Shrek 2 (Game Boy Advance Video)
Posted March 18, 2006
Up until now, Majesco's Game Boy Advance Video line has been limited to episodes of various Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network kid-oriented shows like "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "The Fairly Odd-Parents." Recently, however, they struck a deal with Dreamworks to release full-length feature films on the format. Naturally, Shrek 2 is one of those releases.
These releases are mostly aimed at kids who have already seen the movie, so I won't give a review of the film. Suffice it to say, I think I'm the last person on the planet who hasn't seen Shrek 2 before now. Watching it on a 1.5" by 2.5" screen for the first time probably isn't the ideal way to be introduced to it, but... well, it gets the job done.
One thing I do like about Majesco's videos is the fact that no additional hardware is required. The movie comes on a standard GBA cartridge, and the controls operate like a DVD player: the shoulder buttons act like chapter skips, the d-pad buttons jump back or forward in smaller increments (20-40 seconds), and the start button pauses and resumes the film. A and B control the brightness.
The other main benefit, as I see it, is the GBA's extremely long battery life. Kids should be able to watch several movies in a row with no problem, something that is not the case with a laptop, portable DVD player, or PSP. And if the goal is to occupy the kids on a long trip (the movie, by the way, is 92 minutes), then this may be a great buy.
Finally, either for technological reasons or (more likely) because it was mandated by Dreamworks, the cartridge won't work on the Game Boy Player accessory for the GameCube.
Graphics:
As you might expect, stuffing an entire movie onto an itty-bitty cartridge requires a few compromises. The video here is somewhat jerky, and it looks like they were only able to achieve maybe 8 frames per second (films in theaters are projected at 24 fps), although that's just an estimate on my part. Blocking is present throughout the feature. You can tell what's going on, but it's somewhat like watching a very small, streaming version of the movie. It's a little distracting initially, but after awhile you begin to ignore the technology and become immersed in the story.
Audio:
Earbud headphones are supposed to be included, although at some point in the chain mine mysteriously disappeared. For parents tired of listening to the bleeps and bloops of their children's video games on car rides, packing in headphones isn't a bad deal at all.
The audio is also what you might expect, although I will say that listening solely out of the GBA speaker undoubtedly made it sound worse than through headphones. Still, I was able to understand everyone without any difficulty, except, occasionally, the Gingerbread Man, who has a really high-pitched voice.
Extras:
None.
Conclusion:
Obviously, this isn't going to win any awards for video and audio fidelity, but if the point is to make sure the kids stay quiet on a long car trip or flight, this is actually a pretty good solution. At $20, it's not a bad investment for a little piece of mind. Recommended.
These releases are mostly aimed at kids who have already seen the movie, so I won't give a review of the film. Suffice it to say, I think I'm the last person on the planet who hasn't seen Shrek 2 before now. Watching it on a 1.5" by 2.5" screen for the first time probably isn't the ideal way to be introduced to it, but... well, it gets the job done.
One thing I do like about Majesco's videos is the fact that no additional hardware is required. The movie comes on a standard GBA cartridge, and the controls operate like a DVD player: the shoulder buttons act like chapter skips, the d-pad buttons jump back or forward in smaller increments (20-40 seconds), and the start button pauses and resumes the film. A and B control the brightness.
The other main benefit, as I see it, is the GBA's extremely long battery life. Kids should be able to watch several movies in a row with no problem, something that is not the case with a laptop, portable DVD player, or PSP. And if the goal is to occupy the kids on a long trip (the movie, by the way, is 92 minutes), then this may be a great buy.
Finally, either for technological reasons or (more likely) because it was mandated by Dreamworks, the cartridge won't work on the Game Boy Player accessory for the GameCube.
Graphics:
As you might expect, stuffing an entire movie onto an itty-bitty cartridge requires a few compromises. The video here is somewhat jerky, and it looks like they were only able to achieve maybe 8 frames per second (films in theaters are projected at 24 fps), although that's just an estimate on my part. Blocking is present throughout the feature. You can tell what's going on, but it's somewhat like watching a very small, streaming version of the movie. It's a little distracting initially, but after awhile you begin to ignore the technology and become immersed in the story.
Audio:
Earbud headphones are supposed to be included, although at some point in the chain mine mysteriously disappeared. For parents tired of listening to the bleeps and bloops of their children's video games on car rides, packing in headphones isn't a bad deal at all.
The audio is also what you might expect, although I will say that listening solely out of the GBA speaker undoubtedly made it sound worse than through headphones. Still, I was able to understand everyone without any difficulty, except, occasionally, the Gingerbread Man, who has a really high-pitched voice.
Extras:
None.
Conclusion:
Obviously, this isn't going to win any awards for video and audio fidelity, but if the point is to make sure the kids stay quiet on a long car trip or flight, this is actually a pretty good solution. At $20, it's not a bad investment for a little piece of mind. Recommended.