that are bound to make you hungry!

Not hungry, you say? I assure you that you simply are not looking at things from Toby's perspective! I'm willing to bet pacman would give up all his fame for a swift chomp at these delectable treats!

Music: 5/10
It's a good thing the graphics impressed me so much, because I really wasn't a big fan of the music for Super Glob. While none of it was horrible enough to make me mute the game, music is one of the game's biggest areas for improvement. Most notably, the game's beat is played at hardly half the volume of every sound effect. I think it actually took me about five levels into the game to even give the music a second thought because it's so buried under everything that it's hard to miss.

Perhaps the game developers simply wanted to hide the tune. Once I started listening for it, I still wasn't impressed. The game's theme music is ridiculously concise and hardly sounds like music at all.... sounding more like 3 sound effects simply being rolled together in the pretense.

The sound effects themselves aren't anything to squeal over. Most sounds are simply repeated too often, being played every time an enemy spawns, every time a piece of food is eaten, and every time Toby hops. Then too, there is the fact that sounds don't ever change in this game. Toby's motion always sounds like the swing of a light saber, elevators always maintain their appropriate swooping sound, and worst of all... the music during this game never.... EVER changes. Although consistency is often something I appreciate, it's simply too overbearing in this game.

Addictiveness: 6/10
The alluring nature of Super Glob's graphics is easily what keeps me drawn to the game. I'll shamefacedly admit that there's not much replay value in this game at all, and yet I was hooked the moment I saw the curl of the monkey's tail. I love the character of Toby and the way he hops around, I love the thrill of timing the elevator just right, and I love watching Toby stick to ceilings before plopping down over an enemy. While I could never play this game for an extended amount of time, I could easily come to it anytime I get bored, without regretting my choice.

Super Glob is definitely one of those little guilty pleasures that retro gamers wish to keep to themselves, and I'd definitely get other players addicted without feeling any remorse.

Story: N/A
You know... there's this blue blob named Toby.... and he likes to eat stuff. But apparently, he tastes really good, because every creature in the animal kingdom would rather eat him than a free pile of strawberries and cherries.

Seriously though? If Toby has any other story, it's got to be a federal secret. It took a good amount of research even to discover his name, and I couldn't find anything other than that.

Does he NEED a story?

Depth: 3/10
So... as I mentioned before, I can see how this game doesn't draw a huge crowd. Even though I'm a huge fan, I can't deny that this game does NOT offer a lot. It's got 24 levels, each of which can be completed within minutes, and no aspect of the game ever gets more complicated. Toby hops, Toby eats, animals chase him, and elevators serve as the mode of travel. Even the music never changes, and all of this simply ends up being a huge disappointment.

There's even a very limited number of ways enemies can be dealt with. Either Toby can cling to the ceiling as they pass under and then fall on them...... Or Toby can time the ride of a elevator so that enemies are crushed. Although he has an 'energy bar' which shouldn't be depleted, the route of using elevators (for enemy defeat) really gives players a cop-out when it comes to stressing over energy levels.

Then again, there's a very limited number of enemy sprites and edible foods. Once you've seen half a dozen sprites for each category, you've seen them all. There's simply nothing to renew interest in the game unless you want to obtain a higher score each time you play.

Difficulty:5/10
There is absolutely no challenge to this game unless your reflexes are poor. With nothing to add to the gaming experience like bonuses or increased capabilities, the game sort of stagnates into routine. The most strategizing any player must employ, is to decide whether squashing an enemy by body or elevator would be more effective. Most of the time, I didn't even find myself having to watch over the energy bar because it seemed pretty useless.

Even deciding which elevator to use wasn't anything worth fretting over. Most of the time, elevators and buttons are plentiful enough that multiple opportunities arise to use them. Pretty much, this game is reduced to one of those games that are only valuable to players interested in highs cores.

In Conclusion....
I definitely still think this is a game everyone should try. It's got a lovely and refreshing theme, the graphics are cute enough to hug, and the game will never cause anyone to rage quit. It might not be a game someone returns to over and over again, but it's bound to elicit at least one smile. Give it a shot and let me know how you feel about it!

Overall: 7.5/10

Sometimes while testing games, I come across a shining jewel that makes me smile, and other times I discover, well, a slimier variety of fun. Such is the case with the game Super Glob... a classic that everyone should try at least once. If you can imagine making pacman less stable, throwing him in a plat forming game, and giving him much cooler enemies.... you'd end up with this game.

In Super Glob, you play a blue blob named Toby who likes to eat... a lot. While I'm fairly certain the designers of this game never meant to promote gluttony, I'm sure they got exactly what they hoped for after the game was released. In fact, this game was so popular that another version called Beastie Feastie was developed many years later. With slightly different graphics, Beastie Feastie quickly became a favorite and even encourages tons of fan art even today.

Talking about Super Glob, however...

For 24 levels, Toby hops around avoiding creatures like gators, monkeys, and pigs, while using elevators to move around each stage and even kill predators. The nemesis sprites are so cute and Toby is so amazing that it's hard to let this game go.

Graphics: 8/10
Did I already mention that the graphics are adorable? For an older arcade game, the graphics really aren't that bad. They're a little blocky of course, but the quality (which only an arcade game possesses) is still quite intact. The colors are bright and cheery, the foods are easily discernible, and the enemy sprites are both recognizable and alluring. Indeed, I find it astonishing that the game artists were so effectively able to exhibit each small character.

Some of the creatures include (but are not limited to) a rabbit, a crocodile, a monkey, and a pig (affectionately? called a porky).

Another thing that's great about these graphics is the fact that they aren't static. What in the world do I mean by this? Well, each creature is impressively animated as it moves across the floor or tries to open an elevator. Whereas many older arcade games display motion using two or three varying sprites, Super Glob breaks the mold by using at least half a dozen for each critter.

Even the levels themselves look pretty amazing. Each one has it's own set of colors, it's own design, and its own trials. They're actually quite pleasing to look at, while not being so busy that they're distracting to the player. Here are a few examples so that you can see so yourself.

As you can see, aside from the ugly squares which block off side tunnels, the levels maintain a charm with their simplicity. In fact, the first level is the busiest of them all due to all of the elevator buttons, and even that level doesn't look too bad.

Of course, we can't forget Toby's whole reason for risking his life throughout the game! With that thought, I'll give you some images that are bound to make you hungry!

Not hungry, you say? I assure you that you simply are not looking at things from Toby's perspective! I'm willing to bet pacman would give up all his fame for a swift chomp at these delectable treats!

Music: 5/10
It's a good thing the graphics impressed me so much, because I really wasn't a big fan of the music for Super Glob. While none of it was horrible enough to make me mute the game, music is one of the game's biggest areas for improvement. Most notably, the game's beat is played at hardly half the volume of every sound effect. I think it actually took me about five levels into the game to even give the music a second thought because it's so buried under everything that it's hard to miss.

Perhaps the game developers simply wanted to hide the tune. Once I started listening for it, I still wasn't impressed. The game's theme music is ridiculously concise and hardly sounds like music at all.... sounding more like 3 sound effects simply being rolled together in the pretense.

The sound effects themselves aren't anything to squeal over. Most sounds are simply repeated too often, being played every time an enemy spawns, every time a piece of food is eaten, and every time Toby hops. Then too, there is the fact that sounds don't ever change in this game. Toby's motion always sounds like the swing of a light saber, elevators always maintain their appropriate swooping sound, and worst of all... the music during this game never.... EVER changes. Although consistency is often something I appreciate, it's simply too overbearing in this game.

Addictiveness: 6/10
The alluring nature of Super Glob's graphics is easily what keeps me drawn to the game. I'll shamefacedly admit that there's not much replay value in this game at all, and yet I was hooked the moment I saw the curl of the monkey's tail. I love the character of Toby and the way he hops around, I love the thrill of timing the elevator just right, and I love watching Toby stick to ceilings before plopping down over an enemy. While I could never play this game for an extended amount of time, I could easily come to it anytime I get bored, without regretting my choice.

Super Glob is definitely one of those little guilty pleasures that retro gamers wish to keep to themselves, and I'd definitely get other players addicted without feeling any remorse.

Story: N/A
You know... there's this blue blob named Toby.... and he likes to eat stuff. But apparently, he tastes really good, because every creature in the animal kingdom would rather eat him than a free pile of strawberries and cherries.

Seriously though? If Toby has any other story, it's got to be a federal secret. It took a good amount of research even to discover his name, and I couldn't find anything other than that.

Does he NEED a story?

Depth: 3/10
So... as I mentioned before, I can see how this game doesn't draw a huge crowd. Even though I'm a huge fan, I can't deny that this game does NOT offer a lot. It's got 24 levels, each of which can be completed within minutes, and no aspect of the game ever gets more complicated. Toby hops, Toby eats, animals chase him, and elevators serve as the mode of travel. Even the music never changes, and all of this simply ends up being a huge disappointment.

There's even a very limited number of ways enemies can be dealt with. Either Toby can cling to the ceiling as they pass under and then fall on them...... Or Toby can time the ride of a elevator so that enemies are crushed. Although he has an 'energy bar' which shouldn't be depleted, the route of using elevators (for enemy defeat) really gives players a cop-out when it comes to stressing over energy levels.

Then again, there's a very limited number of enemy sprites and edible foods. Once you've seen half a dozen sprites for each category, you've seen them all. There's simply nothing to renew interest in the game unless you want to obtain a higher score each time you play.

Difficulty:5/10
There is absolutely no challenge to this game unless your reflexes are poor. With nothing to add to the gaming experience like bonuses or increased capabilities, the game sort of stagnates into routine. The most strategizing any player must employ, is to decide whether squashing an enemy by body or elevator would be more effective. Most of the time, I didn't even find myself having to watch over the energy bar because it seemed pretty useless.

Even deciding which elevator to use wasn't anything worth fretting over. Most of the time, elevators and buttons are plentiful enough that multiple opportunities arise to use them. Pretty much, this game is reduced to one of those games that are only valuable to players interested in highs cores.

In Conclusion....
I definitely still think this is a game everyone should try. It's got a lovely and refreshing theme, the graphics are cute enough to hug, and the game will never cause anyone to rage quit. It might not be a game someone returns to over and over again, but it's bound to elicit at least one smile. Give it a shot and let me know how you feel about it!

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Singelli

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06-01-13 03:29 AM

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Kyle!
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Nice review! I, as always, love to see more reviews from you!

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06-01-13 03:31 AM

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Singelli : Another Brilliant review but this review you made was shorter than the other one but maybe this game " Super Glob " doesn't have much to offer like that Super Kick game. Overall great work. I appropriate your reviews 100%. Have a great day.

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06-01-13 03:34 AM

Singelli is Offline

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Singelli

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supercool22 : Yeah, I tried to make it longer, but I really, really struggled to. I probably sat and stared at this review for at least 30 minutes before finally just submitting it. I'm also trying to get over my rambling tendencies, too, so I figured it had to be good the way it was. ^.^

BluemageKyle :
Thanks to both of you!

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06-01-13 05:32 AM

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Great job! I always love how you add the pictures to help people understand things.

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06-01-13 09:02 AM

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I love everything in your reviews and enjoy reading them! Thanks for the entertainment!

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06-01-13 09:55 AM

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This review is awesome, descriptive and clear! Yours is the first review to include pictures in it, I should start doing that, it looks good in the review. Your review is the perfect length, and I love your honesty with the score and the way you give reasoning behind the score you gave it. I think it is the perfect length and it doesn't really need to be any longer because it is detailed enough. So very nice work with this review, you inspire me to do many things to my reviews to make them better. Keep up the great work and keep making more great reviews!