Turtles in Time Re-Shelled is a no-frills remake of the classic beat-em-up that came out in arcades and on the SNES in the early 90s. If that's all you were expecting, go download it. But do you realize that the game can be finished in under an hour and there is no incentive to replay it?
With arcade titles like Splosion Man, which provides so much content for a low price, it would have been nice to get more than just redone graphics out of Re-Shelled. Some new levels and drop in and out coop would be a great start.
The problem with Re-Shelled is the nostalgia factor doesn't hold up after all of these years. The gameplay is similar to the last game I reviewed, Watchmen. There is little strategy and it is all about button mashing. There is no vibration feedback from your attacks, which makes them feel even less powerful.
Another issue is the chaotic nature of the onscreen action. When you have four turtles fighting against countless baddies, it's tough to see who you are controlling.
Each turtle supposedly has unique attributes but they all play very similar. Four player coop is expected and works well. I didn't encounter any lag online.
The redone graphics are a great addition but removing the old school visuals was a big mistake. Why not allow players to switch between the two, like we could do in Monkey Island?
Re-Shelled's new music is extremely bland and the turtles' sounds aren't much better.
In addition, you can also jump in to quickplay or survival mode aka see-how-far-you-can-get-with-one-life. Neither mode is very rewarding.
Turtles in Time Re-Shelled is a great example of how much games have evolved. Even though we may have thought we wanted this classic "remake" this release shows that it is no longer enough to slap on a coat of paint to outdated gameplay.
Pros: True to the original, easy on the eyes
Cons: Not much has changed, gameplay isn't fun anymore, not enough options for the $10 pricetag.
GamePro Score: 3.0
The Info -- Developer/Publisher: Ubisoft, ESRB: E10+, Players: 1-4 (online and off), Price: 800 MS Points
