Chicken Shoot 2

I can’t help but be constantly reminded of Elf Bowling. No, there are no elves, Santas or other holiday icons, but something about this game just screams “Flash Animation!!!!” - In a bad way. DSI Games hits us with the dramatic <sarcasm> sequel: Chicken Shoot 2 with a earth-shattering yawn.

The setup is simple: Chickens fly back and forth across your “skeet-like” screen and you shoot them. Please try not to think of the classic NES’s Duck Hunt (but it’s almost the same game). While trying to get through the level by taking on the fowl, you are pelted with eggs, which are apparently lethal or something. They drain you, and eventually the game will end if you get enough egg on your face. Using some nifty crosshairs for aiming, you blast the birds from the sky and move on to the next level. Depending on the mode (Arcade, Classic, etc), you must hit a certain number of birds while not letting the yolk take its toll on you. In Arcade mode, your target is time. In either case, it’s just aim and shoot. You can crank the level of difficulty from 1 to 3 — depending on your level of boredom and heroics.

Your armory is minimal at the start. You can, however, hit certain gun-toting birdies to get better toys to use. From a handgun to laser weapons. There are even bombs at your disposal. Your ammo is limited, so you’ll have to switch weapons from time to time. Aside from that, it’s a cake walk … or turkey-shoot … or <insert your cliché here>. It is not hard, though I don’t boast of running through it with ease — to completion at the first sit-down. It’s just a straight forward, gallery-style shooter with no extras. The characters are light and cute, so it’s not like looking into the eyes of a Chuck Jones Bugs Bunny and pulling the trigger. The action is simple and the visuals are similar.

In fact, the visuals are way too minimal. There is a small amount of scrolling for more screen action, but the movement is limited, otherwise. The images consist of a stereotypical country hunter shootin’ at some food. Eggs come at you, but there’s no perception of how close they are. Just shoot them as soon as you spot one and you’ll be Ok. The crosshairs look nice, though! The chickens, intentionally, barely resemble their real-life inspirations. The characters are backgrounds are absurd, cheeky and comic.

What kind of audio would you expect from a game with the power of something that can be created in a 10-year-old’s basement with an old copy of Flash? There are gun “Bangs” and odd laser sounds. The music is drunken bluegrass or something equally silly. 

No instructions are needed for this lightweight entry for the GBA catalog. Aim the crosshairs and shoot small and large chickens out of the sky. Hit the magic numbers or beat the clock, and move on to the next round. It’s five minutes of fun, then a downhill spiral. 

Gameplay: 4.5
Getting up and running is easy enough. It’s straight forward and ideal for young gamers. Anyone older and more experienced will grow tired of the monotonous gaming, soon.  

Graphics: 5.5 
It looks comical as intended, but there isn’t much splash or color to make it stand out, more. It blends into itself in a generic mix of uninspiring colors and a lack of action when the guns are blazing. It has to remain family friendly, but even shooting in an arcade gallery conjures up more visuals than this one.    

Sound: 5.0
There is plenty of hillbilly bashing audio to go around. The problem is, it is repetitive and isn’t good enough to hear that many times. The laser has an odd sound that makes you do a double-take to see what the heck you’re firing. It sounds like you’re shooting rubber bands, not lethal beams of light.      

Difficulty: Easy
Just like a Kodak — just point and shoot. On the highest level, things can get crazy and chaotic, but patterns are there and not too hard to manage.   

Concept: 4.0 
This is a sequel. I never played the first one, but am guessing that it was soooo good it merited a follow-up. It feels so much like a million other games out there, even free ones on the Web, that nothing is fresh at all.   

Overall: 4.5
I really started to dread playing this game. That’s hard to accomplish with me. I like it when they keep it simple in many games. The old, classic console and arcade games relied on design over technology. Here we have more tech than anything in the old arcade cabinet games, and most first- & second-gen platforms — yet it plays like it’s old and dusty, not a classic. I waited for something to happen that would lift the game up and expand into something more indepth — as if I was playing a lead-in to something better. Like hearing a joke and waiting on the punch line., This time, however,  there is no payoff. The game is over before it starts. I’ll stick to Elf Bowling since it continues to be more creative each year.