The Muppets Movie Adventures

Last updated

The Muppets Movie Adventures
The Muppets Movie Adventures Cover Art.jpg
Cover art for the European version
Developer(s) Virtual Toys
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Composer(s) Victor David Peral
Engine Unity
Platform(s) PlayStation Vita
Release
  • PAL: 5 November 2014
  • NA: 1 September 2015
Genre(s) Platform
Mode(s) Single-player

The Muppets Movie Adventures is a 2014 platform video game developed by Virtual Toys and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation Vita. The title is based on the films The Muppets and Muppets Most Wanted. The game centres around the production of a movie, with characters from The Muppets era serving as the characters in the respective film. The Muppets Movie Adventures was released in PAL territories on 5 November 2014, with physical copies arriving a short time later. The North American version arrived a year later. Upon launch, the title received mixed to negative reviews.

Contents

The game is narrated by Cheryl Henson, daughter of The Muppets era creator Jim Henson and the current president of the Jim Henson Foundation.

Gameplay

The Muppets Movie Adventures is a 2-dimensional side-scrolling platform game in which players traverse landscapes based on famous films, jumping across obstacles and exploring the terrain. Enemies appear in each chapter, who have the ability to swing or throw projectiles at the player (these vary depending on the stage). If hit, the player loses half of a heart; with three hearts being available, the gamer may receive a maximum of five hits before restarting from a nearby checkpoint. Hearts are scattered throughout the level. When collected, the life bar is restored to maximum capacity. Controlled characters also house weapons however, which allows the player to attack and defeat enemies. Mini-games in the style of dots and boxes are also scattered throughout levels. These puzzles must be solved in order for the player to progress through the stage.

Each stage features a different player character and is centered around a particular movie genre (for example, level three is a western film), and features a unique story not related to other levels. At the end of each stage is a boss battle. Scattered throughout each level are collectibles as well.

Stages/Synopsis

There are a total of five stages in The Muppets Movie Adventures. Each stage is locked (with the exception of the first one) until the level before it is completed.

Stage One:Greenlegs: The Swashbuckling Pirate Frog
Based on: Original Story?
Theme: Pirate

The players control Kermit the Frog playing the role of "Captain Greenlegs" who is the captain of the pirate ship called the Rapid Mosquito. Greenlegs is described as a pirate Robin Hood, as he donates portions of his loot to those in need. This action has garnered the captain considered popularity with the public, including "being voted pirate of the year the last ten years by Pirate Monthly Magazine". However, the tyrannical Guard Chief Sweetums is jealous of Greenlegs, feeling he should be the hero of the citizens. Guard Chief Sweetums captures Greenelegs, tying him over a pool of sharks to eliminate the pirate. However, Greenlegs escapes. The player then assumes control, with the task of traversing though the local town on route to your ship, in order to make a safe getaway. Even when Captain Greenlegs defeats Guard Chief Sweetums, he encounters him again where it is stated that he is his twin brother due to this being a low-budget movie and that they couldn't afford another actor. Following the defeat of Guard Chief Sweetums and his twin brother, Captain Greenlegs returns to the Rapid Mosquito and sets sail for bold new adventures.

Stage Two:The Wizard of the Green Earth
Based on: The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Theme: Fantasy

The players control Miss Piggy, who plays the role of "Princess Miss Piggy". Piggy reigns over the paradise-like land of Green Earth which is described as a land of "fantasy, magic and powerful warriors". Despite this beauty, "Evil Wizard Uncle Deadly" has been barred from Green Earth ever since he proposed to transform a portion of Green Earth into a parking garage with narrow spaces, overpriced rates, and gas-guzzling cars that belch smoke and make annoying screeching sounds with their brakes. Princess Miss Piggy demanded that Green Earth would remain pure. In order to entice Miss Piggy to allow construction, Evil Wizard Uncle Deadly has his minions bring gifts to the princess. When this fails, Evil Wizard Uncle Deadly sends his chicken henchmen to kidnap the famed court musician "Kermit the Court Musician Frog" who Princess Miss Piggy likes. The level revolves entirely around Miss Piggy climbing the Black Tower in order to save Kermit and stop Evil Wixard Uncle Deadly. After fighting her way past the army of chickens and orcs (portrayed by blue versions of Timmy Monster), Princess Miss Piggy confronts Evil Wizard Uncle Deadly and defeats him by deflecting the green energy balls back towards him. Princess Miss Piggy frees Kermit the Court Musician Frog and they live happily ever after.

Gameplay from The Good, the Bad and the Animal stage The Muppets Movie Adventures Screenshot.jpg
Gameplay from The Good, the Bad and the Animal stage

Stage Three:The Good, the Bad and the Animal
Based on: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Theme: Western

The players control Animal (dressed identically as the Man with No Name), a retired sheriff who's forced back into action after an incident at a local town named Frogstone. The town residence have been longing for tomato sauce to add onto their pasta which is a traditional meal. One day, sauce is discovered to be under the town (similar in vain to when oil is struck) by a local dog. Seeing an opportunity for profit, Constantine (dressed in a fashion similar to Angel Eyes), a pasta tycoon, attempts to steal the sauce with the help of his henchrats. This is when Animal comes in upon being informed by a local woman (portrayed by Janice). Throughout the level, Animal progresses through both towns and moving trains leading to Animal's meatball shootout with Constantine. Upon defeating Constantine, Sheriff Animal throws Constantine in jail where he will learn the error of his ways.

Stage Four:The Night of the Walking Veggies
Based on: Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Theme: Horror

The players control Gonzo as Dr. Von Gonzo, the legendary hero of paranormality. With a local town called Marshtown facing a drought, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew builds a machine in his castle which is intended to grow the vegetables itself where he plans to make them grow strong and healthy. However, the absence of Honeydew's helpful and hapless assistant Beaker, who is away on vacation, causes an error in the machine which now makes the vegetables become Vampire Veggies (portrayed by the Singing Food) where its energies affects the crops. Dr. Honeydew tries to stop the machine, but gets injured in the process. When the Vampire Veggies go on a rampage in Marshtown, Dr. Von Gonzo is called in by Camilla the Chicken to shut down the machine and save the town. Throughout the stage, the player must guide Dr. Von Gonzo through the castle in which Dr. Honeydew lives while fighting Vampire Veggies in an effort to turn off the creation. After Dr. Von Gonzo shuts down the machine, Marshtown is saved just as Beaker returns from his vacation to join in on the celebration.

Stage Five:The Koozebane Menace
Based on: Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) (title), Star Trek series (1966–) (level)
Theme: Science fiction

The players control Kermit as Commander Kirmit in a role similar to Captain Kirk. Traveling in his spacecraft alongside First Mate Miss Piggy in Far Off Sector 355 in the outer reaches of outer space, Commander Kermit are lost in a remote part of the galaxy while exploring deep space. They then receive a distress signal from aliens asking for assistance and are hit by a meteorite and crash land on the nearby planet Koozebane. Commander Kermit wakes up to find Miss Piggy missing, but notices multiple footprints leading away from the ship. Having concluded his passenger was taken, Commander Kermit sets out to find Miss Piggy while also collecting parts to repair his ship's broken generator. Commander Kermit possesses the ability to boost and hover with his space boots in this mission, while also using a bubble gun similar in appearance and execution to the Phasers from Star Trek to fend off the native fauna. The end villain is revealed to be a giant-sized Pepe the King Prawn who is madly in love with First Mate Miss Piggy and has since become the king of Koozebane following a cheap vacation. After using his molecular reducer to reduce Pepe back to his original size making the planet Koozebane not a menace, Commander Kermit rescues First Mate Piggy and they resume their mission to explore the galaxy and look for good places to eat.

Once all the stages are done, the Muppets get together for a group photo at the world premiere of their films.

Development

The game was announced on August 8, 2014, on Play France, a French website dedicated to PlayStation video game systems. [1] A series of screenshots accompanied the announcement, depicting scenes from the first three stages. [2] The game was released on the PlayStation Store in Australia and Europe a few months later on November 5, 2014. Physical copies would follow later on November 7 in Europe. The game was released in Spain on November 11. [3] Australia's physicals came on November 14. The game would not be released in North America for nearly a year until it launched as a download-only title on September 1, 2015. Virtual Toys and Sony would later collaborate on two more licensed PlayStation Vita exclusive titles aimed at children: Looney Tunes Galactic Sports and Phineas and Ferb: Day of Doofenshmirtz. Based on the Looney Tunes and Phineas and Ferb franchises, the games were released in 2015.

Reception

The Muppets Movie Adventures received mixed to negative reviews upon release. The title currently holds a score of 48 on review aggregator Metacritic, based on 12 reviews. [4]

The Vita Lounge's Brad Gruetzmacher, reviewing for both the website and magazine held mixed feelings towards the game. Gruetzmacher praised the animated cutscenes and introductions given by the director at the start of each stage, appreciating their humor directed at all ages. He felt mixed feelings towards the controls, applauding the simplicity of the two-button system (one for jumping, another for attacking) whilst taking issue with the touch screen controls, saying they were "shoe-horned" in. Gruetzmacher also criticized the game for a lack of replay value, short length and easy difficulty. He ultimately awarded the title 2.8/5 stars, giving high marks to the execution but scored the lasting appeal low. [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Muppet Show</i> Variety television show (1976–81)

The Muppet Show is a variety sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and starring the Muppets. It is presented as a variety show, featuring recurring sketches and musical numbers interspersed with ongoing plot-lines with running gags taking place backstage and in other areas of the venue.

<i>The Muppet Movie</i> 1979 film by James Frawley

The Muppet Movie is a 1979 musical road comedy film directed by James Frawley and produced by Jim Henson, and the first theatrical film to feature the Muppets. A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, the film was written by The Muppet Show writers Jerry Juhl and Jack Burns. Produced during the third season of The Muppet Show, the film tells the origin story of the Muppets, as Kermit the Frog embarks on a cross-country trip to Los Angeles, encountering several of the Muppets—who all share the same ambition of finding success in professional show business—along the way while being pursued by Doc Hopper, a greedy restaurateur with intentions of employing Kermit as a spokesperson for his frog legs business.

<i>Its a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie</i> 2002 American fantasy comedy television film

It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie is a 2002 American musical fantasy comedy television film directed by Kirk R. Thatcher and written by Tom Martin and Jim Lewis. The film premiered November 29, 2002 on NBC and is the first television film featuring the Muppets.

<i>Muppet Adventure: Chaos at the Carnival</i> 1990 The Muppets video game

Muppet Adventure: Chaos at the Carnival is a video game released for the Apple II, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS in 1989 by Hi Tech Expressions. A port to the Nintendo Entertainment System was published in 1990. The game features Muppets created by Jim Henson in a series of carnival-inspired mini games searching for enough keys to rescue Miss Piggy from Dr. Grump. These mini games include: Bumper Cars, Funhouse, Tunnel of Love, Duck Hunt and Space Ride. The game was initially released for the Apple IIc with a bug which caused it to be unwinnable. Upon achieving the win condition versus Dr. Grump, the game would enter an endless cycle of taking the player back to a previous level, instead of having Dr. Grump be defeated.

<i>Muppet*Vision 3D</i> Attraction at Disneys Hollywood Studios

Muppet*Vision 3D is a 3D film attraction located at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. The attraction also formerly operated at Disney California Adventure. Directed by Jim Henson, the attraction consists of a pre-show which then leads into Kermit the Frog guiding park guests on a tour through Muppet Studios, while the Muppets prepare their sketch acts to demonstrate their new breakthrough in 3D film technology. The show, however, completely unravels when Dr. Bunsen Honeydew's experimental 3D sprite, Waldo, causes mayhem during the next portion of the show.

<i>The Great Muppet Caper</i> 1981 film directed by Jim Henson

The Great Muppet Caper is a 1981 musical heist comedy film directed by Jim Henson and the second theatrical film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Muppet performers Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, and Steve Whitmire, as well as Charles Grodin and Diana Rigg, with special cameo appearances by John Cleese, Robert Morley, Peter Ustinov, and Jack Warden. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company and distributed by Universal Pictures. In the plot, the Muppets are caught up in a jewel heist while investigating a robbery in London.

<i>Muppets from Space</i> 1999 film directed by Tim Hill

Muppets from Space is a 1999 American science fiction comedy film directed by Tim Hill, written by Jerry Juhl, Joseph Mazzarino, and Ken Kaufman, produced by Brian Henson and Martin G. Baker, and the sixth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Muppet performers Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Bill Barretta, and Frank Oz, as well as Jeffrey Tambor, F. Murray Abraham, David Arquette, Josh Charles, Hollywood Hogan, Ray Liotta, Rob Schneider and Andie MacDowell. In the film, Gonzo attempts to discover his origins. After he and Rizzo the Rat are captured by government officials during his search, Kermit the Frog and the rest of the Muppets set out to rescue them.

<i>Muppet Monster Adventure</i> 2000 video game

Muppet Monster Adventure is a 2000 platform video game developed by Magenta Software and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation. It was developed under Psygnosis' licence of The Muppet franchise. The player controls Robin The Frog as he attempts to save The Muppets from becoming permanently monsters.

Studio DC: Almost Live is the title of a pair of specials that aired on the Disney Channel. The specials are half-hour variety shows featuring The Muppets and Disney Channel stars performing comedy sketches and musical numbers together. The style is similar to that of The Muppet Show. The first special aired August 3, 2008, and was hosted by Dylan and Cole Sprouse. The second special aired October 5, 2008, was hosted by Selena Gomez.

<i>The Muppet Show</i> (comics)

The Muppet Show is a comic book series based on the variety television series of the same title created by Jim Henson and featuring The Muppets. The series was written and drawn by Roger Langridge and published by Boom! Kids, an imprint of Boom! Studios. In 2011, the Boom! license with Disney Publishing Worldwide expired. Disney's own comic book publishing subsidiary, Marvel Comics, renamed the series Muppets and published four issues in 2012.

<i>The Muppet Show</i> (album) 1977 soundtrack album

The Muppet Show is the first soundtrack album released from the TV show of the same name. It reached number one in the UK Albums Chart in the week ending 25 June 1977. In 1979, the album won The Grammy Award for Best Album for Children.

The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years is a one-hour special starring Jim Henson's Muppets. It was shot in Toronto, Ontario in 1985 and aired January 21, 1986 on CBS.

<i>Spy Muppets: License to Croak</i> 2003 The Muppets action video game

Spy Muppets: License to Croak is a 2003 action game, based off The Muppets franchise, developed by Vicarious Visions and published by TDK Mediactive for Microsoft Windows and Game Boy Advance. It is a spoof of the James Bond films, the title being a reference to Licence to Kill. The player controls Kermit the Frog through several stages in order to stop the bad guys.

<i>The Muppets</i> (soundtrack) Original soundtrack for The Muppets (2011)

The Muppets: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack is a soundtrack album released by Walt Disney Records on November 22, 2011 for the musical comedy film The Muppets. The soundtrack features five original songs, four re-recordings and remasterings of popular Muppet songs, two cover versions of existing songs, two standalone songs, and fifteen dialogue tracks. It also features the song "Man or Muppet", which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. The soundtrack was also nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media at the 55th Grammy Awards.

The Muppets Go Hollywood is a one-hour television special that promoted The Muppet Movie, the first theatrical film in The Muppets franchise. It first aired May 16, 1979 on CBS, six weeks before the American release of The Muppet Movie.

The Muppets Go to the Movies is a one-hour television special starring Jim Henson's Muppets. It first aired May 20, 1981 on ABC as promotion for The Great Muppet Caper, which was released in the United States a month later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gonzo (Muppet)</span> Muppet character

Gonzo is a Muppet character from the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show, known for his eccentric passion for stunt performance. Aside from his trademark enthusiasm for performance art, another defining trait of Gonzo is the ambiguity of his species, which has become a running gag in the franchise. He has been considered to be of various origins, including a Frackle in his debut appearance in The Great Santa Claus Switch, an extraterrestrial in Muppets from Space or an avian creature.

<i>Muppets Now</i> American comedy series directed by Kirk Thatcher

Muppets Now is an American television series produced by The Muppets Studio for Disney+. Directed by Kirk Thatcher, the series is an improvisational comedy based on The Muppets franchise by Jim Henson. It premiered on July 31, 2020.

<i>Muppets Haunted Mansion</i> 2021 puppet comedy Halloween special

Muppets Haunted Mansion is a 2021 American comedy Halloween special based on the Disney properties The Muppets and The Haunted Mansion. It was released on October 8, 2021, via Disney+. It is the Muppets' first Halloween special. The plot stars Gonzo and Pepe as they face the challenge of staying in a haunted mansion for one night. It received generally positive reviews from critics.

References

  1. ↑ "[Info] The Muppets Movie Adventures announced on PS VITA". PlayFrance. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  2. ↑ Hennes, Joe (9 August 2014). "The Muppets Movie Adventure Coming to PS Vita". Touch Pigs. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  3. ↑ "Los Muppets: Aventuras de Pelicula". El Economista . The Editorial Ecoprensa, S.A. 9 August 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 "The Muppets Movie Adventures Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  5. ↑ Gruetzmacher, Brad (18 November 2014). "The Muppets Movie Adventures Review". The Vita Lounge. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
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.