The Addams Family: Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt
Reviewed by Pearla
A pretty cool game that I got as a birthday gift. Personally, I tend
to go with RPG's, but this game is a great way to fill the in-between
times. Now, it's been a while since I've played, so bear with me if I
overlook a few details... It's fairly simple-- the basic premise is that
Pugsley has to go through every room of the Addams household & find
the items on a checklist (in the attic you find the "stinky cheese," in
the bathroom you find "octopus ink," etc). It runs on your basic "heart"
system-- 3 hearts, -1 for every "hit" you take, but every $25 you find
gets you a "refill" for 1 heart, & every $100 gets you a life (you also
get extra lives by killing everything you can & getting as many points
as possible).
Graphics 10 out of 10
This game has got some awesome graphics. The characters themselves
are wonderfully done, not to mention the different creatures you have
to get through to finish a room, but what I loved best, though, are the
kick butt graphics in the rooms, especially in the backgrounds. The
bathroom was my favorite-- you got bubbles flying around, and all
sorts of little things going on. I also liked the "ice world" room (can't
remember which room that is though...)-- it may be the hardest room
to finish, but it's the coolest looking.
Music and Sound 8.5 out of 10
Music is okay, actually pretty cool, but can be VERY repetitive (& to
top things off, it's also catchy, so you get the same 2-bar tune in
your head all day long!). What I did like, though, are the different
sound effects (which you can test out through the "options" menu
at the beginning of the game- i thought that was kind of cool). Like
the sound you get when you step on the different creatures you have
to kill, & the noises the creatures make-- it's pretty darned chuckalicious.
Game Challenge 8 out of 10
Some rooms are easier than others. The attic is pretty short & simple,
the bathroom is longer & more difficult. If you get as many $'s as
possible & kill as many little creatures as possible, it's pretty easy
to keep your hearts filled & your lives a-plenty. There are however 3
specific things that make this game very hard to master: 1) that darned
"ice world" room, which is the only one I haven't been able to pass.
it's the last room, & the hardest. 2) no saving! you have to get through
every room in one go, or start over, because there is no way to save your
progress, & 3) actually, this isn't too bad, but i found it kind of
annoying-- you have to get through specific rooms to open other rooms.
For example, if you want to do the basement, you have to get through
Fester's room first...
Game Play-Fun 9 out of 10
It's a pretty fun game-- cool graphics & sound effects, funny-looking
creatures to step on, rockets to ride on... you got mice throwing cheese
at you in one room and killer ducks in another, not to mention a
wonderful sister to help you out (I lie-- try going to Wednesday's
room & all you'll get is "Don't expect any help from me!"). Plus, there
are all sorts of little secret places to get extra $'s & points. It's good times.
Frustration
It's that darned no-saving thing! I mean, the game is fun & everything,
but if you want to finish it, you have to do it in one session, which
really stinks because sometimes you just want to turn it off & take
a break, but you can't because then you'll have to start all over.
Replayability 7 out of 10
Well, there are only so many rooms, so the replayability isn't going
to be as high as one would hope. it's a cool game & all, but you can
only take so much of the same thing before you get kind of bored with
it. Don't get me wrong, it's a really fun game to play, and I enjoy it,
but like I said, there are only so many things to do, plus if you turn it
off before you finish all the rooms, you have to get through the same
rooms all over again before you get to the rooms you haven't been in yet.
Game Value 10 out of 10
Hey, it was a gift, I didn't pay for it, so it was one heck of a bargain!
Seriously, though, I wouldn't pay more than about $20 for it.