SpongeBob SquarePants: The Battle for Bikini Bottom

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Benign game misses target audience.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this game is cute and benign, as the show's fans would expect. But it has too much going on to keep younger players focused, and is too tedious for older ones.

  • Spongebob gets along with all kinds of creatures, though Squidward looks a bit like a Jewish stereotype. SpongeBob lives in Bikini Bottom, players must collect his underwear, and there are random trees strewn with toilet paper, but that's as racy as it g
  • Not applicable.
  • Not applicable.
  • No product placement (except for stuff like fictional Clamsicles), but the game provides a promotion for the television show.

What's it about?

Evil Plankton has unleashed a mass of malicious robots on Bikini Bottom (though SpongeBob thinks he inadvertently invited this disaster) in SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: THE BATTLE FOR BIKINI BOTTOM. Now they're wreaking havoc from Goo Lagoon to Jellyfish Fields, and SpongeBob and friends are on a quest to stop them and save the denizens of their underwater home.

Along the way, players collect precious golden spatulas and Patrick's dirty socks, and complete other side missions. Changing among the popular show's three main characters, players swing above the city on Sandy's lasso, use Patrick to toss around a variety of "throw fruit," or turn into SpongeBall to bowl over enemies.


Is it any good?

 

Creative stuff, but the anticipated audience here is unclear. The missions are difficult to complete and simultaneous, and younger players may lose track of what they're trying to accomplish, never mind actually finishing a level. Conversely, more experienced players may tire of the repetitive moves required to complete the almost 100 tasks.

If you just want to see SpongeBob and his friends frolic around Bikini Bottom, there's plenty to soak up. But accomplishing missions requires a level of expertise that may outpace the skills of the show's young fans.


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What families can talk about

Families can talk about marketing tie-ins and how this game promotes the SpongeBob SquarePants empire.


This review was written by Kate Pavao
Kid, 11 years old
August 31, 2009
 
Its good but it may scare little kids for..
its fun if you get to sandy's house because little kids are scared when eyes turn black and white!

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Adult
April 9, 2008
 
This game reminds me of the old super mario brothers from nintendo. there's all kinds of different levels that you need to beat to get to the next stage, it's challenging but not too hard for young kids. it has all of the same characters from the television show and is very entertaining. i love it!

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Kid, 13 years old
May 31, 2010
 
Awsome
This game is so fun. I play it for hours every day. I still didn't beat it but my mom did. It is like imposible to find the lost socks and defeat mermadmans time on the slide but it is awsome. It may scare little kids cause the robots sometimes are scary.

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Kid, 13 years old
October 20, 2011
 
ladys and gentelmen welcome to the best game ever created
the best game ever created is a spongebob game. that was a twist wasent it. this game fetures amazeing gamplay for all kids of all ages since it is a platformer u have lots of jumping, enemys , and hazards to stop u from beating the game. is it a hard game well not nessicarily some of the levels can be challangeing. its a good game with a good purpose..... to entertain your child :D theres only 1 problem tho weres the sequel to the greatest game ever made ???

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Parent of 8, 12, 12, and 14 year old
May 30, 2010
 
Perfect for kids NOT scared of robots
It's awsome. Some hard parts like beating times on the slides and probley not for younger kids. Some of the robots scare my 7 year old who acts like she's 4 so that's probley why. It's a fun game and it's on for hours in our house.

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Teen, 18 years old
November 7, 2008
 
Fun game
Its Spongebob all right

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Teen, 16 years old
August 1, 2011
 
Very enjoyable Spongebob videogame
Spongebob: Battle For Bikini Bottom is a fun, easy game that you can just pick up and play when you're in the mood for some silliness. Spongebob and his pals engage in some fights with robots and occasionally other things like jellyfish, but it's just over the top and not graphic in the least. Spread throughout the game are puzzles and minigames, which probably won't challenge older kids or adults, but might be a little challenging for younger kids. Also of note is the game's open ended design, you can unlock several levels and complete them in whatever order you like, and you can even explore the main hub, which has many secrets and surprises. The graphics faithfully capture the look of the show, though some of the characters look sort of ugly to be blunt. The music in the game is nothing special at all, but it won't grate on your nerves or anything. Some of it is even somewhat pleasant. Most of the voice actors from the show are here, and they do an amazing job. Usually in these video games based off of cartoons the characters are either voice by mediocre replacements or the actors sound dull, as if they're being forced to do this job. But that's not what's going on here, they sound happy and excited, just like in the cartoon. Mr.Krabs and Mermaid Man are voiced by different people, although the people doing their voices are OK. Overall, this is a great game for kids and even older kids will probably have a good time playing it like I did. For those of you who are weary of these videogame adaptions of cartoons, which usually aren't very good, I can assure you this is definitely one of the best ones out there. There isn't anything offensive in this game, except for some mild cartoon violence as mentioned above. With that said, there's nothing particularly educational going on here, either. The best messages you could take of this game are the usuals: good always beats evil, always do your best to fix your mistakes, etc. But overall, this is a very enjoyable videogame.

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Kid, 11 years old
March 27, 2010
 
ALL AGE'S OK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is "E" and nobody forget it

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Kid, 13 years old
December 24, 2010
 
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Battle for Bikini Bottom?
It is a very fun game. There is violence in the game, but only like when you're fighting the robots. Spongebob takes responsibility for the mistake he thinks he made, which I really liked. And it's funny when for the fact you need underwear to stay alive. And the characters' abilities are cool. Very fun game.

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This review was written by Kate Pavao
Platforms:PlayStation 2
Available online?Not available online
Genre:Action/Adventure
Developer:THQ
Release date:November 25, 2003
Price:$39.99
ESRB rating:E

This review was written by Kate Pavao

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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