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During Nintendo’s annual pre-E3 press conference in 2005, they spent a decent amount of time showing off Electroplankton to the audience. As this was taking place I kept wondering why in the world Nintendo would devote so much time to what seemed to be a very niche product. After the E3 show ended and I had a chance to actually try Electroplankton, I was still puzzled as to why the big production over such a silly title. So, as I unwrapped my reviewable copy of the game I thought, “There’s obviously got to be more to this game than meets the eye”. After spending over a week playing Electroplankton, I can’t help but feel that most gamers would feel ripped off after buying it. They say: “Art and music collide when you manipulate plankton, microscopic organisms drifting in bodies of water. Before getting started, you need absolutely zero inclination to music. Electroplankton makes it easy for anyone to become a maestro. Each of the 10 unique Electroplankton features an original sound and visual effect. You become the creative mastermind behind your own works of art. Drawing line on the touch screen through the water creates mysterious music as the plankton swim along the path.”
If that sounds exciting to you, then perhaps you might want to give Electroplankton a go. I was intrigued by the concept of interactive music making and cool special effects. When I actually played the game, I found so many shortcomings that I was shocked this is a final product. What this game essentially ends up being is a tech-demo to show off the Nintendo DS’s capabilities. There are ten different modes to mess around with, each different than the last. Different music can be created by touching and drawing on the screen. At first, this was exciting and I was having a good time. About twenty minutes passed and I had messed around with each mode and that was it. The game was essentially over. I thought I must have missed something. Surely there’s a way to save some cool beats or replay my music tracks. Nope. What’s the point of spending all that time creating something cool and not being able to share it with friends or replay it at a later date? Also, this game is screaming for multiplayer options. How cool would it be to create music with friends via a wireless connection? Apparently that idea wasn’t good enough to make into the final game. If you didn’t already know, Electroplankton is only being sold via online game sites and not in stores. In this case it’s an excellent decision since it’ll probably receive less exposure if it went to retail in the conventional sense. I’m all for original games that tap the creative juices of its players. I even like music games. Unfortunately, Electroplankton serves up 30 minutes of decent fun, but then the party’s over. There simply isn’t enough to do, not enough options to explore, and the experience is cut short way too fast. Some hardcore players out there will enjoy this game. Everyone else should stay far away.
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