Super Rub-A-Dub

[Gabriel]

Tried the demo of Super Rub-A-Dub last night. If you've tried the Bubbles game on the Williams Arcade or Midway Classics discs, you've played something similar to this game. The object this time is to steer your duck around the tub while picking up baby ducks and avoiding sharks. The goal is to dump all the baby ducks down the drain and finish the level within a time limit. The main gimmick this time around is the controller, you use the tilt-sensing features of the PS3 controller to play (like one of those old ball in a maze games). Other gimmicks include walls in the playfield, split playfields so you have to jump from section to section, and water currents to restrict your movement.

 

I'll start with the negative and say I didn't like the game. It's OK, I suppose, but the Bubbles variety of the Pac-Man formula just never clicked with me. Plus, I find it really awkward to tilt the controller for the desired result. I'd rather just use the analog stick and steer around, hitting a button occasionally to jolt the table. Maybe this game has that feature. I didn't check, but since this game is solely about the control gimmick, changing the control eliminates the point of the game.

 

Once again, this is my major issue with these controller gimmick games which have been unleashed upon us. These games set out to justify a gimmicky, awkward, and completely unnecessary control scheme rather than setting out to be good games. The game shouldn't serve the controls, the controls should serve the game.

 

Anyway, I did think the game looked very nice. The graphics were simple without being primitive. The style was realistic, but cute without resorting to cartoonyness or godawful cel shading (hopefully this will set an example for others). The gimmick controlled well enough for what it was (an elaborate ball maze game). It was addictive enough that I played through the whole demo, repeating sections I failed until I passed them. Levels can be repeated as many times as you desire. You don't have to worry about limited lives, and you can also start on any level you've already played. So, it certainly isn't without it's good points and charm.

 

All in all, I think it's a pretty average game. It's not something I'd pay for, though.

[jedijeff]

I played the demo as well, and thought the controls were pretty good. It's a decent maze type game IMHO.

 

One thing I really liked that you didn't mention is that you can view replays of the top 5 scores, so you can see exactly how they did it.

[Mendon]

I actually thought the game was pretty quacktastic!

 

 

 

Mendon

[Shannon]

I think it is a pretty fun game and the whole point of it is the controls.

 

Anyways it's ok but I think they could have taken it further.