Lizzie McGuire (Game Boy Advance) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

Lizzie McGuire is another of the many Disney TV/Movie tie-ins that are making their way to the GBA. For those of you that don't know the show is all about the ordinary and not-so-ordinary adventures of a junior high student and her two best friends as they try to deal with the ups and downs of school, popularity, boys, parents, a bratty little brother and just life in general. If that sounds like your kind of thing then you probably watch the show already, if not then there's probably little about this game that's going to change your mind.

Gameplay

You'll quickly realize that the majority of Lizzie McGuire is locked and the only way to access the various mini-games is to play the 'When Cheerleaders Attack' section. This is a simple platform game with the object being to collect the allocated amount of CDs, Fashion Accessories or whatever before the clock runs out. You are hampered by elevators that force you to travel up or down, spinning and bouncing objects that knock you out on contact and the aforementioned Cheerleaders. If you're unlucky enough to run out of time before collecting everything then you'll find yourself right back to level one which doesn't seem that fair really.

The mini-games are definitely the title?s highlight with a style of game that will please most young girls. These include Code Blue where you must connect four of the same colored discs in a row, Dots 'n' Boxes, Word Guess which is a simple Hangman game and the self explanatory Matching Pairs. All of these can also be enjoyed as a two-player game on one GBA with each player taking their turn then passing the game to their friend. One of the odder sections is the 'Fun With Friends' option with the cart having a stab at showing off its AI abilities. This is a little hard to describe but you can indulge in a handful of strange pastimes such as asking Lizzie what she thinks of your fashion sense or any other question that requires a 'yes' or 'no' answer. There's also the PDA section where you can store your School Timetable details, Friends and even sort out your Horoscope. Everything is automatically saved to a battery back up and while this is a definite plus we couldn't actually find a way to reset it.

Controls

Very simple indeed with the option to view instructions before you play each of the mini games. Possibly the most complicated section is the 'When Cheerleaders Attack' game but you'll find the controls suitably responsive for leaping from platform to platform with ease. The PDA section can also be a little tricky with a tiny keyboard popping up at the bottom of the screen whenever you need to enter new details. It's not impossible but you do have to be very careful.

Graphics

While the visuals on display here are not nearly as sophisticated as we've come to expect from the GBA they certainly suit the style of the game and the age range it's aimed at. Big, bold and colorful visuals populate every level with clarity and fun clearly the main objective. What animation there is (which is only really evident in the 'When Cheerleaders Attack' section) is also well above average with the characters moving in a pleasing Disney fashion.

Sound

The soundtrack can best be described as the type of thing 60s band The Monkeys would come up with after they'd seen the game. Bright, poppy and very inoffensive and if not the best in-game music you'll hear, it manages not to irritate the ear drums too much either. The sound effects are the usual odd collection of noises that follow cartoon characters around and most of the mini-games are limited to a simple beep or click to indicate that something has actually happened.

Final comments

This is not the only GBA title aimed at young girls to take this route; both Barbie and Mary Kate and Ashley have released similar mini game compilations. It's not a bad idea as gamers get a fair bit of variety for their money but in Lizzie McGuire you're forced to play the platform section over and over again in order to unlock everything. It's great once you've done it but the whole thing does start to feel like a very unnecessary exercise especially when you realize that having everything available in the first place wouldn't have made the game any less playable. The two player games obviously add extra value to the overall package and the battery back up for saving high scores and other data will no doubt delight the intended audience. Overall this is a definite 'try before you buy' type of affair and with other franchises available already that provide a similar gaming experience it really is down to which character you most enjoy.

Pro: The Mini-Games.
Con: The Main Game.
Final score: 4.5

Share on Twitter or Facebook

Comments