Hello Kitty Roller Rescue – Review

Ok so I’m a girl gamer and though I despise games that seem to fit the mould of “only made for girls” I will admit to being quite taken with the initial screenshots for Hello Kitty Roller Rescue since I have a penchant for cutesy games (as well as the Halo’s of this world). I was pleased when the review disc dropped through my door and am now going to share with you so much cuteness that it will make your ears bleed. This is Hello Kitty on skates heading to various formats now.

The story for Hello Kitty is simple, you play Kitty who must rescue the Earth and inhabitants from the evil block-O and minions who are trying to invade and take over, starting with Hello Kitty’s own village of Sanriotown. It’s actually far ‘cuter’ than that but that’s the general idea. I’m not familiar with the Hello Kitty / Sanrio universe so forgive my obvious lack of knowledge when it comes to the characters, I was even shocked when I read Kitty’s bio and it revealed she’s a Londoner as I had just assumed her to be Japanese. Essentially a lot of these Sanrio characters make an appearance in roller rescue so any fan is going to be in heaven here. It’s clearly aimed at the younger gamers but the story of good versus evil is one even the older gamer can relate to and the simple addictive gameplay may well appeal.

Gameplay is 3D action platformer as you roll around the levels on your nifty rollerblades swiping at enemies with your magic weapons (wand, hammer and mambo). Level design is fairly simple given this title seems to be aimed unashamedly at very young players, that’s not to say it didn’t get taxing at points because (and yes I’m embarrassed to admit it) .. it did, but only for a few minor moments. As you complete each level you’re awarded a score and also unlockables in the form of clothing, character profiles, family members, cinematics, music and new weapons, this for me was where the true fun of the game lay, collecting coins so I could open the character profiles, it was actually fairly exciting to have unlocked another item and I really felt that had this section of the game been more fleshed out it would hook in gamers who like games like Pokemon and even Animal Crossing, sadly there wasn’t much on offer, only gaining a new outfit or two each level and spending the coins on little character profiles.

Graphics on Hello Kitty Roller Rescue are ‘cute’, that really sums them up, they’re bright and clean with cute character models that remain true to the Hello Kitty and Sanrio franchise, it is like playing a cartoon and actually reminded me a lot of Super Mario Sunshine in style. The game includes many of the Sanrio characters and all are well rendered and beautifully smooth, this section of the game looks like some major effort has been put it, the characters are interesting and there’s some nice little touches, but it is essentially squarely aimed at children and this is completely apparent in the graphical style. Environments too fit in perfectly with the Sanrio look and feel, overall it’s cute, colorful and sweet and only let down by a dodgy camera.

Sound too is drizzled with the over cutesy syrup but you’re essentially hearing repeated tunes over and over again dependent on level. There’s no subtitles to speak of but everything is written on screen in speech bubbles anyway so the deaf and hard of hearing gamer can play and follow the story no problem. Levels do have different tunes that tend to fit whatever the overall theme of that level is. It’s all well done as cutesy games go and there’s actually at least one classic theme therein that will have you smiling from ear to ear, for me it had to be the ’surveillance’ level which fit perfectly with the level theme and reminded me of old 80’s cop shows like Magnum, most amusing.

Female Gamer Angle… it’s Hello Kitty and she’s a girl! Yes one of those rare titles where you have the opposite of the usual problem in that you have to play a female character, there’s no choice to play Kitty’s friend Keroppi but as with many titles the hero (Kitty) must have a handy sidekick (Keroppi) who sends her emails and also updates her on whatever dangers a level may hold. Kitty also has other friends who help out and other female characters appear in the form of Kitty’s mom, gran, sister and a few others.

Overall it’s actually a tough one to score, if I were scoring this on a kids game site I’d no doubt be scoring this fairly high, given this is the perfect game for the young gamers in your life, it’s cute and safe. The older gamer though is probably going to find this little more than colorful tedium given it’s lack of overall depth. Graphically it’s beautiful, but it’s severely marred by that terrible camera which you’ll forever be adjusting. The chirpy music is great for youngsters but will quite possibly grate with a seasoned gamer, though it is reminiscent of old retro titles to a degree (rainbow islands, bubble bobble styles tunes).

Given the obvious audience this is intended for (youngsters) I can’t help but score accordingly, but that’s not to say that I never enjoyed my time with Hello Kitty because I did, so much so that I completed it in just a few hours and while this sort of time period may be good for kids, older gamers may feel cheated and this has to be taken into account overall. All up a cute, entertaining but all too short ride. Definitely one for Sanrio fans or those gamers looking for something so cute and simple it may have the affect of a full body massage.

Review by Angela

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