Gaming Trend

Gaming Trend Review

by Mike Repella

It’s time for the fifth and final episode of season one of Strong Bad’s Cool Game For Attractive People, entitled 8-Bit is Enough, or SBCGFAP:E58BIE for short. This time around long time fans of the series only need to know one thing, TROGDOR.

Do you remember the broken down Trogdor arcade machine sitting in Strong Bad’s basement? Well, the arcade machine and Trogdor finally make their grand appearance in this episode.

This review features the PC version, but Telltale also made a Wii Ware version which Telltale promises is nearly identical.

My review PC Specs are:
    * Windows XP SP3
    * AMD Athlon 4200 X2
    * Nvidia Geforece 8800GT
    * 2 Gigs of DDR

Graphically not much has changed since Episode 1. I have to give the series some credit, the game looks almost exactly like the internet cartoon. All of the characters look just like their online versions and the animations for each are all taken straight from the website. There have been some graphical improvements made for the game. Strong Bad will be able to move about freely in each environment. The game features a foreground and backgrounds that Strong Bad can move about in, so the game isn't strictly presented in a flat cartoon style.

The biggest change for episode five is that there are several mini arcade style games to play that are presented in true 8-bit fashion. In fact most of the games look like beefed up 16-bit games with bright colors and well defined characters. The central theme of the episode also turns many of the regular characters into sprite based characters from the Super Nintendo era. I think the developers were going for gaming nostalgia and they have pulled it off quite well.

As one could imagine, I had absolutely no trouble playing the game on my PC as the hardware requirements for the game are fairly low. Unlike the Wii version, the PC version does feature scalable graphics so the PC version should look sharper than its console counterpart. Strong Bad also features widescreen support.

All of the series' regular voice actors are present in SBCGFAP:E58BIE and do a fine job reprising their roles as the assortment of oddball characters. If you have heard any cartoon on the Homestar Runner website then you will know what to expect.

This is a point and click adventure, thus throughout most of the game you will only need the mouse pointer and the left mouse button to play the game. You control Strong Bad by pointing where you want him to go on the screen and then clicking there.

The mini games in this episode feature 2d side scrolling games that all vary slightly, but are generally easy to control with the W,A,S,D, keys. Overall the controls work well and aren't distracting.

8-bit is Enough is a point and click adventure, so anyone who has ever played Strong Bad Episodes 1 through 4, Sam and Max, Escape From Monkey Island or any other comedic adventure game should know what to expect.

The game opens when Strong Bad ‘s Trogdor Arcade Machine comes to life and starts destroying everything. Naturally Strong Bad has to get it fixed and during the process he accidentally creates an alternate universe where the real world and the 8-bit world merge. Strong Bad then has to embark on an adventure and enter into many of his favorite games to undo the damage he has caused. It’s a very interesting premise and the strongest one yet for any of the Strong Bad games.

There are several nods and jokes about the 8-bit and 16-bit gaming era. Gaming fans will recognize levels that are clearly based on Mario’s haunted house or even the Super NES Scope 6 light gun. There are even 8-bit, 16-bit and Atari 2600 versions of Strong Bad in the game.

You can download the single episode directly from Telltale Games' website for $8.95. In addition, you can order the entire season of five episodes for $34.95. The fifth episode will take veteran adventure gamers about three to four hours to finish the main storyline. Many gamers will find a couple more hours of fun if you search for all of the collectibles, explore all of the interactive elements of the game and play the mini games. The $34.95 collection is a no brainer for Homestar Runner fans and the game is definitely worth a spin at $8.95 for people new to the Homestar Runner universe.

8-bit is Enough is another solid entry in the Strong Bad series. The storyline is self contained and it isn't essential that you played Episodes 1 through 4 in order to enjoy Episode 5. With the exception of the 8-bit style of graphics and controls, the overall graphics and controls remain unchanged from the previous episodes.

If you only play one episode of Strong Bad’s Cool Game then I would recommend this one. Because of the assortment of 2d games that Strong Bad has to explore, it has the most variety as far as gameplay. It also contains the series' only appearance by Trogdor, which is reason enough to buy this one over the others. 

Gamers who enjoy adventure games, but aren't familiar with Homestar Runner owe it to themselves to check this one out. Perhaps the only people who won't enjoy this game are those who don't understand or like the comedic style of the Homestar Runner universe.

Gaming Trend Score

86

1. Graphics: 92
2. Audio: 85
3. Controls: 90
4. Gameplay: 83
5. Value/Replay: 85
6. OVERALL:86