Shrek 2 (video game)

Shrek 2

Shrek 2 North American GameCube box art

Shrek 2 North American GameCube box art
Developer(s) Luxoflux (Cross-Platforming)
KnowWonder (Original PC)
Beenox (Cross-Platforming porting for PC)
Aspyr (Original PC Porting for Mac)
Vicarious Visions (GBA)
Skyworks Interactive (Mobile)
Publisher(s) Activision
Distributor(s) D3 Publisher (Japan)
Producer(s) DreamWorks
Composer(s) Kevin Manthei
Kevin Riepl
Rob Berry
Engine LuxEngine 2 (Cross-Platforming)
Unreal Engine 2 (Original PC and Mac)
Platform(s) GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Release date(s)
  • NA: April 28, 2004
  • PAL: June 18, 2004

Windows

  • NA: May 3, 2004
  • PAL: June 18, 2004

Mobile

  • NA: May 31, 2004
  • PAL: September 1, 2004
Genre(s) Action-adventure, beat 'em up
Mode(s) Single-player

Shrek 2 (also known as Shrek 2: The Game and ported for the PC as Shrek 2: Team Action at Beenox) is a 2004 action-adventure video game published by Activision and released in 2004. The game was developed by Luxoflux for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube, while a version for PC was developed by KnowWonder. The Game Boy Advance version was also released on a Twin Pack cartridge bundled with Shark Tale in 2005.[1]

Plot

Shrek 2's storyline follows the same plot of the movie. Shrek and Fiona are on a journey to the Kingdom of Far Far Away to visit Fiona's parents. Shrek's in-laws aren't too thrilled that a crude ogre is married to their beloved daughter, so the battle for acceptance ensues. The game also covers things not shown in the film. Plot elements are delivered primarily through a storybook interface (text and illustrations) shown before each level.

Gameplay

Based on the 2004 sequel of the same name, the player is able to play as Shrek or nine of his friends throughout the game, and travel through 11 levels, while being able to switch between the 4 characters available in each level. In each level, the player controls a team of four characters, and can switch between them at any point. Each character has a unique ability that aids them in fighting enemies or moving through the environment (for example, Donkey can destroy obstacles and Fiona can slow down time).

The game is broken into different chapters, each with their own set of goals. One chapter might require the player to make sure three blind mice safely make their way to the witch's house. Another chapter might have the player act as a deputy in Far, Far Away Land—collecting bits of Humpty Dumpty, stealing treasure from a troll, escorting Cinderella while she window shops for a glass slipper, or ridding the town to the Pied Piper's rat infestation, collecting chickens for a stew, or battling Puss in Boots via timed button presses.[2]

Players play mini-games that the player will have to complete when the player isn't travelling on hazardous paths from point A to point B. Challenges that require the player his/her entire party include having to punch chickens into cook pots or a pen, escorting characters through a stage (Billy Goat Gruff and the three blind mice), and collecting fairies, jewels, etc.[2]

The second type of mini-game, dubbed "Hero Time," gives one character a challenge to complete, usually emphasizing that character's particular skills displayed in the movie. Donkey at one point has to chase a fleeing onion wagon well riding on the back of Dragon. Fiona holds a private concert for a flock of black birds she's collecting for a pie (via exploding them by rhythm based button presses). Shrek has to throw a bunch of thugs into a paddy wagon.[2]

Development

Shrek 2 was created by Luxoflux and KnowWonder and published by Activision in 2004. The game is based on the 2004 animated film of the same name by DreamWorks. TDK showed the game at the E3 convention in May 2003.[3][4] Activision announced on December of that same year that they would be working with DreamWorks to develop and publish video games based on the upcoming Shrek 2 movie,[5] before they released the first trailer for the game in Spring of 2004.[6]

Two versions of the game were released for the PC; one developed by KnowWonder for younger audiences using Unreal Engine 2, and the other a port of the original console release under the title Shrek 2: Team Action which was developed by Beenox.[7]

Soundtrack

The score for the game was composed by Kevin Manthei and Kevin Riepl with additional music by Rob Berry. The soundtrack album consists of 58 tracks with over 65 minutes of score. It can be bought exclusively at KMM Productions.

Track listing

01. Swamp Theme
02. Oh Merry Men!
03. Chicken Mini-Game
04. Spooky Forest Theme
05. Cemetery Creep
06. Cemetery Combat
07. Fat Knight Fight
08. Spooky Combat
09. Spooky Hero Time
10. Far Far Away Theme
11. Humpty Riot
12. Outlaw Theme
13. Ratical Battle
14. Troll Combat
15. Chicken Mini-Game
16. Ogre Killer Medley
17. Walking the Path Theme
18. Bridge Combat
19. Riverbank Theme
20. Combat
21. Talking to a Goat
22. Talking to a Leprechaun
23. Intro
24. Hub Theme
25. Flower Power
26. Haunted Corn Patch
27. Blueberry Mini-Game
28. J&J Hero Time
29. Fairy Godmother's Theme
30. Sneaking in the Halls
31. Factory Chase
32. Potion Room
33. Fairy Hero Time
34. Exterior Sneek
35. Ball Room
36. Caught Combat
37. Mama Spider Combat
38. Troll Combat 2
39. The Hallway
40. Mines Combat
41. Dark Rooms
42. Plaza
43. Mines Hero Time
44. Rooftops
45. Cookie Attacks
46. Cookie Hero Time
47. Final Boss Phase 1
48. Final Boss Phase 2
49. Shell Music
50. The Ending
51. Coin Theme
52. Riverbank alt. Versions
53. Spooky Forest Mice
54. Spooky Hero Time alt. Version
55. Jack n Jill concept piece
56. Jack n Jill Blueberry chase
57. Jack n Jill Haystack Needle
58. Scrapbook music - fairytale ending
59. All Star - Special ending music if you unlock every character and go to Shrek's swamp.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(GBA) 72.56%[8]
(GC) 72.27%[9]
(PS2) 71.92%[10]
(Xbox) 71.29%[11]
(PC) 62.90%[12]
(Mobile) 49%[13]
Metacritic(GBA) 72/100[14]
(Xbox) 72/100[15]
(PS2) 71/100[16]
(GC) 70/100[17]
(PC) 55/100[18]
Review scores
PublicationScore
EGM6.17/10[19]
Eurogamer5/10[20]
Game Informer7/10[21]
GamePro[22]
Game RevolutionC+[23]
(PS2) C[24]
GameSpot6.8/10[25]
(GBA) 6.4/10[26]
(Mobile) 5.2/10[27]
(PC) 4.5/10[28]
GameSpy[29]
(Mobile) [30]
GameZone(Xbox) 8.5/10[31]
(PS2) 8/10[32]
(GC) 7.8/10[33]
(PC) 5.9/10[34]
IGN(GBA) 7.9/10[35]
7/10[2]
(Mobile) 5.5/10[36]
(PC) 3.9/10[37]
Nintendo Power(GBA) 3.5/5[38]
(GC) 3.3/5[38]
OPM (US)[39]
PC Gamer (US)75%[40]
The Times[41]

Almost every console version of Shrek 2 received favorable reviews from critics. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it a score of 72.56% and 72 out of 100 for the Game Boy Advance version;[8][14] 72.27% and 70 out of 100 for the GameCube version;[9][17] 71.92% and 71 out of 100 for the PlayStation 2 version;[10][16] 71.29% and 72 out of 100 for the Xbox version;[11][15] 62.90% and 55 out of 100 for the PC version;[12][18] and 49% for the Mobile version.[13]

IGN reviewer Mary Jane Irwin called the GameCube, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 versions of Shrek 2 "an amusing jaunt into the world of the movie,"[2] and Craig Harris, another reviewer of IGN, called the GBA version "an absolute treat, especially for those who dig the artstyle of the film," though he stated it to be "nothing new."[35]

The game, along with fellow movie sequel based game published by Activision, Spider-Man 2, shipped more than 5 million units combined and were the best-selling titles of May and June, respectively.[42]

References

  1. ↑ "2 in 1: DreamWorks' Shark Tale + Shrek 2 for Game Boy Advance (2005) - MobyGames". MobyGames. Retrieved 2016-07-14.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Irwin, Mary Jane (May 5, 2004). "Shrek 2". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  3. ↑ IGN staff (May 6, 2003). "E3 2003: TDK reveals lineup". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  4. ↑ IGN staff (May 7, 2003). "E3 2003: Activision announces lineup". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  5. ↑ Calvert, Justin (December 19, 2003). "Activision signs Shrek 2 from DreamWorks". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  6. ↑ Dunham, Jeremy (April 9, 2004). "Official Shrek 2 Trailer". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Shrek 2: Team Action for PC - GameFAQs". www.gamefaqs.com. Retrieved 2016-07-14.
  8. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for Game Boy Advance". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for GameCube". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  10. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  11. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for Xbox". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  12. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for PC". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  13. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for Mobile". GameRankings. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  14. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for Game Boy Advance Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  15. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  16. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  17. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  18. 1 2 "Shrek 2 for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  19. ↑ EGM staff (July 2004). "Shrek 2". Electronic Gaming Monthly (181): 94.
  20. ↑ Bramwell, Tom (August 12, 2004). "Shrek 2 (Xbox)". Eurogamer. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  21. ↑ Miller, Matt (July 2004). "Shrek 2". Game Informer (135): 112. Archived from the original on February 28, 2008. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  22. ↑ "Shrek 2". GamePro: 68. August 2004.
  23. ↑ Dodson, Joe (June 15, 2004). "Shrek 2 Review (Xbox, GC)". Game Revolution. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  24. ↑ Dodson, Joe (June 15, 2004). "Shrek 2 - ps2 Review". Game Revolution. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  25. ↑ Davis, Ryan (May 5, 2004). "Shrek 2 Review". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  26. ↑ Provo, Frank (June 3, 2004). "Shrek 2 Review (GBA)". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  27. ↑ Palley, Stephen (June 2, 2004). "Shrek 2 Review (Mobile)". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  28. ↑ Davis, Ryan (June 3, 2004). "Shrek 2 Review (PC)". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  29. ↑ Rice, Kevin (May 29, 2004). "GameSpy: Shrek 2". GameSpy. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  30. ↑ Buchanan, Levi (June 28, 2004). "GameSpy: Shrek 2 (Cell)". GameSpy. Archived from the original on May 6, 2006. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  31. ↑ The Bearer (May 13, 2004). "Shrek 2: The Game - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  32. ↑ Bedigian, Louis (May 9, 2004). "Shrek 2: The Game - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  33. ↑ Hollingshead, Anise (May 13, 2004). "Shrek 2: The Game - GC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  34. ↑ Aceinet (July 18, 2004). "Shrek 2: The Game - PC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  35. 1 2 Harris, Craig (May 4, 2004). "Shrek 2 (GBA)". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  36. ↑ Buchanan, Levi (June 18, 2004). "Shrek 2 (Cell)". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  37. ↑ Irwin, Mary Jane (June 7, 2004). "Shrek 2 (PC)". IGN. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  38. 1 2 "Shrek 2". Nintendo Power. 182: 120. July 2004.
  39. ↑ Baker, Chris (July 2004). "Shrek 2". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. Archived from the original on June 20, 2004. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  40. ↑ "Shrek 2". PC Gamer: 58. July 2004.
  41. ↑ Wapshott, Tim (June 26, 2004). "Shrek 2". The Times. Archived from the original on January 14, 2006. Retrieved July 19, 2014.(subscription required)
  42. ↑ Golze, Benjamin; Thorsen, Tor (July 21, 2004). "Activision reports record sales". GameSpot. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
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