Luigi Mario

The Lion King

Developer: Westwood Studios Publisher: The Walt Disney Company/Virgin Interactive

System: Sega Genesis.

Introduction:

Yeah.

That's right.

I feel absolutely NO shame in reviewing this game. I absolutely HAD to. I loved the movie, so, I absolutely HAD to pick up this game. Disney Animated movies own me. =D

And, as I had hoped, I was not dissapointed, even in the least bit.

N-E-Way, this treasure of a game, came out shortly after the movie in 1994. "Yeah Yeah Yet another Disney animated themed movie game" most people think, but these games are actually quite nice. MUCH like this one. It follwed the movie fairly well, it had pretty decent gameplay, the graphics were absolutely awesome. and the music is just hard to forget.

For those of you fortunate enough to see the movie, you pretty much know the plot. But for the few of you who haven't.......

Simba, which is the son of the current king, Musafa, is overly-antsy to become the next great king. Everything pretty much runs on track, until Simba's Nephew, Scar, plots to become the next king by killing his brother, Musafa, and fooling Simba into Exile. Fortunately, Simba has friend's in unexpected places. As little Simbe is near death, Timon, a meerkat, and Pumba, a warthog(Hey! It's Disney!) find him and raise them. Simba grows up with them, but then, thanks to Nala, Simba's childhood friend, he leaves his carefree life to claim his heirship. Can Simba defeat Scar??? In the movie, he does, but in the game, it's all up to you.

So.......

Reviewed by: MattDDR

Graphics: A

When you see the excellent, high quality of a Disney Animated movie, you expect to see it's calibur everywhere else it's avalible, and I think it's safe to say that the graphics in this game come very close to delivering that very same feeling you get from watching the movie. Simba's movement's, weither he's a cub, or an adult, are both VERY fluent. You'll even see the excellence in graphic quality when facing off against the Hyenas. A part of the game which, personally, made me chuckle a bit the first time I saw it.

Sound: B     

Since it's the Sega Genesis version, the sound'll be a bit scratchy, but the music is awesome. It's pretty much the instrumental soundtrack to the movie. My personal favorites were Hakuna Matata(Of course), Be prepared, and Just can't wait to be king. I guess the sound of it can be faded out, as long as the music is on. So, it was pretty good.

Control: B- 

The control way good, but, in my opoinion, could've used a bit of extra tweaking. Pretty much, you have 2 buttons as a cub, and 3 as an adult(Slash is added once Simba becomes Adult). Sometimes, I found it difficult to pull off what I needed to, when I needed to, but maybe that was just me. I dunno. Either way, the control was decent.

Gameplay: A

People wuold probably think that this game is pretty much a game for kids. However, the truth be told, this game will keep even the most experienced of gamers at a decent challenge, especially when you get to level 2.....geez..... If you think this is just a game for kids, and that's the only thing keeping you from trying it, YOU COULDN'T BE MORE WRONG! Try it out. The challenge just might keep you guessing.

Overall: A 

If it wasn't for the challenge, I would've given this a B, but just because of that, it deserves an A. Everything is pretty much means for a worthwhile classic. It presents a few weak points, here and there, but in the long run, it provides gamers, of ALL ages, with a fairly decent challenge, and an appropriate kind of environment. Seen the movie, but haven't played the game? Play it! Haven't seen the movie? See it, then IMMEDIATELY, play the game. You will NOT be dissapointed.