The latest reality show, Viva Piñata: Party Animals , has hit Piñata Island and your favourite piñatas (if you're a fan of the show) are the stars, competing in races and mini-game events for fame and fortune. Characters like Hudson Horstachio, Fergy Fudgehog, Paulie Pretztail and Franklin Fizzlybear make their debut in this brand new reality show within a video game, which is based on a television show, based on a video game. Confusing, isn't it?

The basic idea of the game itself is pretty simple, once you get past all of the background information. The characters from the television show, plus some new faces, square off against each other in races and mini-game events to collect as much candy as possible. The character with the most candy at the end of the events wins.

Gameplay

Party Animals was created to play in a very simple way, so each play mode, whether it is single, multiplayer or online multiplayer, plays the same way. Each series of events begins with a race to determine who will get bonuses at the end of each mini-game round. After each race a predetermined number of mini-games are played (the number depends on the length of each full game), and each of the players gets a certain amount of points depending on how well they did, and what their race bonus was. The points are measured in what's called “Total Candiosity”, because the points are given in candy form (which actually kind of makes sense if you're dealing with piñatas).

The control system for each of the races is quite similar to a number of driving games. To move forward, you hold down the right trigger button, and to steer left and right, you use the left control stick. There are also various other moves that can be done, like jumping or using power-ups, which are controlled using the letter buttons. Just in case you forget, before a race begins the game will remind you how to play while the track is loading (though loading is actually pretty fast). Playing the mini-games is a bit of a different story, as most of the mini-games have their own different controls. Before each mini-game, an instruction screen will pop up and tell you what game you are about to play, show a video of the mini-game in action, and tell you what the controls for that particular mini-game are.

A bit of an annoying thing with Party Animals though, is that it seems to fall short where variety comes in. In all, there are about 14 races in the game, or only seven if you count the fact that the other half are just the first seven races played backwards. That wouldn't be that much of a big deal, if it weren't for the fact that you have to play a race before getting to the mini-games. There is also a bit of an issue with the number and variety of mini-games in Party Animals. While the game's box boasts that there are over 50 mini-games that can be played in the game, that number can actually be a bit misleading. A number of the mini-games have “clones” (e.g. “Tail Time” and “Zumbugs in Space”, “Burps Ahoy!”, “Burping Balloons” and “Dangerous Dinghy”), which have similar rules or controls, but play just a bit differently, or simply throw in something extra into that mini-game's mix to alter it a bit.

When it comes to the fun and difficulty levels in Party Animals , different people will likely have different opinions, and most of those differences will likely come down to their age. Overall, I found the race events, and most of the mini-games to be quite simple, though there are some mini-games that I am still having some trouble with. When playing against real opponents, though, I found that really brought up the difficulty level, as I was no longer playing against the game itself. Kids will probably find the game to be a bit more challenging, as it was designed primarily for them. Of course, it would have been nice to see an option to increase the difficulty level. And, while I am not really a fan of the television show, I actually found the game to be pretty fun. Even if it does get a bit repetitive at times, the game had just enough of a mix to not be boring.

Environment and Graphics

To say that the graphics in Party Animals are flawless would be false, but they're pretty darn close. Both the environments and the character graphics are so well done that they are almost on par with the television show, which is saying quite a bit. The colours are bright and pleasant, and the characters look just as one would expect. That even includes close-up shots of the characters, where you can see the individual strands of tissue paper “fur” coming off of the piñatas.

Party Animals nicely showcases bright and cheery high-def graphics

The graphic quality does seem to drop somewhat during some, not all, of the mini-games, mostly the ones where the camera is further away from the characters. In fact, the look somewhat reminds me of the look of the mini-games in the Mario Party games. When the camera closes back in on the characters, the graphic quality comes right back up.

When it comes to the environments, the look was very well done, yet again. You kind of get the feeling that you are getting a tour around Piñata Island, mostly due to the fact that the races take place in various locations around the island itself. There is no doubt that the video sequences have the best graphics in the game, but the environments in the races and the high-quality mini-games are not that far off.

Sound

This is another area of Party Animals where the production quality is very high. To begin with, the game opens with an entire song and dance number with music that, while it could probably drive parents crazy after their kids listen to it a few times over, has the quality of a full Broadway number, or at least a really good television show theme song. It's got a lot of pop and really gives a good introduction to the kind of upbeat music that you'll hear when playing the game. Having said that, the rest of the in game music has a similar flow, just that it's not annoying, even after a few listens.

Much of the same can be said of the menu and in-game sound effects. All of the menu sound effects are very bright, higher pitch sounds, twinkly even, while the in-game sound effects match nicely to whatever is going on any particular time in the races or mini-games. And the quality throughout the game is crisp and clear, whether it is for the music, the sound effects or the voice acting.

The voice acting itself is top notch, and that is probably due to the fact that all of it was done by show's own voice actors. Each character's own individual personality comes right out and is quite unmistakable. This is something that fans of the show should be quite appreciative of, as they will, better than anybody else, be able to appreciate the work that is put into bringing those characters to life. Without a doubt, Dan Green's (no relation) full-of-himself character, Hudson Horstachio, is the best example of this. You really get a good feel for just how haughty and narcissistic the character is. Similar things can be said about the job the other actors did for their characters. Pecky Pudgeon and Pierre Parrybo both sound like real colour commentators, Fergy Fudgehog sounds like a whining sissy, Franklin Fizzlybear sounds like a hyped up surfer, and so on.

Conclusion

Viva Piñata: Party Animals is a fun and simple party game for kids, their friends and families. While the races and mini-games in Party Animals are fun, they can get a bit repetitive, as they don't have a lot of variety, leaving the game with a medium replay value. It's the kind of game I would suggest as a gift for a Viva Piñata fan, but only as a rental for parents looking for some fresh entertainment for their kids. For Microsoft, it's a pretty good shot at a first attempt at a party game for kids.

Gameplay: 6.5
Environment and Graphics: 9.5
Sound: 10
Story: 8
Fun: 6.8

Verdict: Rent It or Buy It