Feeding Frenzy 2: Shipwreck Showdown

If you enjoyed the original, have younger children or just like light-hearted same console competition, you’ll definitely want to grab FF2 for 800 Microsoft points. Time to warm up those chompers and have some fun!

If you were a casual player of the original, it's probably not worth picking this one up. However, if you are new to the series, engaging gameplay and fun multiplayer options make FF2 easily worth your hard earned 800 Microsoft Points.

With all these multiplayer choices, it’s a real shame they’re restricted to one console. This may be a $10 Live Arcade title, but why add all that interesting party play (which wasn’t in the game’s PC version) without making it playable over Xbox Live, where everyone — not just the folks with buddies and multiple controllers — can enjoy it? Barring that baffling omission, though, Feeding Frenzy 2 is a whale of a game. If you own the original, it’s a two-years-on upgrade that’ll elicit fond memories of gulping goodness. And if you’re eyeing the series for the first time, know this: it’s one of Live Arcade’s tastier treats.

Since Popcap is the publisher of Fish Frenzy 2, it goes without saying that the controls are effortless. The graphics shine as well, hinting as they do at a larger undersea world than is seen onscreen. Above all, the gameplay is fun, and offers enough variations on the original to make the sequel worth diving into.

Feeding Frenzy 2: Shipwreck Showdown doesn’t exactly go belly up but it does feel a little stale, especially if you’ve played Feeding Frenzy before. You’re still roaming across the screen and munching on the lesser fish and none of the game’s modes deviate from that formula. There are some new power ups and fish models, but the core gameplay is all too familiar. It’s not a bad game; it just may not be worth the price of admission for everyone.

The question is, is the game worth 800 points? Even if you really want a great game everyone can enjoy after Thanksgiving dinner (and if that’s the case, I recommend Scene It?, your Mom will enjoy it more) the price seems a bit steep. But if keeping the rug rats busy for an hour or so is worth something to you, then you’d probably pay just about anything, right?

Everyone plays PopCap games. You might like to pretend that you don’t, but we all have done it. You cannot deny that while they might not make the most impressive looking or sounding games, they do make titles that can be enjoyable and that can become quite addictive. This is a game geared very much towards kids under the age of 12; adults will still enjoy this game but only for a short-period of time.

Regardless of its shortcomings, Shipwreck Showdown is a worthy sequel to Feeding Frenzy in so much as it improves upon almost every aspect of that game. Even the modest cartoon-style visuals look significantly better than those in the original game when you see them side-by-side. The same can't be said for the audio, but while both the soundtrack and effects are generic, they certainly don't detract from the gameplay experience. Feeding Frenzy 2: Shipwreck Showdown is no catch of the day, but it's certainly fun enough for you not to throw it back into the water.

There's no point scoring this in comparison to most other games. It's casual to the core, designed to be playable by everyone from little kids to open-minded grandparents, and that's no bad thing. In those terms, Feeding Frenzy 2 is a decent package that improves on the original in terms of size, if not gameplay.

Fortunately, FF2 has a decent multiplayer experience. I think this is where the game's strength really lies. Not so much because there are plenty of different mini-games or time attack modes, but as a family-centric title. FF2's simplicity evens the playing field between novice and veteran players to the point that the local multiplayer just screams, "Parent-Child Video Game Bonding". In that respect I can see a young family actually having fun playing together (competitively or co-operatively), but I just can't see myself inviting friends over to have an all-night Feeding Frenzy 2 session.

Feeding Frenzy 2 demande donc une certaine dextérité et un esprit vif, d'autant que la maniabilité au stick est assez sensible et que la vue 2D latérale ne permet pas de bien anticiper les mouvements des autres poissons. Néanmoins, traverser les soixante niveaux du jeu sans être assommé par l'ennui et la lassitude devrait relever de l'exploit. Car, une fois passée la phase de découverte de son concept mignonnet, Feeding Frenzy 2 n'a pas franchement de quoi accrocher le joueur, malgré quelques tentatives pour apporter du nouveau au jeu. Bref, 800 points pour un fond d'écran aquarium interactif, cela paraît un peu cher payé. A moins d'être fan des documentaires de Cousteau.