Adventure Time is arguably one of the best and biggest hit shows to come from Cartoon Network. Created by Pendleton Ward, the animated series is greatly inspired by movies, games, and the cartoons of the 90’s, and features a world and characters that fit perfectly in video games. Thus, Adventure Time: Legends of Ooo – Big Hollow Princess was born. Is Legends of Ooo the
An iOS exclusive, the game puts players in control of Finn and Jake as they explore the land of Ooo, trying to find a way to rescue three princesses that have been frozen by the Ice King. The story was written by Pendleton Ward, and features original voice acting for Finn, Jake, and the Ice King. The other familiar characters you’ll meet along the way, have text-only dialog. It takes you out of the experience when you are so used to hearing Finn and Jake comment on everything you do, only to have to read every other line of dialog. It’s a minor gripe, but the inconsistency is very noticeable.
The gameplay is simple, revolving around basic point-and-click style of gameplay. Controlling Finn and Jake is as easy as touching the ground where you want them to go, or tapping an item to pick it up. Throughout your adventure, you’ll visit several locations from the show, but unfortunately it isn’t all set up like an open world. Instead, the game places you where you need to be, and only allows you to explore three or four screens per location. Once your goal is complete in that location, you are moved into the next. This wouldn’t be a problem if the puzzles were more complex, or items actually took some effort to find. However, items are placed right out in the open, and solving puzzles usually comes down to a character telling you exactly what he or she needs, and you finding it. There is a hint system available, but with the game already holding your hand through everything, it’s impossible for anyone to get lost. It’s clear that the game is geared toward a much younger audience, but the Adventure Time TV show’s main audience happens to be teens and young adults, so some thought should have been put into making the adventure a little more challenging.
Legends of Ooo plays out exactly like an episode of the show, but unfortunately, it’s length is also similar. My overall playtime was around 15 minutes, and the game offers no rewards or incentives for replay. Even for kids, the game is far too easy and will be over far too quickly. While it’s hard to complain about a game’s length when the price is only $.99, iOS games have come a long way in quality and entertainment value over the past couple of years, and Legends of Ooo seems to have really missed the mark.
Being such a big fan of the TV show, I really wanted to like this game. For fans of Adventure Time, Legends of Ooo – Big Hollow Princess is very enjoyable, but the enjoyment only comes from the animation and humor in the dialog. The gameplay is too easy, the world isn’t as free and open as it should be, and ultimately it just falls short of being the perfect Adventure Time game. The other problem I had is that the theme song plays constantly in the background for the entire game, but I didn’t want to shut off the sound because I wanted to hear the voice acting. If you are a hardcore fan of the series, it may be worth downloading, but it won’t hold anybody’s attention for long. It isn’t algebraic, it’s just lumpin’ lame.
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