For all of you nostalgia lovers.
Graphics: Oh my gosh this is one piece of art. All of the levels have a dreamy feel to them. Each level looks completely different from the last. On some levels, the sky is a purplish blue, while on others it's different shades. It's amazing to see all the colors that are on screen. The contrast between the dark and bright colors is truly astonishing. You can also see the waves flowing from right to left. My favorite level is the one where you get to play as Plok's grandfather and the whole screen is in black and white like one of those silent films from the 20's. The character animations are solid. When Plok is moving, his hands and feet move in a clockwise matter. Moreover, the characters also have a variety of gestures. When Plok hits some enemies such as the Rockyfella for example, it will flash red and open its eyes real big.
Sound: If I could sum up music in this game I would use only one word: epic. It is so good that I have searched all over the internet to find a soundtrack for this game. As soon as you pop in the cartridge and push the power button, the game starts off in a bang. You are greeted by this very zany and catchy harmonica song. All you need to do is hear this song once and it'll be stuck in your head for a while: a true classic. The music uses a variety of instruments, including xylophones, harmonicas, synthesizers and many more. The boss music is my favorite. It's like a techno theme with a dark tone on it, but it really gets you pumped! Whenever Plok finds a costume to use, the music changes to a theme fitting for the costume. For example, whenever he finds the boxer costume, the music switches to a theme similar to something that you would find in a Rocky movie. The sound effects are sweet. When Plok gets hit by an enemy, he yelps really lound and kind of sounds like a girl. When an enemy gets killed, many of them let out an "Ugh" sound. It's simply amazing that the programmers were able to fit all of these tunes and sound effects into one cartridge. I am not kidding, there are about 12 different songs in the game not to mention a plethora of sound effects.
Controls: There is no problem here. The game's controls are very responsive. All you need to use is the d-pad and three buttons. B is to jump, Y is to fling limbs and A is to do a high jump. If you miss judge a platform, it is your own fault.
Gameplay: Due to the cutesy graphics of the game, many people mistakenly regard this game as another "kids" game. It is anything but. In fact, this game is more for the people who are still kids at heart. It is a very hard, but very rewarding game. This game is pretty much a platformer at heart. You go around killing enemies with your limbs and you have to jump from platform to platform in order to avoid hazards such as water and spikes. There are also some levels where you have to explore the whole environment in order to find all the fleas that are scattered all around. There are about a dozen or so enemy types that you have to fight in the game. I'll tell you about a few of them. Rockyfellas are rock-type enemies that don't move but spit out deadly projectiles at you. You got be positioned well cuz these guys shoot fast and take a huge chunk of life. Gershwins are nugget type creatures that just hop from one end to another. They are the easiest to kill since they only require one hit. Probably the hardest buggers to kills are the fleas because they move in completely random patterns. As you already know, you have your limbs as a weapon, but there are also many costumes hidden throughout the game in which you can special powerups that last for a couple of seconds. These costumes lie within several hidden gift boxes for you to find. These costumes give Plok super power abilities that were previously unavailable. There is the boxing uniform which allows Plok to throw boxing gloves at enemies. There is also the Sherlock Holmes uniform that allows him to wreck havoc by shooting a shotgun. All of these powerups last about a minute.
The difficulty of this game is pretty hard and requires a lot of practice. It can be quite unbalanced in some parts. The first world for example, is very easy as it lets you explore Plok's abilities. Then all of a sudden you are left to face two behemoth giants known as the Bobbin Bros. These guys will eat your heart out. These guys keep bouncing up and down as they spew junk out of their mouths at the same time. With two of these guys out to get you, this game demands accuracy or else, you're in for a nightmare. To make matters worse, later on in the game you have to face not two, but three of these guys. This part is so unbelievably frustrating, that I've thought about asking my game genie for one of my three wishes. Another hard part in this game is finding those pesky fleas. You have to search every nook and cranny to find some of them. This means that you have to traverse through dangerous hazards such as bottomless pits and rivers that can cause problems for your red yellow hero. And if you are planning on beating this game, you better cancel all your plans for that day because this game takes 4 and ½ hours to beat. I am not kidding you. There is no password function or anything. However, there are some warps that you can find which will allow you to skip a couple of levels. The warp levels are a lot of fun to play. You either take control of a motorcycle or a helicopter as your goal is to get from one side to the other while avoiding walls and spikes. Easier said than done.
Overall, this game is a must buy for any Super Nintendo owner if you are willing to devote some time on it. It is one of the most original titles you will ever see. With some time and practice it can be beaten. It is not like Ghosts n Goblin. You can find this game for pretty cheap on the internet. It is a shame that this game didn't get the attention that it deserved. I think this was partly due to the different gaming companies trying shove these crappy platformers at your face such as Bubsy, Awesome Possum, and Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel which should have never seen the light of day. This game gets a 9/10.