It’s a world gone mad; a toy story where child’s play-things don’t play nice. These deadly machines are being manufactured by the thousands, and they have only one intent – to take over the world.

In a strange turn of events, it’s up to SpongeBob, Jimmy Neutron, Danny Phantom, and Timmy Turner to save the day. They’ll join other Nicktoons heroes, including one who is best known for his inspiring adventure games – Tak. Each is equipped to handle the task of crushing the evil robots, ensuring that once our heroes are through, the toys will need more than some assembly to get them back into working condition.

Toybots, Attack!

Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots is a different kind of action game. There are dozens of battle encounters, so much that players may feel like all they’re doing is button mashing. But this isn’t really a brawler. Levels are expansive and have a slight amount of depth, but this isn’t exactly an action/adventure. You fight to eliminate the toys and stop their creator from completing his devious plan.

Many battle encounters, however, may be skipped simply by running past the enemy. The number-one goal is to reach the end of each stage, albeit a large factory, a mini-game, or some other type, and you often do that by finding the best solution to semi-difficult navigational situations. They’re not quite puzzles – as you should be aware by now, Attack of the Toybots is not conventional. But the task of jumping across moving platforms to dodge lasers, ducking under those that can’t be jumped over, and fighting against a conveyer belt that never goes in your direction can be, in a strange and action-oriented way, puzzling.

The Toybots are small (as are all the character models in this game) but are high in their nostalgic flair. Mister Huggles, for example, is a cross between a teddy bear and that annoying spokesman for Snuggles fabric softener. Their smirk hides the evil, dying-to-bite-you personality of these deranged animals. More than one edition has been manufactured, leaving players to fight ground and aerial versions of these bears.

Bustup Ballerina is the little girl’s toy that never was; a messed up doll that wasn’t good enough for your local toy store. This has left her very depressed and, like Mister Huggles, ready to fight any Nickelodeon cartoon character that dares to cross her path.

Blokks, Tin Robot, and Stun Bunny are variations of other classic toys. Blokks is the most notable. This cluster of wooden blocks stays close together and moves like the chain chompers from the Mario games. They’re also hard to destroy, making their presence more difficult to ignore than some of the other Toybots. Tin Robots are just what they sound like, and the Stun Bunnies are a small nuisance that is easier to avoid than it is to fight.

Spinny Tops are the same toys you used to play with as a child – only now they inflict damage when touched. The best way to deal with these ‘bots is to combo them into submission before they get the chance to strike. That strategy also works for Wheelies, the dump truck toys that don’t take “I’m not in the mood to play” for an answer.

These and other Toybots pop in frequently to make your life miserable. When the game won’t advance past a certain point, chances are that means you have to destroy the toys in the area. You will also need to wipe out mechanical structures to progress through some areas. While doing this, the main goal doesn’t change: the exit must be found. It is usually further away than you’ll expect. Check points aren’t marked, and though you don’t have to worry about running out of lives (they’re infinite), you are bound to fall off more than one ledge.

Or get hit by a stray laser or be faced with some other unavoidable hazard that takes you back to the beginning of a particular area. This is barely an issue during the fun parts of the game. However, when trying to overcome a frustrating objective, the act of being pushed back every time you die, even to a nearby check point, can be torture.

For better or worse, the levels were designed with quick reactions in mind. A large part of the game takes place in the heart of a toy factory, leading to some very clever scenarios, and others that are insanely repetitive. One of the more exciting objectives requires you to duck while holding onto a toy car. The car is shot through the factory, speeds under a laser (which is why you have to duck), and flies through a loop, just like something you’d see in a Hot Wheels commercial – or in your own living room.

Attack of the Toybots’ playable characters lack differentiation; specific tasks aside, it doesn’t matter who you play as. Regardless, the controls felt great. The 2.5D gameplay perspective is also amusing, and is very similar to the Nintendo DS version of SpongeBob’s Atlantis Squarepantis.

But since the adventure’s focus is on level navigation, not on objective completion, the repetitive factory designs get old fast. The best parts are not seen more than a few times – the rest of the game, the hopping and jumping over lasers and other deadly objects, continues for a very long time.

Gameplay: 7.0
Right on in some respects, way off in others, Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots is the anti-adventure/puzzler that wants to be an action/puzzler…but isn’t.

Graphics: 6.0
There are some great visual moments in this game. Unfortunately, the characters are too small, and the background colors are so plain that everything ends up running together.

Sound: 6.9
The dialogue isn’t as sharp as in the SpongeBob games, but there were a few memorable.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Mostly a cakewalk, but there are some repetitious tasks that could drive you insane. Hmm, I wonder if this is why the Bustup Ballerina is so unhappy? Maybe she tried to dodge a laser and missed?

Concept: 6.9
Great characters and villains. I wish I could say the same for the levels, but only small portions of the game are outstanding. The rest is pretty dull.

Multiplayer: 5.0
Two-player co-op is offered, but this isn’t LEGO Star Wars, a game that revolves around the destruction of LEGO droids and Stormtroopers. This game is mainly about getting from point A to point B, and with several convoluted platform navigation challenges ahead, there’s no way two players can make it through the entire game without throwing both controllers out the window.

Overall: 6.9
Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots has some great moments, but it isn’t nearly as mainstream as the Nicktoons that are represented in the game. Save this one for a weekend rental.