SpongeBob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants!

A decent kids' game, but only if you've got at least two people playing. [Jan 2006, p.99]

A surprisingly well-made party game that successfully captures the style and humor of the popular Nickelodeon franchise.

Parents can rest assured with this game. As for the rest of us, unless you're a huge Spongebob fan or have a lot of beer, there are better games out there.

Hardly deep, but an entertaining set of party games for your younger brother or sister that you may just get a kick from too. [Jan 2006, p.109]

Of course, the odd SpongeBob appearance and the odd wisecrack from Mr. Krabs makes up for the otherwise abysmal tasting Krabby Patty of a game, but unless you really have an itch for a Sponge game, this probably should be avoided.

All in all, it's hard to see how even the most ardent SpongeBob fan could get a lot out of this game, even with three friends and four controllers on hand. There's just not a big enough selection of games, fundamentally, and too many niggles.

The problem with Story Mode is that additional players cannot join or exit a game in progress.

Spongebob has platforming? Racing? A weird game? A game based off a movie? What next? A party game? Well is it good? It is! Minigames are really creative and fun. Has a way better storyline than Mario Party. Also it is hilarious as well.This game is often hated for some reason and I have no idea.

I don't know why people hate this game. Lights camera pants is awesome. One of my favourite games ever. It may be a copy on Mario Party, but it's awesome

There is definitely flaws with this game, such as a rather small pool of minigames, a monotonous story mode and only getting real enjoyment with multiplayer, but there is still a lot to love with this Spongebob game. For examples, it has one of the best Spongebob game OSTs, all the cast members return, some hilarious cutscenes (both intentionally and unintentionally) and the minigames featured are quite fun. Still a very good game, but you might be better with Battle for Bikini Bottom or the Spongebob Movie.

Lights Camera Pants has some entertaining mini-games, which do offer an enjoyable multiplayer experience. However, the problem is that, unlike a game like Mario Party, the mini-games here offer little replayability, as there are very little elements to the games that allow for more than a few playthroughs to feel rewarding. Also, mainly for this reason, the single-player mode also feels very shallow, and after a few tries, not challenging in the least. It is unfortunate, because it is a decent game, but it could have been so much better.

Lights, Camera, Pants has the potential to rival the Mario Party franchise and reinvigorate Spongebob multiplayer games. However, in order to do so, the games need to be as fun and energized as the early Spongebob cartoons. That being said, this game fails not because of technical hiccups or bugs, but solely due to a lack of originality that could have been exploited from such a rich subject material. The game spans several different themed worlds that each possess three mini-games. The player who earns the most points at the end of this competition wins the coveted role of the super-villain in the new Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy show. The concept is great and allows for a variety of famous locales to be explored. The first four regions are where the game shines, as it features frantic fun flipping Krabby Patties and fighting off Plankton's creations and jamming out to a rock solo with Spongebob's electric guitar. These games work because they are fast-paced and exciting to play with friends. After this point, however, the game falls fast and the creativity soon dies out. Repetitive and simplistic games ruin the rest of the experience, either being too easy to win (one game involving soccer I won 38-0 because of the laughably bad opponent AI) or too frustrating to enjoy, such as a barnacle **** game that involves spamming the square button until your fingers fall off. Overall, I really enjoy the concept of Lights, Camera, Pants. Done right, this idea could have the potential to challenge any other party game on the market with unique Spongebob themed challenges. However, until the games can be consistently fun and addictive as their source material, Lights, Camera, Pants will remain in the shadows. 5/10 Follow me on twitter. @cbeers2513