Zapper - One Wicked Cricket

by Blitz Games

Product Features

• Also Available On: Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Xbox

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006LEMH
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches ; 4.8 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: November 5, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,731 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Platform: PlayStation2

Amazon.com Review

The main character of Zapper is a cricket who must rescue his brother, Zipper, from a pilfering magpie. With a storyline that doesn’t go much deeper than that, Zapper very quickly becomes about as exciting as watching real crickets. The goal of the game is to maneuver Zapper through a completely linear 3-D world filled with angry bumblebees, picketing beavers, giant snails, blade-swinging statues, cascading waterfalls, and various other exotic dangers that make you feel like you’re in a hybrid version of A Bug’s Life and Indiana Jones. There are six worlds and 20 levels to Zapper, and experienced gamers will have little difficulty moving through all of them quickly. Helping Zapper is his ability to zap lightninglike sparks out of his antennae, which causes some bugs to jump and some boxes to open. By freeing enough fireflies, Zapper gains super-zap abilities, which will eliminate certain dangers and open otherwise locked boxes.

Anyone who has played Frogger will immediately recognize the similarity of Zapper. Each level has a grid as its base, which itself is well integrated into the six unique worlds. Zapper jumps and zaps his way from square to square and is able to rotate in place--a very useful feature when trying to avoid a swinging blade to your left, a river to your right, and the void behind you. Early in the game these dangers are easily navigable, though even the most deft gamer will die often before figuring out exactly which obstacles can be traversed. Later in the game these dangers multiply to such an extent that getting past them requires more commitment than the game deserves. And because the game is not much fun, finishing it feels more dutiful than challenging. --Bill Hummel

Pros:

• An unassuming and nonviolent game that might hold young gamers’ attention

Cons:

• Superficial storyline
• Repetitive gameplay
• Not a lot of fun

(This review refers to the Xbox version of this game)

Product Description

This is one wicked cricket doing his best to avoid trouble by using his electrified antennae as a weapon of self-defense. Evade bizarre enemies and deadly hazards, and find and destroy eggs before they hatch. You will explore totally twisted worlds by unlocking hidden areas within 18 unique levels. Multiplayer game.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Sort of like frogger, but not enough, February 26, 2003

By 

Lisa Shea "medieval swordfighting enthusiast" - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Zapper: One Wicked Cricket! (Video Game)

I had high hopes for Zapper. I was a frogger fan, and zapper promised to raise the frogger fun to a new level. Unfortunately, that wasn't quite true.

Available for most platforms, Zapper is a cricket that can only hop in four directions, just like frogger. You practice your timing to hop around enemies, work through mazes and grab special items.

It's sort of cute at first. The graphics are nice, and the cut scenes are funny. And yes, it's frogger like, with the timing of your hops and the simple gameplay. While frogger just wanted to "get to the other side", Zapper is out to save his baby brother, who was stolen by Maggie, the Magpie Queen.

But I'm sorry to say that it gets wearying pretty quickly. Just like frogger, when you get hit you die - but were frogger was a single board to restart, zapper has long, drawn out mazes. You can checkpoint along the way, but it can still be frustrating. It comes down to memorizing the paths of the monsters and executing the matching sequence.

And while frogger was about a frog getting to his destination, and the 'blind world' not even noticing him and squashing him in its own race to get somewhere, Zapper loses some of that as well. Frogger was about the struggle you put out to get through a world that goes on with or without you. The logs weren't hostile, the cars weren't aiming for you. They were just doing what they were doing and you had to understand that and work with them. Dodging traffic is something we can all understand and relate to. But the travails of Zapper just didn't strike me in the same fashion.

Perhaps good for kids, or for people who do enjoy avoidance-games

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Zapper? More Like FLOPPER!, August 20, 2006

By 

Bond Girl (McMinnville, OR United States) - See all my reviews

= Fun:1.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Zapper: One Wicked Cricket! (Video Game)

We bought this game for our 4-year old thinking it would be a fun game for mom, dad and kidlet to play together. It's visually interesting with cute sounds, but that's about it. Game handling isn't at all intuitive, and movements are jerky. You make a jump and are constantly hitting the wrong button. At first I chalked it up to my lack of motor skills (HA!), but we put even the most experienced gamer behind the controls, and he threw his hands up in frustration. We felt less like morons when our friend's 8-year old son came over and said, "You got ZAPPER? Haahhaaahaa! This game bites!"

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Zapper is a bad game to buy, September 15, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Zapper: One Wicked Cricket! (Video Game)

Zapper always skips on me. It also always takes so long to load.What's up with that. It's a waist of money in my opinoin.It gets boring after the 1st 1/2 hour. If your gonna buy it, test it out first. Go to a blockbuster and rent it.

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