Electroplankton - Nintendo DS review

Crazy Japanese game or must have?

19 July 2006 13:27 GMT / By Stuart Miles

We acknowledge that Nintendo likes to push the limits of interactive gaming to the maximum, after all, its handheld console, the Nintendo DS with its touch screen is tribute to this, however at times you can push this "Blue Sky" thinking a little to far and Electroplankton is a perfect example of this.

According to the blurb from Nintendo: "In Electroplankton, art and music collide to create a wildly fresh interactive audio experience".

Notice how there is no reference to gameplay in that statement, well that's because to call it that would be a stretch of the imagination some gamers wouldn't be willing to take.

The concept is broken down into 10 equal levels. Each level features a different "species" and each respond to touch and voice in different ways allowing you to create sounds and melodies until the cows come home.

And that's it, no battling the forces of evil, no trying to get to level 23, and no online gaming where you can beat your friends to death with a chainsaw and a pot of glue.

Interacting with the games is as simple as sliding the stylus across the touch screen and apart from making pretty sounds and sometimes patterns there isn't much too Electroplankton.

And that's is greatest fault, is that its like a exhibit in the Tate Modern, you're not sure whether its supposed to be art or just the pile of rubbish someone has forgotten to take out.

Verdict

As a five-minute wonder this is brilliant, however anything longer and you'll wonder how the 13-year-old at Game managed to con you of your cash.

Score

Review Recap

Made by: Nintendo
Price as reviewed: £30
Latest price: Compare prices
The good: Pushing the limits of gaming
The bad: Will entertain you for about 5 minutes
Quick verdict: As a 5-minute wonder this is brilliant, however anything longer and you'll wonder how the 13-year-old at Game managed to con you of your cash
Score