Madagascar | DJcube

From the zoo, to a place that’s totally new.

NA release: 24th May 2005
EU release: 30th June 2005
JP release: 11th August 2005
Developer: Toys for Bob
Publisher: Activision
NGC Magazine Score: 50%
Mods Used: Widescreen Code

While Madagascar was a big thing, I’ve never actually seen it. I do know that it’s about a group of animals in a zoo that want to see what the world is like outside of the zoo, but cause so much trouble that they get shipped to Madagascar and have to get used to living in the wild. The game follows the same plot, but adapted to suit the game – so other than the intro, the game uses in-engine cutscenes instead of lazily using clips from the films.

As you could probably guess, this reimagines the film as a 3D platformer. Most levels are linear crash-style ones while others are slightly more open. For a film tie-in game, it’s not that bad, but it also never excels at anything. You get to play as various different animals which, despite having their own unique moves like the Giraffe being able to spin like a helicopter for a kind of hover jump, somehow manage to not feel that unique to play.

There’s also a really bad stealth section early on. You have to get really close to enemies for them to spot you. You wait for them to turn around so you can kick them or, if they don’t move, there’s always a bin to kick into them somewhat nearby. It’s all a bit too simple. The game does have one thing going for it: in the zoo levels, you can kick children in the face.

Fine

And saying it’s for children doesn’t really work as GameCube is home to the best kid-friendly games in the world. If you want to get a game suitable for an 8-year old, keep searching the M section for Mario Sunshine.
Tom East, NGC Magazine #110

Remake or remaster?

Nothing for this.

Official Ways to get the game

There’s no official way to buy Madagascar