Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Zombie Ninja Pro-Am

The Good
Even when I first saw Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Zombie Ninja Pro-Am in the store I didn't expect anything groundbreaking, but with a price tag so low I just couldn't help myself (being a fan of the show). What the game offers is an enormously mixed bag of some good, but mostly bad. So, first off I'll start with the good.

The game's graphics and cut scenes are pretty on par with the show, the difference being that the show is a 2D cartoon, while the game offers cel-shaded 3D in its place. The animation is vivid and true to the original source, with all the things you'd expect crammed in there, such as Mooninites, Carl and the Frat aliens.

Since the creators were (somewhat) involved in the game themselves (more on that in the bad), the voice acting is spot on and the odd-beat humor from the show is present throughout the game. I couldn't help but laugh at some of the lines delivered in the game, and the cut scenes feel as if they might as just have been part of an episode.

Speaking of episodes... the game offers a plethora of extras, such as 4 full length episodes of the show (one of which is unaired), cameo-clips featuring some fun moments from the show, an interview with the creators and some more unlockables. So if you're inclined to play through the game thoroughly you can spend quite a while after you're done just watching the extra material.

But... with good comes bad, and in the case of this game, plenty of it.

The Bad
When you pick up the game you don't really know what to expect, given the nature of the show. This could be a good thing, had they actually tried to make a game that was as odd and random as the show itself. And the thought of a violent golf beat'em-up broken up with golf cart combat racing sounds like something that might have been genius had it been executed properly. But, it seems a couple of things went wrong somewhere in the corporate think tank.

The game starts you off teaching you the basics of the golf part of the game, and I'd have to say that they are ok. They're basically as simple as golf games were back in the NES days, which in my opinion doesn't have to be a bad thing. However... After you've actually tee'd off, you have to run to where the ball landed and swing from there. The courses are nice looking, so that's not that bad. What is bad however is the infinite amount of enemies that spawn as you run towards the ball. If this had been done in such a way that you could kill them all and then walk at your own pace to the ball, it would have been fine. When there is no end to the re-spawning of enemies and you have to run while constantly pressing X, then it isn't fine. This happens after EVERY swing you take at the ball, so be prepared for some serious button-mashing. The controls are clunky and awful, and the attacks are all slow, so be prepared to curse and throw controllers across the room as the multi-hit enemies kill you for the 14th time, just because your character was too slow to get out of the way or attack in time.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that the game has occasional slowdowns when your power meter for the golf swing is activated, meaning that you'll hit the ball in ways you never expected. This is just because the PS2 decided to load something in the background when you're focusing on that final putt. Very frustrating.

In a couple of levels you get to race the frat aliens in your golf cart between check points at one of the golf courses. Along the way you can pick up bazookas and nitros to help you get ahead. Sounds ok so far, right? The second the race starts you know you're in for a horrible time as the frame rate drops down so low that the controls become unresponsive. In a racing game where the vehicle acts horribly to begin with (twisting around, falling over etc), this really isn't helping. Add to that the nice feature of the opponent automatically catching up to you if he's behind. This means that you need to more or less do a flawless run to win at all. The opponent also uses the bazooka and hits you with deadly accuracy, while when you use it, it feels totally random whether you'll hit or not. To add a final insult to this broken cart racing segment, they decided that the aliens could occasionally vomit on the course, making you spin in circles. This happens all to often, and especially at critical moments in the race. AND... the vomit is permanent. So if they puke just by a check point, just start the race over, because you'll lose.

If the above still hasn't convinced you to stay away, how about this then? When you watch the interview with the creators, while some of it's funny, you can totally tell that they couldn't care less about the game. It seems like just another practical joke to them. They don't even know the title of the game themselves, and spend a big part of the interview trying to remember it! If this game is part of some big practical joke, then I'd say I really feel for the people who bought this full price. Because you really fell for it, and in a bad way. Even I feel cheated, and I paid roughly $10 for it.

The Bottom Line
If you're a fan of the show and totally crave ATHF, buy the boxed sets on DVD instead and watch them again. This game shouldn't even be played by the most hardcore of fans. I wouldn't wish this game on my worst enemy.