Elf Bowling

Last updated
Elf Bowling
Elfbowling.png
A screencap of the game, with elf pins and a Christmas-themed frog hopping on the icy lane.
Developer(s) NStorm
Ignition Entertainment (Elf Bowling 1 & 2)
Publisher(s) NStorm
Ignition Entertainment (Elf Bowling 1 & 2)
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Game Boy Advance (as Elf Bowling 1 & 2)
Nintendo DS (as Elf Bowling 1 & 2)
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
1998
Game Boy Advance
November 28, 2005 [1]
Nintendo DS
December 1, 2005 [1]
Genre(s) Sports
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Elf Bowling is a bowling video game developed by NStorm and released in 1998 for Windows Computers. In the game the player, as Santa Claus, attempts to knock down elves who are arranged like bowling pins. [2] A later release of the game, by Ignition Entertainment, was released on the Nintendo handheld consoles Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance, and received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics. [3] [4] [5] In Elf Bowling, the elves of Santa's Workshop are on strike due to overwork from the huge demand for Christmas toys, so Santa Claus has decided to whip them into shape by using them as bowling pins.

Contents

During the game, the elves say phrases such as "Is that all the balls you got, Santa?" when the player misses their first spare opportunity or "Gutter ball!" in a silly-sounding voice when a ball is rolled into the gutter. Other potential distractions for the user are a Reindeer that walks up along the bowling lane that can be "hit" with the bowling ball if the arrow is positioned to the far left, and a frog wearing a Santa hat hopping back and forth across the player's field of vision (resembling Kalvin Kroaker from Frogapult, also made by NStorm). If the player hits the frog with the bowling ball, its body is hauled away from the screen by a bird from Frogapult. A white rabbit also jumps and defecates across the bowling lane. Unlike the reindeer and the frog, it is not possible to hit the rabbit. The elves moon Santa (asking "who's your daddy" as they do it). Both during the game and after a game finishes, the elves do a dance, shouting "Elf elf, baby!" in reference to Vanilla Ice's song "Ice Ice Baby". The elves can also randomly move out of the way of the ball, and one elf can be decapitated by the pinsetter.

History

The game was originally created as promotional marketing content by Dan Ferguson and Mike Bielinski, both co-founders of the game studio NVision Design Archived 2016-10-03 at the Wayback Machine . The game became an internet sensation in 1999 when people originally thought it was a computer virus. The game was an EXE file and was easily distributed as an attachment to emails. (In 1999, EXE files could be attached to emails as there was no protective software to remove an EXE at the time.) Direct Marketing News did an article on the original developers - Direct Marketing News Article. Archived 2016-10-03 at the Wayback Machine According to Media Metrix, among the 54 million people playing PC games in the month of December 2000, Elf Bowling was the game to hit the top 10 with 7.6 million players that was not bundled with Windows. [6] Local Fox News Affiliate KDFW Dallas Fort Worth did an interview with Dan Ferguson and Mike Bileinski after they sold their company to Vectrix Business Solutions. [7] Vectrix Business Solutions acquired Nvision 1999 and subsequently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Elf Bowling and Frogapult were sold by Vectrix Business Solutions with the approval of the Bankruptcy Court on October 31, 2001, to Commotion Interactive, Inc. (Elf Bowling 3 was recently released by the Dallas firm NStorm, a subsidiary of Commotion Interactive). [8] [9] Matthew Lichtenwalter, CEO of NStorm and Commotion Interactive, has created the series since. [10]

Sequel

In the sequel to Elf Bowling, the elves return, as they attempt to go on an island vacation with old Kringle. Dingle Kringle (a failure as a used ice salesman) is Santa's elder brother, whom Mrs. Claus takes a shine to. The brothers make a double-or-nothing wager in a game of shuffleboard, of which on random occasions, a Moai can fall on an elf. The winner gets the title of "Father Christmas" while the loser loses his job. The elves are used as pucks.

Gameplay and scoring

The player grabs the thong bathing suit that the elf is wearing, then snaps it to propel the elf forward. There are 100, 200, and 300 point scoring zones and a player can score 400 points if their elf slides all the way to the edge of the board without falling into the ocean; elves falling into the ocean get eaten by sharks or crushed by a falling Moai. There is also the possibility of an elf not advancing far enough to score, which happens if a player does not get enough power behind the snap. Only elves that are on the board after Santa and Dingle have taken their turns count towards the score, and it is possible for an elf to be knocked off the board by another elf (although it is also possible for the elves to be moved into higher scoring zones after contact). One elf per round is worth bonus points, indicated by a flashing bathing suit. In the first and second rounds, the bonus elf is worth double the throw, and in the third, he is worth triple the throw (meaning that the maximum number of points in these rounds that can be earned on one turn is 800 or 1200). The elf only appears once per round and appears randomly.

Bonus points can be gained by shooting the penguins and their balloons on an iceberg located to the right of the ship. The iceberg can also be shot, but doing so (in the right spot) will sink it and take it out of play.

Other Elf Bowling games

To date, there have been eight editions of the game for Microsoft Windows.

Elf Bowling 1 & 2

The first two Elf Bowling games were released by Ignition Entertainment under the title Elf Bowling 1 & 2 for the Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance. The pack was panned by critics, citing poor graphics, crude audio and controls, and no extras beyond the original freeware version. It ranks as one of the lowest scoring games at both GameSpot and Metacritic, receiving only 1.4 out of 10 at GameSpot [11] and 12 out of 100 at Metacritic. [1]

Film adaptation

Elf Bowling the Movie:
The Great North Pole Elf Strike
Elf Bowling DVD Cover.jpg
UK DVD cover
Directed byDave Kim
Rex Piano
Written by Martin Olson
Produced byDave Kim
Rex Piano
Starring Tom Kenny
Joe Alaskey
Rex Piano
Jill Talley
Edited byDave Kim
Music byChris Anderson
Production
companies
Film Brokers International
Great Highway Company
Distributed byScreen Media Ventures
Film Brokers International
Release date
  • October 2, 2007 (2007-10-02)
Running time
82 minutes
81 minutes re-release
CountriesUnited States
Fiji
South Korea (outsourced)
LanguageEnglish
Budget$6,500,000

A computer-animated film produced by based on the games was released on October 3, 2007, and was entitled Elf Bowling the Movie: The Great North Pole Elf Strike . It features the voices of the late Joe Alaskey, Rex Piano, Jill Talley, and Tom Kenny. [12]

The film was a United States-Fiji-South Korea co-production directed by Dave Kim with Rex Piano as co-director. [13] The musical score for the film was composed by Chris Anderson. Simi Valley, California resident David Kim was asked to direct the film while studying editing at the Academy of Art University; Kim took the offer as a way to break into the film industry, previously working as a production assistant on music videos. After finishing Elf Bowling, he got work as a production coordinator on The Simpsons Movie (2007) and The Golden Compass (2007). [14] Produced by Filmbrokers International, Elf Bowling the Movie began production in Fiji and South Korea before moving into a Simi Valley house owned by Kim's mother, where the film's story reel was edited. [14] Dance movements for the musical sequences were animated with motion capture, Kim himself wearing one of the Mo-cap suits. [14] Screen Media Films, a company of Universal Studios Home Entertainment, distributed Elf Bowling the Movie. [14]

The film was released on DVD on October 2, 2007 [15] before being released on Amazon Prime on January 1, 2008 [16] and Blu-ray on May 18, 2016. [17]

The film was panned by critics for its writing, animation, directing, humor, plot, musical numbers, voice acting, characterizations, and for having little to nothing to do with the premise of the game. Due to the film's disastrous critical reception, plans for a sequel titled Elf Bowling 2: The Great Halloween Pumpkin-Heist were immediately cancelled.

The film received a parody stage adaptation in 2021 by Chapman University's sketch comedy group The Player's Society, adapted by Sasha Espinosa and directed by Delaney Tobin. [18]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Santa Clause</i> 1994 film directed by John Pasquin

The Santa Clause is a 1994 American Christmas comedy film directed by John Pasquin and written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick. The first installment in The Santa Clause franchise, it stars Tim Allen as Scott Calvin, an ordinary man who accidentally causes Santa Claus to fall from his roof to his supposed death on Christmas Eve. When he and his young son, Charlie, finish the late St. Nick's trip and deliveries, they go to the North Pole where Scott learns that he must become the new Santa and convince those he loves that he is indeed Santa Claus.

<i>Elf</i> (film) 2003 American Christmas comedy film

Elf is a 2003 American Christmas comedy film directed by Jon Favreau and written by David Berenbaum. It stars Will Ferrell as Buddy, a human raised by Santa's elves, who learns about his origins and heads to New York City to meet his biological father. James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner and Bob Newhart appear in supporting roles.

<i>The Santa Clause 2</i> 2002 film directed by Michael Lembeck

The Santa Clause 2 is a 2002 American Christmas comedy film directed by Michael Lembeck in his directorial debut. It is a sequel to The Santa Clause (1994) and the second installment in The Santa Clause franchise. All of the principal actors from the first film, including Tim Allen, Eric Lloyd, Judge Reinhold, Wendy Crewson, and David Krumholtz, reprise their roles, and are joined by Elizabeth Mitchell, Spencer Breslin, and Liliana Mumy. Released on November 1, 2002, the film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $172 million worldwide on a $65 million budget. It was followed by another sequel, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, released in 2006.

Mega Man Battle Network is a tactical role-playing video game series created by Masahiro Yasuma and developed and published by Capcom as a spin-off of the Mega Man series; it premiered in 2001 on the Game Boy Advance and takes place in an alternate continuity where computers and networking technology was the main focus on scientific advancement, rather than robotics. There are a total of six mainline games, alongside several spin-offs.

<i>Jingle Belle</i> Fictional character created by Paul Dini

Jingle Belle is a fictional comics character created by Paul Dini. The spoiled teenage daughter of Santa Claus, she has a humorously contentious relationship with her famous father. She is usually motivated by feeling unappreciated or being jealous of the attention her father pays to all the children of the world.

<i>Mega Man Battle Network 5</i> 2004 video game

Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team ProtoMan and Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team Colonel are 2004 role-playing video games developed and published by Capcom for the Game Boy Advance (GBA) handheld game console. Combined, they make up the fifth mainline installment in the Mega Man Battle Network series, and follows Lan Hikari and his NetNavi MegaMan.EXE, as they attempt to take down Nebula, who have kidnapped Lan's father and taken over the internet, with an anti-Nebula task force.

<i>The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause</i> 2006 film directed by Michael Lembeck

The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause is a 2006 American Christmas comedy film directed by Michael Lembeck. It is the third installment in The Santa Clause franchise, following The Santa Clause (1994) and The Santa Clause 2 (2002). The film features Tim Allen returning as Scott Calvin, who must find a way to reverse a spell cast by Jack Frost that caused him to lose his title of Santa Claus. Allen and Short had previously worked together in the 1997 Disney comedy film, Jungle 2 Jungle. Most of the supporting actors from the first two films reprise their roles, with the exception of David Krumholtz. As a result of his absence, Curtis, who was previously the Assistant Head Elf, has now been promoted to Bernard's former position. This was Peter Boyle's final film to be released during his lifetime. Its production was completed in February 2006.

<i>Ice Age 2: The Meltdown</i> (video game) 2006 video game

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown is a 2006 video game published by Vivendi Universal Games. It is based on the film of the same name. Unlike its Game Boy Advance-exclusive predecessor, Ice Age, Meltdown was a multiplatform release, available on Microsoft Windows, all major sixth-generation platforms and both seventh-generation Nintendo platforms, with the Wii port being a launch title in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Claus in film</span>

Motion pictures featuring Santa Claus constitute their own subgenre of the Christmas film genre. Early films of Santa revolve around similar simple plots of Santa's Christmas Eve visit to children. In 1897, in a short film called Santa Claus Filling Stockings, Santa Claus is simply filling stockings from his pack of toys. Another film called Santa Claus and the Children was made in 1898. A year later, a film directed by George Albert Smith titled Santa Claus was created. In this picture, Santa Claus enters the room from the fireplace and proceeds to trim the tree. He then fills the stockings that were previously hung on the mantle by the children. After walking backward and surveying his work, he suddenly darts at the fireplace and disappears up the chimney.

<i>Orcs & Elves</i> 2006 video game

Orcs & Elves is an adventure role-playing video game for the mobile phone and Nintendo DS. It was developed by id Software and Fountainhead Entertainment and published by EA Mobile and licensed by Nintendo for the DS version. It was released for mobile phones in May 2006 before being ported to the Nintendo DS in November 2007. The game is based on Doom RPG's engine and is id's first original intellectual property since Quake. The DS port of the game included graphical enhancements, such as 3D environments and camera cutscenes, along with improved character sprites, two new levels and the use of the touchscreen feature.

<i>Fred Claus</i> 2007 American Christmas comedy film

Fred Claus is a 2007 American Christmas comedy film directed by David Dobkin, screenplay and a story by Dan Fogelman and Jessie Nelson, and starring Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, John Michael Higgins, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz, Kathy Bates, Trevor Peacock, Ludacris, and Kevin Spacey. The film was first announced in October 2005 with Mike Mitchell attached to direct. The film was released in the United States on November 9, 2007 by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is loosely based on the poem "A legend of Santa and his brother Fred" written by Donald Henkel. It received negative reviews from critics and grossed $97 million worldwide against the production budget of $100 million.

<i>Santa Claus Is Comin to Town</i> (TV special) 1970 television special

Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town is a 1970 stop motion Christmas television special produced by Rankin/Bass Productions in New York, New York. The film is narrated by Fred Astaire and stars the voices of Mickey Rooney, Keenan Wynn, Robie Lester, Joan Gardner and Paul Frees, as well as an assistant song performance by the Westminster Children's Choir. The film tells the story of how Santa Claus and several Claus-related Christmas traditions came to be. It is based on the hit Christmas song, "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town", which was written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie for Leo Feist, Inc. and introduced on radio by Eddie Cantor in 1934; and the story of Saint Nicholas.

<i>Blood Bowl</i> (2009 video game) 2009 video game

Blood Bowl is a 2009 fantasy sports video game developed by Cyanide, loosely based on American football, and adapted from the board game of the same name, which is produced by Games Workshop, using the CRP ruleset. It was released for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, iOS, and Android.

<i>Dragon Ball: Origins</i> 2008 video game

Dragon Ball: Origins, known as Dragon Ball DS in Japan, is a video game for the Nintendo DS based on the Dragon Ball franchise created by Akira Toriyama. The game was developed by Game Republic and published by Atari and Namco Bandai under the Bandai label. It was released on September 18, 2008 in Japan, November 4, 2008 in North America, December 5, 2008 in Europe, and December 11, 2008 in Korea. The game was released in Australia on December 4, 2008, but was later recalled as its PG rating did not reflect the "racy" content found in the game and was subsequently given a higher rating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christmas elf</span> Western folklore creature

In English-speaking cultures, a Christmas elf is a diminutive elf that lives with Santa Claus at the North Pole and acts as his helper. Christmas elves are usually depicted as green- or red-clad, with large, pointy ears and wearing pointy hats. They are most often depicted as humanoids, but sometimes as furry mammals with tails. Santa's elves are often said to make the toys in Santa's workshop and take care of his reindeer, among other tasks.

<i>Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale</i> 2010 Finnish film by Jalmari Helander

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale is a 2010 Finnish fantasy action horror comedy film written and directed by Jalmari Helander about people living near Korvatunturi who discover the secret behind Santa Claus. The film is based on the 2003 short film Rare Exports, Inc.  and its 2005 sequel Rare Exports: The Official Safety Instructions  by Jalmari Helander and Juuso Helander, both of which involve a company that traps wild Santa Clauses and trains and exports them to locations around the world.

<i>Arthur Christmas</i> 2011 British-American Christmas comedy film

Arthur Christmas is a 2011 animated Christmas comedy film produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation in association with Aardman Animations, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. The film is Aardman's second mostly computer-animated feature film after 2006's Flushed Away. It was directed by Sarah Smith, co-directed by Barry Cook, and written by Smith and Peter Baynham. Featuring the voices of James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, Bill Nighy, Jim Broadbent, Imelda Staunton, and Ashley Jensen, the film centres on Arthur Claus, the clumsy but well-meaning son of Santa Claus, who discovers that his father's high-tech ship has failed to deliver one girl's present. Accompanied only by his free-spirited and reckless grandfather, an enthusiastic Christmas elf obsessed with wrapping gifts, and a team of reindeer, he embarks on a mission to deliver the girl's present personally in the early morning hours of Christmas Day before sunrise.

<i>A Fairly Odd Christmas</i> 2012 television film directed by Steve Holland

A Fairly Odd Christmas is a 2012 American live-action/animated Christmas comedy television film. It is the sequel to the 2011 live-action TV film A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner! and the second live-action adaptation of the Nickelodeon animated television series The Fairly OddParents.

<i>Noelle</i> (2019 film) 2019 film by Marc Lawrence

Noelle is a 2019 American Christmas fantasy comedy film written and directed by Marc Lawrence, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film stars Anna Kendrick as Noelle Kringle, the daughter of Kris Kringle. It also stars Bill Hader, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Billy Eichner, Julie Hagerty, and Shirley MacLaine. In the film, when Noelle's brother Nick is stressed from all the pressure of taking over for their father, he leaves and does not return. She must find her brother and bring him back in time for Christmas. It was filmed from October 2017 to January 2018 in British Columbia and Woodstock, Georgia.

<i>The Christmas Chronicles 2</i> 2020 American Christmas comedy film

The Christmas Chronicles 2 is a 2020 American Christmas comedy film directed and produced by Chris Columbus, who wrote the screenplay with Matt Lieberman. A sequel to the 2018 film The Christmas Chronicles, it features Kurt Russell reprising his role as Santa Claus. Also reprising their roles are Goldie Hawn, Darby Camp, Judah Lewis, and Kimberly Williams-Paisley, with new cast members Julian Dennison, Jahzir Bruno, Tyrese Gibson, Sunny Suljic, Darlene Love, and Malcolm McDowell. The film had a limited theatrical release before moving to Netflix on November 25, 2020.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Elf Bowling 1 &2 (ds) reviews at Metacritic.com". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 2010-07-10. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
  2. ↑ Elf Bowling Archived 2005-08-26 at the Wayback Machine NStorm.com
  3. ↑ "Elf Bowling 1 & 2". Metacritic. Retrieved 2020-08-20.
  4. ↑ "Elf Bowling 1 & 2 Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 2020-08-20.
  5. ↑ Elf Bowling 1 & 2 - IGN, 15 December 2005, retrieved 2020-08-20
  6. ↑ Miller, Leslie (2000-03-07). "Is this your daddy? If so, click here". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2017-07-06.
  7. ↑ Elf Bowling Fox News Interviews Elf Bowling Creators
  8. ↑ Bedell, Doug (2002-12-12). "Kewlbox.com Creates Games for Visitors to Corporate Websites". Dallas Morning News, The (TX).
  9. ↑ "ADMINISTRATIVE PANEL DECISION Vectrix Corporation v. Pendragon Case No. D2005-0316". World Intellectual Property Organization. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  10. ↑ ,"ELF BOWLING Serial Numbers: 86246282, 76343785"
  11. ↑ Provo, Frank (2006-01-03). "Elf Bowling 1 & 2 Review for DS - GameSpot". GameSpot . Archived from the original on 2010-07-11. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
  12. ↑ Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. pp. 96–97. ISBN   9781476672939.
  13. ↑ "Elf Bowling the Movie: The Great North Pole Elf Strike". IMDb . Archived from the original on 2018-09-29. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Willer-Allred, Michele (December 24, 2007). "Simi filmmaker's Hollywood dream comes true at home". Ventura County Star . Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  15. ↑ "Elf Bowling The Movie DVD Release Date October 2, 2007". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Elf Bowling the Movie Prime Release Date January 1, 2008 (The Great North Pole Elf Strike)". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  17. ↑ "Elf Bowling the Movie: The Great North Pole Elf Strike Blu-ray Release Date May 18, 2016". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  18. ↑ "The Players' Society (@chapmantps) • Instagram photos and videos". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2021-12-15.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.