The Powerpuff Girls: Relish Rampage

Play as the Powerpuff Girls as they prevent Townsville from being taking over by Pickloids.

NA release: 15th December 2002
EU release: 6th February 2004
JP release: N/A
Developer: VIS Entertainment
Publisher: BAM! Entertainment
NGC Magazine: N/A
Mods Used: None

On the N64, VIS Entertainment developed three games: Earthworm Jim 3D, Tom and Jerry in Fists of Furry, and The Powerpuff Girls: Chemical X-Traction. These are notable as I ranked all three of them among the worst games the N64 had to offer, with the latter two being poor clones of Power Stone. One notable thing about Chemical X-Traction was the lack of any voices from the show, and the story just being some text on a black background.

Which meant I was pleasantly surprised when Relish Rampage opened up with the theme from the show and then a cutscene featuring the voices from the show. I think the cutscene used a mix of 2D assets and the models from the game, but the fact that it’s difficult to tell means they captured the look of the show really well.

In reviews from the time, the game was panned for how it looks, but I think they did a decent job. Some textures could be cleaner, but the cel shading on the characters and vehicles look great, while the backgrounds and building are simple and subtle, which is a good way to adapt a cartoon.

The gameplay, particularly movement, was also panned, but I found the experience quite enjoyable. You control one of the Powerpuff Girls at a time, with the other two following behind, all while constantly flying. You use the sticks to move around and X and Y to move up and down, with you having to swoop down then up again to gain a bit of hight to reach some power-ups. It’s swift, fast and turning is very easy.

Combat is a little bit boring. You have A and B for slightly different hits, and I really wish that the two backup girls would at least pretend to be involved. You do get some animations of them all joining in for some of the special attacks, but it would have been nice to see a bit more movement from them.

The objectives are fairly simple, lots of flying, picking stuff up and destroying stuff, and the game takes place against four short chapters, each taking place on a different small open-world map, which have an amusing plot involving pickle aliens invading Townsville

While the length of the game is an issue if you’re spending full price on the game, it also means it doesn’t outstay its welcome. While I enjoyed my time with Relish Rampage, I wouldn’t have wanted to go on any longer.

Fun

The Powerpuff Girls: Relish Rampage is a bad use of a good license. The writing is bad, the game’s controls are exceedingly flawed, and the missions are extremely repetitive. There’s not really much to like about this game, and unless you’re such a fan of the Powerpuff Girls that even the sight of them makes you giddy, this is one game that should be pickled.
Chris Roper, IGN

Remake or remaster?

With a bit of a spruce up, this would be an enjoyable downable title.

Official Ways to get the game

There is no official way to get The Powerpuff Girls: Relish Rampage.