A creative way of putting out a platformer
User Rating: 8.6 | Chibi Robo! GC
I had an odd fascination with Chibi-Robo that made me want to play it. When I found it had dropped to $19.99 I could feel that the time had come and I was very pleased with what followed as I played through this game. Chibi-Robo is a fantastic platformer in disguise really. You hear a lot about this game being about cleaning and doing chores, but it's not really. Your main goal is to keep this family of wacky characters happy and dealing with a lot of other crazy characters as well. Your playing field is the inside of the Sanderson's house which consists of several different rooms. However, your limits as to where you can go are based upon your battery power. You start off at a very low amount and you can recharge at any outlet. As you progress through the game you earn "happy points" for doing things like cleaning up stains on the floor or finding lost items for people. These happy points basically act as experience in other RPG's; after you reach certain amounts your battery power upgrades. This then allows you to reach newer areas of the house that you probably didn't even realize were there. The way this exploration was developed in the game is fantastic. It feels totally ingenious in an awesome way. It's hard to explain how it is, but when you do it you'll know what I'm talking about. This reason of Happy Points is why cleaning isn't required in the game. It helps you to get Happy Points quicker if you spend the couple seconds to clean up a stain when you walk by them or pick up the piece of trash when its in your way. Its not something you need to go out of your way to do, but when it's right there it will help you to take care of it. The story in the game is silly as are the sounds. They are both enjoyable, the characters, besides the main ones, are all wacky and present sidequests for you to take on throughout the game. This adds a nice bit of extra material to the game. The sound is also enjoyable throughout the game, its no huge orchestral score, but its fun. I definitely think this game is worth playing through if you are a fan of platformers or creative games. It's a lot of fun to play through and has a lot of material if you really take the time to explore it.
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