Following the release of the remake of Spongebob Spongebob: Battle for Bikini Bottom back in 2020. The developers at Purple Lamp Studios are back with another Spongebob title with SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake.
While the previous Spongebob game was a full remake of an older title, The Cosmic Shake is more of a spiritual successor to Battle for Bikini Bottom.
According to THQ Nordic, the game is about:
Wish-granting Mermaid’s Tears in the hands of SpongeBob and Patrick… What could possibly go wrong? Sure, the very fabric holding the same universe very together could come very undone, opening up portals into Wishworlds full of knights, cowboys, pirates, and prehistoric snails. But that’s nothing everyone’s favourite sponge can’t handle – with the right cosmic costume! Everybody do the Cosmic Shake!
Gameplay
Like the previous SpongeBob game, The Cosmic Shake is a 3D platformer where you’ll go around gathering collectibles and fighting enemies along with some mini-games along the way.
While Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated had you playing as SpongeBob, Patrick and Sandy at different parts of the game, each with their own abilities, The Cosmic Shake has simplified it to just have SpongeBob as the only playable character.
Having SpongeBob as the only one you play does make the gameplay easier. Another change for The Cosmic Shake is that throughout the game, SpongeBob will gain multiple special abilities like capturing enemies in bubbles or karate-kicking the jelly monsters in the game.
In addition, there are around 30 costumes for SpongeBob to wear in the game that also correspond with some of the different levels and also are references to past SpongeBob episodes.
Some of the costumes featured in The Cosmic Shake include a pirate one, a karate outfit, a Krusty Krab uniform and more.
To progress through The Cosmic Shake, there are around 7 Wishworlds that have their own themes and act as a parallel universe to the main Bikini Bottom. There’s a Wild West Jellyfish Fields, downtown Bikini Bottom that has turned into a karate movie set and Halloween Rock Bottom.
All of these 7 Wishworlds are connected via a main hub area of Bikini Bottom but the area got messed up because of SpongeBob and Patrick’s blowing of bubbles made from wish-granting Mermaid tears.
But as you progress through the levels, the main Bikini Bottom area will slowly start to return to normal.
Each level has its own set of objectives such as collecting Cactus Juice for Mr. Krabs in the Wild West level or collecting socks for the Flying Dutchman.
In those levels, the game’s enemies are now jelly monsters and each new level will introduce a new enemy type, which you’ll most likely need to use your new special abilities to defeat. Some levels do feature a boss fight but these fights aren’t overly difficult for players of all ages.
Presentation
Just like Battle of Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated, The Cosmic Shake looks great, all the characters and environments have been brought to life in 4K resolution.
Everything in The Cosmic Shake has a great and vibrant visual flair with lots of pops of colour. I especially like the art style for this game that is more cartoony than Battle of Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated.
The game’s soundtrack is also great, each of the levels has music that is tailored toward the mood and atmosphere of the level. Such as having pirate-esque music at the pirate/beach level or western/cowboy music at the Wild West level.
One annoyance that is still present in The Cosmic Shake is the very repetitive catchphrases that SpongeBob says while you’re playing. He seems to go through two or three phrases that get repeated constantly.
For this review, I played The Cosmic Shake on the Xbox Series X and it looked great running at 4K. One thing to note is that the game is technically launching for previous-gen consoles like Xbox One, and PS4 and there aren’t any enhancements for the current-gen consoles like Xbox Series X or PS5.
Final Thoughts
Overall, SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake is a great platformer that improved upon Battle of Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated by adding new abilities, an interesting story and new levels.
The game is available now for Xbox One (playable on Xbox Series X & S), PS4 (playable on PS5), Nintendo Switch and PC for $39.99 CAD.
An Xbox One review code of the game was provided by the game’s publisher, THQ Nordic.
Pros
- Visually great
- Catchy soundtrack
- Good variety of levels
- Fun and simple gameplay
Cons
- Slightly challenging at times
- SpongeBob sometimes won’t be quiet
- Occasional glitches
TheCanadianTechie 