Stuart Little 2
July 25, 2002
By now you probably have noticed that the little “cute and furry” Stuart Little has returned to theatres in his second dance on the “big screen.” This time, he isn’t alone. While the main characters from the original cast are back, a new addition to the cast, Margalo, joins our rodent in his quest to find stolen jewelry from all over Manhattan and defeat the evil Falcon in the process.
First off, remember that this is a PS one game. The graphics, FMV, music, and sound are all dated. However, if you turn on the PS one and play SL2 on the Sony brand screen (or other off brand screens) you will find the shortcomings are much less noticeable. However, despite the issues that come from developing a game on the ancient PlayStation hardware, Stuart Little 2 is a fairly fun adventure.
Like the games based of Lilo and Stitch, SL2 does a good job of allowing you to locate hidden movie clips from the film. As I mentioned above, these clips are not the highest quality. However, they do add a nice touch since this is a game based off the movie. Other small touches I found in Stuart Little 2 are the mini-games. These include: “Mine Cart,” “Up, Up, and Away,” “On Your Marks, Get Set, Go,” “Speed to Victory,” “Skateboard Extreme,” and “Shoot To Score.” Okay, so these games may not be the best gaming experience found on the market today. They do offer a change of pace to the gameplay, giving players a variety of objectives.
Speaking of the gameplay, it is the standard 3D platform game. You control Stuart Little throughout the game and you have the opportunity to explore environments from his perspective. The action takes place in seven different, and very large, levels. Each level has its own unique environments and jewelry for you to find. Once you uncover a certain number of jewels, Stuart will be free to travel to another world. At any time, he may travel back to another level and try to collect any jewelry that you did not find before.
Controls are very easy. While I enjoy turning on the Analog Control Sticks, you can use the d-pad to move Stuart around onscreen. R2 and L2 rotates the camera, R1 provides a speed boost, L1 displays the status screen, Triangle talks to Margalo, Square throws the fruit you have, Square does a spinning attack, and X jumps.
The levels are bright and colorful. However, they are very large. So large that I got lost several times when trying to navigate through them. Unfortunately, there is not a map available to help you navigate through the game. The only way you can get tips is from the “Margalo hot spots.” Once near this area, you can hit the Triangle button to speak to Margalo.
If Stuart Little 2 was released on the Playstation 2, I would definitely have a hard time recommending it. However, being released on the PS one, SL2 is one of only a handful of new titles coming out for the pint-sized system. While it doesn’t break any new ground, it is a good, solid edition to the PS one that can provide hours of gaming fun if you are in need of a new platformer. If you are a PS one owner, a fan of platformers, and enjoyed the new Stuart Little movie, Stuart Little 2 is definitely worth a look.
CVG Report CardStuart Little 2
Rating: D-
Platform: PS one
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