Even if some gameplay choices end up uneven at times, Tembo the Badass Elephant is a blast.
With a look that’ll remind you of several different cartoon network shows and simple, but immersive gameplay, “Tembo the Badass Elephant,” is a blast. Thanks to a budget price and a gameplay style that little kids can enjoy and completionists will go nutty for, it has enough charm to win most over.
It’s that casual gamer fringe however, you know, the ones that made “Wii Sports” the best-selling game of all-time, that’ll get pissed at Tembo the most.
At the same time, this game proves, among a few other things, that Game Freak is so much more than the developer behind the “Pokemon” series.
While a good majority of the game is a non-stop platforming and destruction blast, there’s not always a reward to the frenetic and fun nature of the beast that is Tembo. Needing to kill a certain number of “Phantom Forces,” the main baddies in the game, in order to advance to certain levels, “Tembo the Badass Elephant” can and will become a chore to those who can’t understand why they just can’t move on the next level.
“I finished it, I don’t want to play through it again,” they’ll say. And they’d be right. A choice or difficultly option to allow more casual gamers to progress easier could have done wonders for this game, but in the end, it doesn’t really matter. “Tempo the Badass Elephant” isn’t easy and that’s why you’ll love it or hate it.
Taking animation nods from shows the likes of “The Regular Show,” “The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack” and “The Amazing World of Gumball,” the game has an awesome look that makes the wild and crazy antics of Tembo that much more enjoyable. Crashing through a dozen levels of a building or watching a huge bowling ball roll through enemy tanks is a visual feast and easily one of the strongest points of the game.
But away from the visual look, it’s the easy to jump into platforming action that’ll really get you hooked. It also helps that the plot is ridiculously silly. The world is in trouble from a bunch of baddies and only Tembo, the Badass Elephant can help. Able to jump through walls, crush his opponents and use his trunk to put out fires, he is indeed badass. The gameplay structure is extremely reminiscent of the 16-bit era of platforming and once you master the three or four cool attacks Tembo has and are able to use his Yoshi-inspired jump to your advantage, the game is an enjoyable romp.
Despite the old-school charm here, the game is more than just a tribute to retro platforms the likes of Mario and Sonic. As mentioned before, it’s not just a simple run and jump platformer. You’ll have to think and you’ll die often. Perfection is often rewarded and more often than not, you’ll find a better way to progress. For gamers that would rather just finish a level and move on, “Tembo the Badass Elephant” is not a game they’ll enjoy.
As mentioned earlier, “Tembo the Badass Elephant” is filled with redeemable qualities, but they are ones that require skill and patience in the gamer to fully take advantage of. If you lack either one, you’ll get significantly less out of the game than you should.
Will you play “Tembo the Baddass Elephant”? Sound off in the comment section below and let us know.
