Customer Reviews

Monster Lab

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Monster Lab is a fun title from Eidos, and will result in countless hours of fun for those who pick it up. You play as a an apprentice who is tasked with helping a trio of mad scientists defeat their old compatriot, Baron Mharti, who has run off with their formulas for monster building and is threatening to take over the world with his creations. As you explore the world, you pick up parts with which to make your own monsters. You will learn the tricks of the trade to build parts from three disciplines: mechanical; biological; and alchemical. Parts that can be built are heads, torsos, arms, and legs, and are done in a series of mini-games (12 total for each part and each discipline). Different disciplines have strengths and weaknesses, and different areas of the world are comprised of monsters which dominate in a particular discipline as well (for example, the Neverglades are filled with monsters which are predominantly biological). Combat is turn-based, with monsters taking turns beating on each other. You win by either destroying the torso of your opponent, or knocking off all of their limbs. The story is very interesting, is often amusing, and is of the length that it isn't off-putting or not enough. With hundreds of items to be collected with which to make parts, there are literally a million or more monster combinations, though for later stages of the game you won't be using the wimpy parts you created in the early stages. There is an online component as well, which will allow you to take your monster online, to see how well it matches up against others. For those who have played the Wii version of this game, they'll know what to expect from the NDS version, though the two are dissimilar enough (particularly in the part creation mini-games) to warrant a re-purchase, especially given the low price point of the NDS version. Overall, this is a great title, very well made, but surprisingly relatively unknown. If you want a title which will supply you with an interesting story, great gameplay, online capability, and potential for replayability, you'll want to check out Monster Lab for the NDS.

Overlooked among larger Nintendo DS launches is this imaginative gem, which sells for less than $20 yet provides amazing value for an action/RPG (roll playing game). "Monster Lab" main story should take your family's mad scientist about a week to achieve but there's a treasure trove of replay value in trying to build a better monster as well as a dozen different minigames.

I recently gave two copies to my sons (ages 8 and 6) as a pre-Halloween gift to see who could build a better monster. With the aid of a odd mad scientist (are there others?!) in the lightning tower you earn about the three elements -biological, alchemical and mechanical - necessary for monster building. You bolt and stitch your monster together using whatever spare parts are available, although players can upgrade their creation through exploration. There is strategy to the monster building and the sheer volume of options (the game boasts there are more than 150 million monster combinations) will lead to hours of experimentation.

Once your monster is complete with arms, legs, torso and head you can begin turn-based battles that ultimately leave the losing monster in a heap of disconnected parts on the floor.

As gory as this monster-making might sound, the graphics are kid-friendly and intentionally silly. The style reminded me of the bizarre Claymation produced by Dreamworks Interactive for The Neverhood. The game has great style and sound quality, with an obvious nod to Universal classic monster movies like Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Ghost of Frankenstein, House of Frankenstein and Son of Frankenstein.

In summary, don't overlook this entertaining action/RPG. It stimulates creativity (monster building) while teaching strategy and there's nothing quite so funny to an 8-year old as showing off his own monster, complete with pumpkin head and lobster claws.

Rating: Five stars.

This is a well made rpg game that has a style similar to pokemon. It has a great storyline, awesome minigames, and the ability to customize your monster is pretty unique.

Even though it is turn based, don't let that fool you. It's still fun. And for $10, this is a pretty decent deal

This game is rather fun with just enough of a challenge to make it engaging. There are a ton of mini games and the fighting gets increasingly challenging, although you should have gathered and created enough new monster parts to keep up with the challenge.

One minor complaint is that there is one mini game (ancient puzzles) that is virtually impossible if you are left handed!

Rather addictive game. There's a LOT of parts to get for your monster, creating a multitude of combinations. I havn't beaten it, but I simply can't put it down!

My son got this for Christmas and loved it. I bought it here on Amazon from a private seller and i t appeared to be new and un used. Everything was great until he got to the part where he meets Senor de la Sombra. At that point that game will not proceed. Quite a let down. I tried searching for who to contact regarding this glitch as I don't feel I can return it to the seller and though though purchased through Amazon it wasn;t a direct sale through them. I tried to find contact info for Nintendo and Nintendo Ds but can not find information there about getting a working replacement. Quite a disappointment.

Monster Lab is a very fun and interesting game. I received it recently as an early Christmas gift, and have enjoyed it since. Having the freedom to create your own monster parts and even build your own monster is the most entertaining future of the game. 5 stars all the way!!!

This is a very fun game. Challenging in a good way. Another game for a younger person than me but I still liked it.

I'm not crazy about the turn based combat, but that's just me. I like mashing buttons better :)