On the ever expensive hunt for amiibo, I just picked up Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash. As for the game itself, I have heard some bad things, but I need to see for myself.
First Impression
The box makes it look super cute and fun. The back of the box says “Swing into action with your Chibi-Plug and help Chibi-Robo save the world!”. That makes me expect that I will get to play with some sort of grappling hook mechanic, which I am looking forward to.
It also mentions that there are snacks to collect, to fill a your snack album. Which implies tons of collectible secrets, which can be fun or hell. Depending on how they hide things. The back of the box also says that the amiibo unlocks bonus content such as: Chibi-Capsules that have in-game features and bonus stages, and you can transform into golden Super Chibi-Robo.
Playing the game
Initial plot looks like a conservation message immediately. As aliens are stealing our natural resources. And Chibi-Robo, has to come down from the space station, that he is cleaning with a toothbrush, and save the world. Playing the first level, there are a lot of strange things that I liked seeing. It makes the feel really unique. And I will cover what I like about it.
The games starts you off with a basic attack, the Whip Lash, used with the x button. Its a quick short range attack, you can dispatch small enemies quickly and attach to close attachable areas. Holding X, Chibi-Robo swings it above his head and in the air allows you to hover for a short time.
Then you quickly unlock the Zip Lash, which could be… I dunno, the staple of the game? It isn’t used for quick attacks as it has charge time, and you charge in place. It has considerably longer range, and a laser sight. I found that aiming can be finicky. You also unlock a ricochet feature, and thankfully the laser shows how it will ricochet, although only a short length after the bounce. It can travel through multiple enemies and collect all their drops. A useful mechanic. It can also be used to attach to long range points to pull yourself to.
The first collectible candy, as they mentioned on the back of the box, was a tootsie pop. The kid in me wants to collect all my favourite candy. Sort of like in Pikmin, but it is not a clever description for the name but directly what the product is. The adult in me, recognizes that it is a brilliant way to pay for a game. On level 4, I ran into a plane that wanted an item, which I collected earlier that level. Upon giving the plane the Mentos (yes, the fresh maker), and he cheered about the texture and menthol flavour. Which I found… odd.
Throughout the level, you pick up power ups that extend your Whip Lash and Zip Lash. You come across a lot more upgrades for the Zip Lash, being that the longer Whip Lash is extremely useful. You also come across trash. And the trash it put into the engine of your ship to generate power. There are also 3 Baby-Robo to capture. and on my first play through, I accidentally killed a few Baby-Robo’s. Then after a few levels, there are baby aliens to rescue. It can be difficult given the position of the alien and the pad to return it on. The levels have a variety of collectables that keep it pretty interesting. And some times it requires a Zip Lash ricochet puzzle.
At the end of the level, it presents to you 3 UFO’s, and they have 3 sizes, largest to smallest are bronze, silver and gold. I wasn’t sure what it wanted at first, so I hit the closest one. Then after it totals up your score and gives you bonuses you return to level select. The level select screen for world 1, has all the missions in a ring. And the quality of UFO you destroyed now counts. As it bring up a roulette of how many spaces you can move. And with a bronze, there was a lot of 1 spaces, a one 2 and one 3. Then you spin to see how many moves you get then what level you land on is the next one you play. The novelty at first is very charming, being able to pick what UFO you hit will help your chances of getting the level you want. Getting high quality UFO’s, gives you more spins to get what you want. And if it poses too much of a hassle, you can buy panels to get what you want on the board.
Amiibo
The amiibo is nice. Although it is not part of any series, I have to make due with it breaking the consistency of my amiibo arrangement. As for the amiibo its self, it is cute, and I feel represents the character excellently. And its base is brown, which doesn’t fit in with anything. I still do like it.
TL;DR
Cute side scroller, Zip lash is fun mechanic, collecting candy is charming, make sure you have new 3DS or adapter for amiibo, levels have good length for bite sized game sessions.
Verdict
A light hearted platformer with a variety of collectables for the completionist. Easy enough for a child to pick up and play, and a lot of variety for older gamers. They game may be too easy for the hardcore gamer but could pose for a nice break.
Buy it if you are looking for a easy game to kill some time.
Skip it if you are looking for a challenging experience that will require skill and finesse.
