Viva Pinata Party Animals

SCORE: 92

There is something very infectious about Viva Pinata Party Animals. Fans of the original Xbox 360 Viva Pinata video game should be warned that this game is a party game based on the Viva Pinata characters. It is nice to see Microsoft embracing fun video games for the entire family. The colorful pinatas race one another, and compete in over fifty party style games. Fans of the Mario Party video games will find some familiar competitive games. I am very pleased to see a game like this on the Xbox 360.

The graphics in Viva Pinata Party Animals are very bright and colorful. The entire pinata theme works well for this game. There is some crude humor in this game (an example would be burping to send a little sail boat towards a finish line). One of the most interesting mini games is the pinata animals swinging sticks at pinatas hanging from a tree branch. There is some Mario Kart style visual cartoon violence in racing, but at a much lower degree.

The theme song is still running through my head, and does quite often. I just love that song. The announcers are humorous, although their commentary does get repeated a lot. The special effects sounds fit in with the theme of Viva Pinata Party Animals perfectly. I enjoyed the countdown to a race being spoken in different languages, and the ending sequence is spectacular.

Microsoft has done an amazing job with Xbox Live, and putting this game on that service is pure genius. If you can not get friends and/or family locally to play with you, then you can go across the network and find players. Viva Pinata Party Animals is being sold at a reduced rate and is worth your hard earned dollars.

Viva Pinata Party Animals controls just as a party game should in most of the mini games. I did find myself confused in a few of the mini games about which item was mine. The special items really determine who wins the races, along with finding the shortcuts. The one drawback to the game play section is how repetitive many of the mini games can be. There is nothing bad about most of them, just nothing truly original or innovative. There is a definite intelligent design to the layout of the controls.

Viva Pinata Party Animals is what the doctor ordered for the Xbox 360. There needs to be more games like this geared towards all ages of the family (editor: a Viva Pinata racing game perhaps). There are a few minor issues that may bother some families so I mention them. I have been enjoying this game, and have been playing it with my five year old.
- Paul

Graphics: 87%
Sound: 95%
Replay/Extras: 97%
Gameplay: 89%
Family Friendly Factor: 90%
System: Xbox 360
Publisher: Sega
Rating: 'E' for Everyone
{Cartoon Violence, Comic Mischief}

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