The simians in "Space Chimps" might be the most interesting flying apes since the Wicked Witch of the West was in business.
The T-rated video game from Brash Entertainment re-creates the characters from the movie "Space Chimps" — which slipped on a banana peel at the box office a few weeks ago.
It’s basically a platform game that’s directed at kids who were intrigued by the misadventures of Ham III — a circus chimp who descended from the famous space traveler of the 1950s — and brainy Luna.
The pair are sent into space with another chimpanzee named Titan and crash-land on the planet Malgor, which is ruled by a tyrant named Zartog. They scamper around the colorful world trying to regain their ship and escape the planet.
Gamers will spend most of their time playing as Ham, who leaps, climbs and swings his way through the adventure. When faced with an enemy, he can bash him or use a lizard friend who appears to spit loogies.
However, it’s generally more fun to play as Luna. Being the brainiac, she is presented with a number of puzzles to solve. These tend to be fun — sometimes a bit complex, but still kid-friendly. Luna’s special ability is flight, which is made possible by a butterflylike creature that attaches itself to her back.
I tested the game on the Wii and thought the graphics where pretty good for a children’s title. The voice work got a bit repetitive — and the music tended toward annoying. Fortunately, you can turn it down.
I have to admit that I didn’t really expect much after the movie failed to take off at the box office. However, "Space Chimps" turns out to be a fun kid-oriented title.
Platforms: Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, Nintendo DSOn the Web: spacechimpsgame.com
