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22 June 2017
Quirky Puzzle-Platformer with a Monkey!
An early title on the SNES, Spanky's Quest may not be a game you're familiar with, but it's definitely a game worth becoming familiar.
It's a puzzle-platformer in the vein of Bubble Bobble, with a sequence of small platforming levels to clear. There are enemies you can attack with a weapon of sorts. At any time, you can throw a little bubble in the air, and bounce it off your head to make it larger. When it reaches a certain size, you can pop it, and send out sports balls to kill enemies. You start out with a tiny little baseball, but you can expand the bubble to throw volleyballs, soccer balls, and basketballs. There is a definite risk vs. reward mechanic to your attacks: do you throw out basketballs with a wide attack arc, a soccer ball that expands once it hits an enemy for multiple hits, or just throw a quick little baseball to get another bubble out as quick as possible?
That having been said, there are many differences between this game and Bubble Bobble. The levels scroll both horizontally and vertically, making many of them quite large. They're full of obstacles as well, such as switches that control traps, springs, cannons, and so on. There are also all kinds of items in the levels, from keys to open the exit, power-up hats to expand your bubble faster, 1-up coins, and hidden bonus rooms. Enemies are also quite cunning: they can take control of switches, steal items, and group together to ruin your day. Fortunately, you don't have to kill all of them: you clear the level by collecting all the keys and heading to the exit door. But like Bubble Bobble, if you linger in one level too long, an invincible enemy will chase you until you make your escape.
The controls of the game are heavy, but smooth, and work well for this gameplay style. Spanky moves around quickly, but his jump arc is slow and deliberate, making it easy to gauge where you'll land. The game also has well-programmed physics: the direction that your attack bubble moves is easy to follow, and it keeps its momentum after it pops. It doesn't stop or act unpredictably, so you'll quickly become skilled with it as you guide its angle to attack enemies. This helps to keep the game's action fast-paced without becoming overly frenetic.
The game's presentation is also highly appealing. The graphics are bright and colourful, if a bit simplistic. Each world is creatively themed, from cityscapes with clouds made of newspaper, flashy neon beaches, to ancient temples with suns held up on chains. The game also brims with personality: Spanky is a cheeky little protagonist, and the enemies are all distinct and likeable. They're all different forms of living fruit, and they all act differently, from the apples who dance and float like ballerinas and stop to wink at you, grumpy-faced melons that keep their eyes fixed on Spanky, to fast-moving kiwi fruit that look like kiwi birds. The music is also great, with infectious beats and catchy melodies composed with funky synth samples, before SNES music became so orchestral. It'll definitely put you in a good mood.
That said, though, the game has a strange quality of seeming both simple and overdesigned at the same time. Even though the level's designs are quite basic, as befits a puzzle-platformer of the time, the springs and cannons feel like they add complexity, rather than depth. The power-up hats also have dubious usefulness, since they don't give Spanky an extra hit, or make him run any faster. Some of the enemies also start out as "cans" which eventually break open, but since you can't really rush through the levels, they feel less like a threat and more like a delay.
Still, with all that being said, it's a highly likeable game, and a somewhat obscure title from the early SNES library. If you need some more games to scratch your Bubble Bobble itch, it comes highly recommended. Plus, who doesn't love a game where you play as a monkey?