De Blob Review

Publisher: THQ
Creator: bluetounge
Genre: Puzzel/Platform
Platform: Wii
Release date: 2002-11-13


Review

De Blob is a colorful bounce of color, while taking on THE MAN. The simple idea that paranoia of 1984 becoming real, add in a coloring book, and platforming blended together to get a Molotov cocktail of fun. De Blob is as advertised a blob of smearing de blob over buildings and such to bring back color. Weirdly enough the game isn’t as disturbing as it sounds .So just to wipe the fear out of your mind with this Molotov cocktail.

De Blob takes the idea of this world of color from the signs to the people which the INKT Corporation has taken over. The idea of corporations taking out the color with the eradication of color or “the war on color” does a good job of representing work pull the life/color out of people. Presenting the idea of destroying the man with art as the main storyline, which works well here just like for Jet Set Radio was with skating. The act of destroying the man, and to bring color back to the people is for the most part fun since anyway to destroy the man is with the swinging of the Nunchuck.

The bouncing of de blob has its own team of attack that direct de blob. The last remaining pocket of resistance, the Color Underground, directing de blob to and fro. Helping the resistance is done, via Tony Hawk style of x objective within a certain time limit. Each completed objective adds time to beat the level within, since there is no save points. This is the main reason the game is addictive. The only save points are when de blob’s die, or when you beat the level. So it is really easy to get lost for hours on play trying to beat the level just to get to a save point.

The journey to that goal is filled with fun from the joyful soundtrack that plays based on how one plays. When solving the puzzles, and jumping from one building to another it really shows since the pacing of de blobs movement is the pace of the music. A simple loop track that changes based on the color, movement, danger, and enemies becomes more complex. Depending on the soundtrack which is unlocked with each level a saxophone plays with the color of blue, or the pacing with the points get fast the higher when combining bounces and smears on the buildings.

Each bit of the game works on the simple idea of that, it starts out as a relatively simple thing. From hitting a building with a color, the game expands from that by adding a new addition to the next problem. One building may be easy enough, but the next has different tiers on it to ascend to. Another building may have the same tiers, but now at different heights that can’t go up evenly like stairs. Another having ink fountain flowing out that hurts de blob until landing in water. Which is a simple piece that gets added onto it, something all build from? Simple, yet fun. Every item of the game has this from the villainous INKT Corporation to the music. While enjoyable the ascension becomes tedious, this is what makes the game fun and addiction make it a pain after awhile. The looped music with a happy chirping of a blue bird becomes one that deserves a death to end its annoyance. Whimsical delights becoming a dance of boot smashing of headaches. It keeps trying to escape the fact that it is so similar to a coloring book. The two player aspect tries as it might still can’t escape it. This is what the game does well at, and once a level is beaten free play mode is the best. There is no time limit, just de blob and blank buildings to color by smashing into it. Ever time it tries to get away from that it becomes average. The base it can’t erase with fun boss battles and enemies though it does try.

Conclusion

De Blob ends up as a coloring book of platforming. Fun it may be, the fun is monetary amount where you get what you pay for, but not much more. For a fan of plat forming this is going to be up there one of the best games they ever play, though for the most part just looks like video game version of a coloring book. While having a nice mix of objectives to complete so the people can be free from the dictator resin of black and white play for fun. The main problem is that it just can’t get out of the fact that it is a coloring book of a video game. Though coloring books are fun, they just can’t last. People either loves them or hate them, then toss them to the side when done.


Pros

[*] Whimsical music
[*] Bouncy wouncy fun, fun, fun that Tigger would envy
[*]Quirky storyline

Cons

[*]Platforming headaches
[*]No save points
[*]No voices other then gibberish

Gameplay 15/25
Fun 20/25
Sound 20/25
Graphics 14/25

Total 69/100