Review: Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People - Strong Badia the Free (PC)

Mon, Sep 15, 2008

In last month's review of Homestar Ruiner, the debut episode of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, we confirmed a few points for Strong Bad fans: Telltale Games' new episodic PC/WiiWare series did an excellent job of capturing the Homestar Runner characters and motif. The humor was very much intact, and any H*R fan would get a kick out of the game, which played just like an extended episode of the cartoon. Even non-fans would find something to enjoy in the game's solid, intuitive puzzles, and the oddball, accessible humor. With episode two, "Strong Badia the Free," releasing today, none of those factors have changed -- as with any episodic series, the gameplay is unchanged, the familiar characters are still present, and the successful formula has not been tampered with. Fortunately for SBCG4AP players, the news is still good: Two episodes in, Telltale still has plenty of new surprises to keep the series fresh.

Episodic games face a unique challenge when presenting themselves to today's discerning gamer, but they also enjoy a unique advantage. The first episode of any series faces the same hurdle as any new release -- the game has to be good, obviously -- but it's also obligated to develop and deliver a world and characters that are engaging enough to keep their players coming back for several more games. Assuming the first episode has done its job well, the subsequent episodes can relax a little: Gamers are willing to tolerate some repetition and recurring themes; that's the point of playing a series, after all. The trick, of course, is to have the core content be different enough that the audience doesn't feel they've been cheated into buying the same game again. Strong Badia the Free manages this in a big way, which is impressive given the extremely static lineup of characters in the Homestar Runner universe. The series' second episode flows very differently from the first, mixing up the routine with new locations, an amusing new interface option, and an effective rotation of the characters.

Strong Badia the Free begins with the King of Town placing Strong Bad under house arrest for failing to pay an extremely strict email tax. In response, naturally, Strong Bad starts a rebellion, which forces him to enlist the help of every other resident of Free Country, USA. Players can thus expect to interact with every member of H*R's principal cast, and the game starts off with Strong Bad's inner circle, including Strong Mad, The Cheat, and Strong Sad -- all of whom were largely neglected in the prior episode. The game even involves an extended sequence with the infamous Homsar, which has to be played through to be believed.

The puzzles in Strong Badia the Free have a different flow and presentation than those in Homestar Ruiner, playing out more like a series of standalone riddles rather than overarching meta-puzzles. There is an overarching puzzle, of course, and that is to recruit the entire cast of characters to overthrow the King of Town, but each character is handled in a very isolated way -- each has a distinct location and quest, and in some cases, everything you need to solve their specific puzzle can be found at their location. Each character you recruit will be marked off on the game's highly amusing new map, and the speed at which this occurs will help players feel like they're constantly making progress.

There are, unfortunately, one or two negatives to be found in Strong Badia the Free. The new Videlectrix offering, "Math Kickers," is instantly forgettable, even with the secret codes found throughout the game -- thankfully, it doesn't have to be played for long to get the necessary achievement for your overall awesomeness. Also, while Strong Bad's Taranchula Black Metal Detector started out as amusing in the last game, it makes an appearance again as the sole route to finding hidden items and vital puzzle components. There's only so much wandering around every screen in the game with a metal detector that one can put up with before it starts to get boring; this is a recurring theme I would be glad to see disappear from the series.

The rest of the recurrences are done well: The new Teen Girl Squad content is hilarious, presented in an unexpected location and format, no less. Strong Bad's new emails are all good for a chuckle, and the series' habit of calling out many inside references from the cartoons is undaunted. By the end of the game, you will have reinstated the Homestarmy (sans Frank Benedetto), set fire to most everything Strong Sad owns, and broken up Homestar and Marzipan once again. And, as before, beating the game unlocks an extended play mode, allowing you to explore the game's extras and bonus content at your leisure.

Ultimately, Strong Badia the Free is very much able to stand on its own feet, presenting a number of major differences from Homestar Ruiner, and our verdict remains the same -- H*R fans ought to buy and enjoy it immediately, and non-fans should strongly consider doing likewise. One can expect to get a good 3-5 hours of play out of the game, most of which will be spent smiling and/or laughing aloud. Also, we have to give Telltale some thanks for the improved sound quality this time around -- the compressed warbling that was present in Homestar Ruiner is largely eliminated this time around. We'd also like to remind them that they have only three episodes left to provide an appearance for Senor Cardgage.