Ride a pig, go to jail. Review

Ride a pig, go to jail.

In terms of platform games on the PlayStation, Sony is in a bad position. They

have their flagship Crash Bandicoot series, but

other than that they have been literally squashed by Nintendo’s Mario

and Sega’s Sonic. This will be no more

though, as Whoopee Camp has come up with a character that is even more zany

than Mario or Sonic in their excellent game, Tomba!

Tomba

follows the adventures of a monkey-boy with pink hair as he travels through

forests and mountains solving puzzles and completing quests. That is also the

most innovative feature of Tomba: the ability to do multiple quests at

any time you wish. It isn’t a linear platformer, like Crash, where you have

to complete each level as it is set in front of you. Instead, you can venture

around the world choosing to do whatever you wish at any time you wish.

This freedom has been attempted in other genres, such as RPG’s (see Daggerfall),

but it is the first time it has been used in a platform game. Another interesting

feature is the ability to jump in and out of the screen, giving the game a psuedo-3D

feel. Instead of being stuck running in a line, back and forth, you can move

behind things as well. Creative for what is essentially a 2D platformer.

The graphics in Tomba are great, the sensational art is coupled with

well modeled 3D objects that create a lush world filled with interesting life

forms. Forests, leaves, water, buildings, everything, is drawn with incredible

detail. Even the hand-animated cut-scenes are cute and funny. Tomba has

some of the best 2D art out today. By using lots of rotational effects, Tomba

also has some interesting views that change the 2D backgrounds – it’s not only

the 3D objects that move in Tomba.

The sound

and music in the game are funnier than a pig in a pink dress. Tomba’s expressions

and vocal noises are whimsical while the music is entertaining. Composed and

recorded well, the sound and music may set a new high water mark for platformers.

The only thing holding Tomba back is the traditional un-innovative

gameplay. Yes, the same run and jump familiarity of platform games is back,

totally lacking anything new. It’s not that the system is bad, as it has obviously

been successful for so many games, it’s just that so many games have

come out using the the same platform gameplay that it is becoming boring.

The aforementioned ‘quest system’ is fun, but it doesn’t change what you do

in between different quests – run around and jump on enemies. Tomba can use

different weapons and items, giving the game a somewhat RPG feel – which is

a good advance for the genre, but not as in-depth as Castlevania.

However, some people may find the tried and true gameplay a little too tired.

Is Tomba one of the best side-scrolling platformers for the PlayStation?

You betcha. Although gameplay isn’t entirely innovative, it has some great new

features that all platform fans should check out. Still though, the best part

about the game is the opening movie where you are introduced to Tomba – who

knew anyone could ride a pig that well?