Blast Off!
- NA release: 18th December 2002
- EU release: 7th March 2003
- JP release: N/A
- Developer: Big Sky Interactive
- Publisher: THQ
- NGC Magazine: 18%
- Mods Used: None


Big Sky Interactive is a developer that was formed in May 2002. Not only did Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius come out on GameCube only 7 months later, but it was a port of the even earlier PS2 version that came out that September. To make matters work, Big Sky were also making a SpongeBob Squarepants game that came out in November 2002 on PS2 and shortly after on GameCube.
However, the game was being developed before that point, by the US division of Kalisto. When the parent company shut down, the developers managed to convince THQ to let them carry on development, and before both games were released THQ even offered to buy them. Big Sky’s decision to turn this down ultimately led to disaster, as the manger that made the offer blacklisted Big Sky so that they were unable to get any more contracts.

All of the issues with the development are certainly easy to see in Jimmy Neutron, as so many aspects of the game are rather odd and make the game feel unfinished. Despite being a kids game, it doesn’t explain what collectables are for and what you’re supposed to so, and you can miss out on a large chunk of them by heading to a different section to the level. This last issue gets even worse in the second level of the game, as there’s a hole right near a door and if you get sucked down the hole, you can only get one of the required collectables to progress – you can’t return to the rest of the level, so you have to start again.

Even finishing a level is quite strange. There’s a text box saying that you finished it, then you get plonked back to the main menu (which is quite a nice main menu as you can walk around to the various options). I initially just thought the game was over at this point, and I’m sure some kids thought the same. That said, I kind of wish the first level was the only part of the game.

Jimmy Neutron is a 3D platformer that is mostly HUB areas with a bunch of short levels. The camera can’t be moved and is far too close to Jimmy, often not letting you see platforms you need to reach. There are also huge problems with working out where in 3D space each platform is. And while Jimmy has a shadow most of the time, his shadow doesn’t work on floating platforms, the time you need it the most. It makes the game really annoying to play.

And there’s not really anything interesting to redeem it. There are some terrible minigames, including a vertical scrolling space shooter which somehow manages to be both immensely boring and incredibly difficult (I think a big part is that enemies vanish and don’t explode), and just tedious platforming. The presentation is also very dull, with no animation on character’s faces and the voice cast (who are the actual actors from the film) sounding like they don’t care. So even without its colossal issues due to being unfinished, it would still be a really bad game.

Worst
Parents looking for suitable entertainment for youngsters might as well lock their offspring in a darkened games room with a copy of Resident Evil Zero. It might not be the ideal thing for a young audience, but Jimmy Neutron is far more likely to lead to nightmare flashbacks in later life.
NGC Magazine #78
Remake or remaster?
Spruce it up and it will still be a poor game.
Official Ways to get the game
There is no official way to get Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.
GameCube Games by Date
2002: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2003: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2004: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2005: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2006: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec