Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl

Since the early '90s, Nickelodeon's Nicktoons lineup has provided kids (and some adults) with a healthy dose of animated entertainment. Now many of those characters have come together for a cartoon combat crossover in Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl. The game has a pretty strong roster to choose from, ranging from spotlight stars like SpongeBob SquarePants to classic characters like Ren and Stimpy to oddball side characters such as Reptar, the Godzilla-esque creature (and only base character) from Rugrats. Fans will always have opinions about who should and shouldn't be represented in a game like this, and it also opens up a whole debate on what characters should be added later as extra downloadable content. Unfortunately, even the characters in the base roster are missing something. While they look and move like their cartoon counterparts, there's a glaring omission in the audio department. None of the characters have any sort of voiceovers or even their original theme music. It's a disappointment that could potentially be fixed in a later update and makes the game feel cheaper in its current state.

They say that "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." If that's the case, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is heaping loads of flattery on Nintendo's Smash Bros. franchise. That's not a bad thing, as far as gameplay is concerned. Just like Nintendo's juggernaut, the game's easy to pick up and play for players of all skill levels, while still having little nuances that add an extra layer of depth to the gameplay. Each brawler also has its own unique style, but without feeling particularly over or under powered when compared to the rest, making for very balanced match ups. And just like the Smash series, the game's best experienced in frantic local or online matches with friends. That's even more true here, due to the game's lack of any kind of Story mode. In fact, All-Star Brawl is a bit anemic in general when it comes to game modes. The Sport mode is the only real gameplay variant, pitting teams against each other as they try to hit a ball through the opposing team's goal. It's a fun break from the usual free-for-all fare, but it's not enough to make the game feel like a lightweight in terms of overall content.