Shrek Extra Large

The Ogre is Back and he’s…Extra Large

NA release: 30th October 2002
EU release: 24th October 2003
JP release: N/A
Developer: Digital Illusions CE
Publisher: TDK Mediactive
NGC Magazine Score: N/A
Mods Used: Widescreen Code

As you might expect, Shrek Extra Large is a pretty bad game. But what may surprise you is that Shrek Extra Large is also a really good game at the same time. Originally released on Xbox, with developers DICE (a Canadian branch, not the main Battlefield studio) using some brand new rendering techniques that became industry standard, this GameCube port came with some additional levels. It’s ridiculous, annoying, dumb and fun all at the same time.

One thing that makes this so enjoyable is Shrek’s movement. In a rather bizarre choice, Shrek is not a slow, lumbering brute. Instead, he moves at such a speed that he could run rings around Sonic. The crazy thing is that he still controls really well while at full speed. On top of running, Shrek also has a rather impressive wall jump. Just the simple case of running and jumping around is a lot of fun, and somehow made even better than the absurdity that it’s Shrek doing all of this.

Shrek also has the ability to fart and burp on command. Farting will leave behind a gas cloud, while burping is useless unless Shrek has eaten a chilli, at which point he can burp flames. Combine this with a gas cloud and you’ll cause an explosion, which can also propel Shrek upwards like a rocket jump. Shrek has a punch and kick, but his other main ability is grabbing, which lets you pick up enemies (and NPCs), which you can then kick to send them a very satisfying distance.

Letting Shrek Extra Large down massively is the level design. They don’t feel like they were designed for Shrek’s moveset, making it feel like you’re doing things in an unintentional way most of the time. I think the developers realised this, because they even added a secret if you go out of bounds where Shrek would respawn inside a GameCube (you’ll have to restart the level to get out). There are four required objectives in each level, some of which are entertaining and others annoying (such as getting things to follow you). Some required doing things in a specific way that aren’t well explained.

The presentation is a mixed bag as well. Instead of trying to get soundalikes for the main characters, they make it so Shrek never says a word, Fiona is barely seen in the end cutscene and Donkey (despite being in the box) simply isn’t in the game. Instead, uses a Narrator reading a book to explain what is going on and what your objectives are, which kind of gives it a unique feel. All the fairy tale character depictions (created by Todd McFarlane) match the Shrek world really well. Incidentally, the Prince Charming character ended up being renamed between the Xbox and GameCube version to Crown Prince, presumably the developers were asked to make this change due to the plans for Shrek 2 (which came out a few years later).

Topping off the presentation is the surprisingly great soundtrack, would really fit in alongside Rare’s N64 soundtracks. The GameCube version also flows much better than the original Xbox version – in that, you have to complete one mission at a time and get booted back to the map when it’s done, while on the GameCube you can complete all of them, doing parts of each one alongside each other. One thing I felt while playing the game and I wasn’t disappointed when I checked out a Games Done Quick speedrun from 2019, it’s especially entertaining as they complete the game in 25 minutes using the main mechanics of the game and not having to use glitches.

Shrek Extra Large is kind of bad, but also really enjoyable.