Polly Pocket!: Super Splash Island (GBA) (Polly Pocket!: Super Splash Island (GBA))

Member Name: thole09

Product:	Polly Pocket!: Super Splash Island (GBA)
Date:	25/05/09 (5 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some gameplay

Disadvantages: Bland visuals

"Polly Pocket: Super Splash Island" is a video game released for the Gameboy Advance console in 2006 by Zoo Digital Publishing. It is based on the Polly Pocket series of children's toys. In the United States, the game received a rating of "E" by the ESRB panel which deemed it suitable for all ages.

The gameplay of this title is split into six different mini games. Polly Pocket has won a local radio contest and receives a day out at the local water amusement park as her prize. She enters the park and has access to all but the giant water slide, and aims to gather enough tickets to ride it. The player will play through park attractions such as the bumper boats, which is a simple demolition derby in essence, to the water blaster stall which is a target shooting game using water pistols. Performance in the game rewards the player with a set amount of tickets and should the player also find a hidden flower will receive a special costume for Polly to wear for the remainder of the current attraction's duration. Ticket rewards are also dependent on the difficulty level chosen; easy rewards less than medium which rewards less than hard.

The graphical presentation changes perspective depending on the mini game being played. "River Crossing", for example, is presented from a top down perspective whereas "Water Blaster" will be presented from a side perspective. Regardless of the view the graphics are bland in their presentation and only make use of typical water based hues from the blues of the water to the greens of nearby shore features. Polly comes across as being somewhat of a squashed sprite on the display but any rewarded special otufits do become visually obvious on screen. The soundtrack is comparably simple with gentle musical scores and sound effects following the player throughout.

Overall, Super Splash Island is a game which would likely appeal to younger fans of the Polly Pocket series. It did not appeal to me as an adult player and I would be hesitant about recommending it to anyone outside of the younger market.

Summary: Thumbs in the middle