SpongeBob’s Skate and Surf Roadtrip
By Chad Sapieha,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Simple Kinect-enabled boarding game is fun but forgettable.
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SpongeBob’s Skate and Surf Roadtrip
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What’s It About?
SPONGEBOB’S SKATE & SURF ROADTRIP is a sports game that has kids navigating a variety of waterways and streets on surf and skate boards. In the Xbox 360 version, it uses Kinect so that kids move their bodies in front of the camera. Kids have to avoid obstacles while trying to collect coins and performing stunts in the air. There are several ways to play each course, ranging from simple timed races to point challenges. The better your performance, the more quickly you’ll fill your “Awesome” meter. In two player mode, players go up against each other, using Awesome meter powers such as speed boosts and \"dizzy,\" which reverses the other player’s motion controls, flipping left with right.
Is It Any Good?
There’s no shortage of Kinect games that simulate skidding, sliding, and rolling down slopes, and this simple surf and skate game does little to distinguish itself from the competition. The bright graphics are pleasant, and the motion controls for steering and stunts are fine, though far from refined. However, a lack of significant narrative and heavily repetitive events make this SpongeBob adventure a bit of a snoozer. Kids do more or less the same thing from one event to the next, with their only meaningful objective being to improve upon their performance or beat their friends.
Unless your son or daughter is a SquarePants superfan, best wait for this one to hit the bargain bins.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about commercialism in games. Do you think games like this exist only to promote the shows, movies, and toys upon which they are based? Do you think featuring recognizable characters in otherwise generic games enhances them?
Families can also discuss keeping active outside of games. What sort of physical activities do you like to participate in? Does this game make you want to try skateboarding or surfing?
Game Details
- Platforms: Nintendo DS, Xbox 360
- Available online?: Not available online
- Publisher: THQ
- Release date: November 8, 2011
- Genre: Sports
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts
- ESRB rating: E for (No Descriptors)
- Last updated: August 29, 2016
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