Barnyard

Aaah, yes. An animated movie for kids, video games to follow, the American Way. It often seems that the biggest concern of most of the people responsible for these movie tie-in games is to hurry a mediocre product out as cheaply as possible. As a result, many of these games are pretty lame. Surprisingly, considering that the movie Barnyard itself isn’t all that good, Barnyard for the GBA is a pretty decently designed game for kids.

The whole game is very similar in format to a RPG such as Zelda, Friends of Mineral Town and even a little like Animal Crossing. It is a very simplified version of these types of games, though, and includes a large amount of mini-games, which RPG’s usually don’t have. Essentially, gameplay consists of the player, who plays as a cow, running errands for all and sundry while playing lots of different mini-games. Successfully accomplishing tasks and winning games garners money, which can be spent at the Gopher Underground for items to spruce up the barn, or to give to the farm’s inhabitants. Powerups can also be exchanged for Gold Stars, which are earned alongside the money.

The game is divided into chapters, 10 in all. Each chapter consists of a main mission, which usually involves either giving some item to another character, or winning a mini-game. Running these errands is fairly easy, but does involve some extensive traveling, as the map is large and it’s sometimes necessary to go a long way around areas to get to the desired location. Obstacles to travel consist of raccoons and coyotes, but players will only encounter raccoons for the most part during the bulk of the game. These baddies are only window dressing, and are easily avoided.

There are lots of mini-games, and most of them are quite fun and entertaining. My favorites were the darts, which involved throwing some type of flying bug at a dart board; mini-golf; bike racing; bowling; and marbles, a movement puzzle involving logical thinking. There are also a few insipid games, such as police chase, a badly designed car racing game; cheesy balloons, a game that requires collecting cheese while flying; and a milk-shooting game. The other games fall in the middle of these in terms of quality and fun. As stated previously, there are a lot of games here, and I don’t think I’ve seen this many before in a game that’s not solely a collection of mini-games.

For the most part, all of these games can be accessed early on without having to be unlocked, but some aren’t available until the map area where they reside is opened during the game’s advancement. However, there really isn’t a central location for these games in the general interface menu. Players will have to travel around the map to get to them, which becomes a pain after a while. Supposedly, players can also buy these games from the gophers to place in the barn, allowing for convenient access in one spot, but during the course of the game, I only received one game as an option to purchase in the store. More may become available when playing after the game’s adventure is ended.

The errands are basic “fetch-n-carry” tasks, and are made even easier by flashing location icons on the map, which show players where they need to go to accomplish the jobs. The main mission for each chapter is mandatory for game advancement, but all other errands are voluntary and don’t have to be undertaken at all, or even finished when accepted. They are simply means to earn money.

Players can also decorate the barn basement, look over their movie picture collection and choose different tunes from the jukebox. There aren’t a whole lot of items to decorate with, though. More decorative items in the gopher underground would have been nice. There is also a trophy room, but I must not be good enough to win any trophies, as I never received any.

The interface is easy to understand once the in-game advice from the various characters is encountered during the game. It’s simple, while still managing to impart needed information. Objectives are listed clearly for each chapter, and the inventory and maps are readily accessible. At the same time, the manual lacks all but the most basic information on using the interface, and doesn’t give any information on the mini-games, or how to use many of the game’s features. There are three save slots available, and an automatic save feature after every mission and mini-game win, which is a great feature for young players.

While playing, I ran into a strange glitch, which caused a screeching halt to gameplay. Early on, in the first or second chapter, I evidently did some things out of order without completing the mission, and caused the farmyard main gate to close. This left me trapped in the farmyard, and unable to accomplish the mission, which involved traveling to another location. I attempted to recreate this in another game, but wasn’t able to, so I don’t know exactly what caused it. However, it’s very early in the game and it’s pretty easy to just begin a new game.

Overall, this is a fun, engaging game that has easy goals and lots of cool mini-games. It is designed primarily for kids, and as such, does a great job. There are some drawbacks, though, which mainly have to do with the longevity of the game and some unsavory aspects to the game. The game is pretty short, and older kids will finish up quickly. However, the game encourages continued play with the animals going on about their daily lives after the essential game is ended, and the mini-games can be played as often as desired. The mini-games really needed a central location after game’s end, though.

The unsavory aspects include the strangeness of having cows as boys but with udders that shoot milk; I found that slightly gross, besides the general anatomical wrongness of it all. Also, there is a bar in the barn where cows can drink fermented products. And, when the main character dies during the game, the other characters treat it very casually, and his son seems quite happy about being congratulated on his subsequent promotion. To be fair, though, all of these elements (except for the callous treatment of the death) are straight from the movie. If parents didn’t have a problem with the movie, they won’t with this game.

This was an enjoyable game for the most part, and it’s always refreshing to see a game for children that is actually designed with them in mind. The sheer number of mini-games is amazing, and the quality of the majority is quite good. The game is short, though, and older kids won’t find much of a challenge. Best for young players.

Gameplay: 7.5
This game was fun to play! It’s easy, and there’s not a whole of challenge during the main adventure, but for young kids this is a good thing. The mini-games are a varied assortment, and feature randomization. However, the game is too short and too easy for older players. After the game is ended, the mini-games can be played again, but getting to them is a major pain without a central location for access.

Graphics: 7
The graphics are nice, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Sound: 7.5
The sound effects are good, and the music fits the barnyard theme well. The tunes are very catchy!

Difficulty: Easy
Veeeerrry easy!

Concept: 7.5
I thought the concept of this game with the open-ended play was refreshing.

Overall: 7.5
Overall, a nice effort from Halfbrick, the designers behind the Ty GBA games. It’s great to see a company that tries to deliver a quality game for kids. While there are some design flaws and the game could have been a bit more challenging and longer, what is here is a fun outing for the younger players. The bar and other game features aren’t all that “kid-friendly,” but they are faithful to the movie.