The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (video game)

The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy is a fighting video game based on the Cartoon Network animated television series of the same name. It was developed by High Voltage Software and published by Midway. Midway announced the game on February 15, 2005, and released it on September 25, 2006, for the GameCube and PlayStation 2; on October 31, 2006, for the Game Boy Advance; and on November 19, 2006, as a Wii launch title.[1] The PlayStation 2 version's DVD compatibility feature came with behind-the-scenes footage and the season one episode "Little Rock of Horrors". A Microsoft Windows version had been planned, but was canceled for unknown reasons.[2]

The Grim Adventures of
Billy & Mandy
Wii cover art
Developer(s)High Voltage Software
Full Fat (Game Boy Advance)
Publisher(s)Midway Games
Composer(s)Gregory Hinde
Drew Neumann
Platform(s)GameCube, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Wii
ReleasePlayStation 2, GameCube
  • NA: September 25, 2006
Game Boy Advance
  • NA: October 31, 2006
Wii
  • NA: November 19, 2006
  • AU: March 15, 2007
  • EU: March 16, 2007
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Storyline

Someone breaks into Grim's trunk and releases his Mojo Balls, causing everyone in Endsville to be infected by supernatural rage and senselessly fight each other. Following a suspicious trail of chicken feathers, Billy, Mandy, Grim, and Irwin travel to various locations from the series such as the Underworld, Jack's pumpkin patch, and even Billy's backyard to simultaneously recover the Mojo Balls and find out who released them. After defeating the brain-eating meteor from "Little Rock of Horrors", which crashed in Billy's backyard, Billy reveals he was the one who opened Grim's trunk hoping to free "Moe and Joe". The curse Grim had put on the trunk as a failsafe measure had caused Billy to begin sprouting chicken feathers, which he had been leaving a trail of so he wouldn't get lost. The other characters are infuriated at Billy, who is beaten up by Mandy during the credits.

Gameplay

The gameplay heavily mirrors that of the Power Stone series and Shrek SuperSlam. In the game, up to four players battle in a three dimensional arena and perform light and heavy style attacks in an attempt to deplete their opponents' health and knock them out. Each stage contains elements that can affect the battle, such as enemies that will attack the players or traps that can be triggered. Most levels include multiple sub-arenas and will transition from one to the next after a short amount of time has passed, such as rising lava levels in an Underworld cavern forcing players to ride a giant snake to escape. Players can find and equip different weapons scattered throughout the arenas, such as a halberd or a club, to do additional damage. Treasure chests contain items including weapons, healing items, and Mojo Balls that restore the player's Mojo Meter. When the Mojo Meter fills once, a Mojo Smackdown can be performed where the character attacks an opponent with a barrage of attacks that will instantly knock them out. When the Mojo Meter fills twice, a Mojo Meltdown can be performed, instantly knocking out all opponents. An opponent is not fully defeated until their lives are depleted and the player or another opponent attacks them, triggering a "finishing blow" sequence.

Several gameplay modes are available. In Story Mode, players must complete five battles against a series of computer-controlled opponents before culminating in a final battle with the brain-eating meteor from the episode "Little Rock of Horrors". Story Mode supports both single player and cooperative two-player play. Vs. Mode allows up to four players to battle against one another, with the option to further customize the game's rules. Mission Mode tasks players with completing specific objectives using predetermined characters in set scenarios. Additional characters, stages, costumes, and rule sets can be unlocked by completing missions, finishing Story Mode with each character, and fulfilling other objectives.

The Wii version of the game incorporates some motion controls by allowing the player to swing the Wii Remote to perform heavy attacks, as well as using its infrared pointer to point at a series of onscreen targets to execute finishing moves. It also supports two control schemes: one involving the Wii Remote and Nunchuk that utilizes the said motion controls, and another that utilizes the GameCube controller.

Cast and characters

The game features fifteen fully playable characters, along with five bonus "horde characters", in-game enemies given a limited playable moveset. The voice cast of the TV series reprise their respective roles for the game with the exception of Jack O'Lantern, who is voiced by Maurice LaMarche in place of his original actor Wayne Knight. "Weird Al" Yankovic voices the in-game announcer.

^a : Horde character.

Reception

The game received "mixed or average reviews" on all platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[3][4][5][6] GameSpot's Greg Mueller said that while the game is fun for the "first few hours" and has "Fast-paced gameplay", the game action "gets old quickly" and has a very short story mode.[8] IGN's Mark Bozon highlighted the presentation and appeal of the GameCube, PS2 and cancelled PC versions.[11][12] Bozon later called the Wii version "a solid game with minimal Wii advantages and a few technical limitations."[13]

References
  1. "Midway and Cartoon Network Sign Three Multi-Territory Publishing Agreements for Games Based on Three Top-Rated Kids' Properties". Business Wire. February 15, 2005. Archived from the original on March 19, 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  2. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy - PC". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on August 18, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  3. "Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, The (gba: 2006): Reviews". Metacritic. CNET. Archived from the original on September 13, 2008. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  4. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  5. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  6. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy for Wii Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 26, 2012.
  7. Leadbetter, Richard (May 30, 2007). "Wii Games Roundup". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  8. Mueller, Greg (November 21, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy Review (GC, PS2, Wii)". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  9. Zacarias, Eduardo (December 18, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy - WII - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  10. DeVries, Jack (November 22, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy Review (GBA)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  11. Bozon, Mark (October 17, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (GCN, PS2)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  12. Bozon, Mark (October 18, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (PC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  13. Bozon, Mark (December 5, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (Wii)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  14. "Review: The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (Wii)". NGamer. Future plc. February 2007. p. 73.
  15. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (GC)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 210. Nintendo of America. December 2006. p. 110.
  16. Metts, Jonathan (September 30, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (GC)". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  17. Cole, Michael (December 22, 2006). "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (Wii)". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  18. "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 112. Ziff Davis. January 2007. p. 89.
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