I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who loved watching the adventures of Tommy, Chuckie, Lil and Phil growing up. When the demo booted up for Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland, I had instant nostalgia as the music and art style brought me back to my childhood. The babies had recently seen a new Reptar video game and they were pretending they were in it. I was able to select my starting character and while each baby had their own individual strengths, of course I had to pick Tommy to start my platforming adventure.
There were two different art styles I could choose from, either HD or 8-bit. While at PAX, I chose the HD style which was more detailed, cartoony, and provided a more nostalgic immersive experience. I did try out the 8-bit after I returned home and its charming aesthetic represented the older look and feel of the NES and Game Boy. I thought it was neat that I was able to switch between the different styles at any time during the episode and the music also changed along with it!
This game is recommended to play with a controller which is what I used at PAX. I tried playing with a keyboard at home, and it was a bit clunky. Due to this recommendation, I paid close attention to the health and extra lives that are represented by a baby bottle filled with milk and cookies. I wanted to avoid losing all my lives and complete the platforming levels successfully. As I progressed through the episode, I encountered crawling and flying bugs that I could use my baby butt power on or just jump on them to stun them. I enjoyed the episode design and it truly felt like I was controlling an episode of Rugrats rather than just playing a game.
I knew I had to summon my inner Tommy for the final boss. As the saying goes, ‘A baby’s gotta do, what a baby’s gotta do.’ The first episode’s final boss proved to be challenging. I struggled to navigate the platforming while simultaneously stunning crawling bugs for ammo and dodging falling rocks. I cycled through Tommy, Chuckie, and the twins, using up all my lives. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to defeat the boss during the demo. However, I’m determined to return to the game to prevail through that challenge.
Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland’s charming art styles, engaging gameplay, and iconic characters perfectly capture the spirit of the original series. It truly felt like real episodes of the show rather than a video game. Grab your milk and cookies, Rugrats is available on all platforms as of September 10th, 2024 and free on Epic Games until September 19th, 2024.
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