Playstation Minis Review – Jelly Pops
Publisher: PomPom Games, Developer: PomPom Games, Genre: Action, Release Date: Sept 21, 2011, Rating: Everyone, Systmes: Playstation Portable, Playstation 3 (Minis).
Presentation – Jelly Pops is an action game where controlling a snake is the main focal point of the game. My immediate vibe when i started playing this Playstation Minis game was Flow. Like Flow your controlling a being in a set enviroment that exudes tranquility. Jelly Pops exudes that same tranquil free spirited gameplay. Is it as good as Flow? Nowhere near. It is what it is. Its a simple game that was designed for a handheld.
Expecting more then just controlling a snake from left to right while avoiding occasional dangerous objects and you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Navigating in Jelly Pops was really simple. Controls are the Analogs and one button to activate Boost. Menus are Play Game, How to Play, Settings, Select Profile and Credits. The only interesting menu besides Play Game is How To Play which gives you some information pertaining to Jelly Pops and undestanding what everything is or does.
Story – No story. Your a snake and you must survive by eating gems and keeping your Life Force intact.
Visuals – Not much to brag about. Its a 2D game with a wiggly low pixelated snake you can control. The backgrounds featured some interesting designs. Jelly Pops looks like your looking through a microscope at bacteria or whatnot. Like i alluded to earliar, the game reminds me of Flow not just in atmosphere but visually as well. Just without the great texture and effects work that are in Flow.
Sound Design – The music in the start up menu was catchy. The bass was too loud and distorted. It sounded pretty bad. It must have something to do with the transfer from the Playstation Portable (PsP) to the Playstation 3. The sound effects are forgettable as well the music during gameply.
Gameplay – Gameplay centers around you controlling a snake from left to right on a 2D screen. You can slow down, go up, down and right. Your Life Meter is a red gauge as seen on the right side of the screen and depletes as you move. It runs out fast unless you collect Colered Gems that fill up your Life Force guage alittle at a time. There are also Dangerous Items on screen that can harm your snake if your not careful. Red and Blue gems increase your Life Force.
You can earn medals in Jelly Pops for good gameplay. Unlocking these Stage Medels enables your snake to Boost which is a huge help in making it to more Life Force gems before your Life Force gauge depletes. And deplete it does, pretty fast actually which makes Jelly Pops difficult. If you can unlock the Score Medal that will enable you to unlock Spirit for bonus points which can also help your chances of beating a level.
Replayability – Not much other than getting a higher score which i don’t care for. The difficulty will probabaly make you not want to play this game very long. Don’t get me wrong i some fun but it was in very short doses.
Final Verdict – Jelly Pops has a good idea and presetataion. Its tranquil, but the tough difficulty and controls make Jelly Pops a frustrating Playstation Minis game. Thanks for reading.
4/10
