Scooby Doo

• Release Date: June 06, 2002
• Genre: Adventure
• Style: Third-Person Graphic Adventure
• Similar Games: Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase (Game Boy Advance), Dexter's Laboratory: Deesaster Strikes (Game Boy Advance)

Game Description

Based on the 2002 summer movie starring Freddy Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar, the Game Boy Advance version of Scooby-Doo is an adventure played from an isometric viewpoint. The Scooby Gang has been hired to solve the mystery of Spooky Island, a resort whose tenants are panicked by an apparition called the Ghoulish Guest.

As either Scooby or Shaggy, players initially explore the hotel looking for clues and hints from the various guests walking about. Talking to people reveals new objectives, such as finding three keys, draining the nearby pool, or meeting up with a specific character. Completing these tasks brings the Mystery, Inc. team one step closer to cracking the case.

As players explore their surroundings, which are detailed in an overhead map viewable from the menu screen, they will eventually confront monsters, puzzles, and other dangers. Certain situations call for the talents of specific characters, as each member of the Scooby Gang possesses distinct abilities to help overcome a problem or enemy.

Players can freely switch between the characters (after finding them) to take advantage of their traits. Velma can tiptoe past enemies and open locked chests, Scooby and Shaggy run quickly, Daphne uses her skills in karate, and Fred is the strongest of the group. Each character has health and stamina meters that diminish after taking damage or using special techniques, but a number of scattered power-ups can help replenish them.

The adventure also offers four mini-games, each of which can be played in a separate mode. Unlock the Chest involves rotating three rings so the same colors are aligned, while Repair the Pipes has players fitting together pipe pieces to drain water. The other two games are the maze-like Lights Out and note-matching game Musical Mayhem. Progress is automatically saved after completing an objective or moving to another Spooky Island locale.

Review: Overall

The first game based on the 2002 live-action movie, Scooby-Doo for Game Boy Advance is a passable adventure that remains faithful to its cinematic counterpart while offering something new to fans of the cowardly canine. The game makes use of each character's special abilities, and play involves a combination of real-time action and puzzles in the form of mini-games. Neither aspect is as polished as it could be, and older players will likely grow tired of the repetitive collecting aspects associated with each chapter in the storyline.

The three-quarter perspective makes navigating the environments relatively painless (only walking through doorways can be a bit awkward), but the lack of detail means players can't actually spot clues by looking at the scenery. Instead, the developers simplified the process by having players find question mark icons at various spots within the area, usually at the farthest points on the map. The result is an adventure game that relies on rather tedious exploration, rather than thinking, to advance.

Each area is broken down into a series of objectives, nearly all of which involve finding a person, object, or clue icon. Surprisingly, there aren't any slider puzzles (such as moving furniture) or traditional switch-pulling exercises found in the main game. In their place are a number of simple mini-games that aren't very taxing on the gray matter but are nonetheless a welcome diversion from the tedium of walking through the large areas looking for a symbol or two.

The best puzzles involve switching on lights and fixing leaky pipes, both of which borrow from previous puzzle games and require some decision-making skills on the part of the player to solve within the time allotted. The sliding lock puzzle is too easy and requires little thought -- just rotate one of three rings left or right and the lock will open. A music game also exists, which can be difficult since the songs are relatively long. Both the music and lock games earn players coins, which really aren't needed since they are primarily used for purchasing health-restoring foods already available along the ground.

Scooby-Doo avoids a big "Scooby-Don't" by incorporating each character's abilities in a meaningful way. Velma is the only one who can open locked chests (and thus play the mini-game), since she is the brains of the outfit. Velma is also slow and weak, so she relies on sneaking to get past enemies. Scooby and Shaggy are useful because they run quickly, while Fred and Daphne are the only characters who can take out enemies using their fists and feet. Yet it's hard to lose a life, with the ability to switch characters at any time along with an option to pause the game and munch on a burger to replenish health.

The biggest problem with the game is its repetitiveness. Subsequent chapters revisit areas you've already been through, and there's zero interactivity within the locales. While there are hotel patrons roaming through the halls, they'll say useless things like "Some vacation" or "I gave up lambada for this." You'll learn to avoid them like the enemies after the first five minutes. Another gripe is that players have to complete an objective before the game automatically saves progress, which can be irritating during some lengthy exploring sessions when you want to take a break.

Scooby-Doo earns points for being faithful to the movie and providing something different to fans other than a cookie-cutter platform game or traditional graphic adventure (like Scooby-Doo! Classic Creep Capers). Including mini-games was a step in the right direction, as was the ability to use each character for their unique talents. Yet the environments need more pizzazz and gameplay should be more involving than completing a scavenger hunt. Like Shaggy and Scooby after a long day of running from ghosts, most players will be looking for something with meat to satisfy their hunger.

Review: Enjoyment

The game involves performing the same tasks in each chapter: find a missing member of the gang, find three clues, and/or talk to a specific person.

Review: Graphics

The perspective is a nice change of pace from most Game Boy Advance titles, but the individual objects and characters aren't well detailed.

Review: Sound

An excellent rendition of the theme song opens the game and each area offers its own creepy music. Some voice clips would have been nice, but the sound effects are solid.

Review: Replay Value

Each of the mini-game puzzles can be played apart from the main adventure, but they aren't very challenging.

Review: Documentation

The manual explains the story, power-ups, characters, and controls in an appealing layout.

Production Credits

scooby doo	Scooby Doo Sneaker Boy
Scooby Doo Shoes	scooby doo snack maker