Looney Tunes: Wacky World of Sports Review (Switch)
That's pretty much all, folks
by Ken Talbot · Nintendo LifeFans of old-school sports compilations may remember Tiny Toon Adventures: Wacky Sports Challenge on Super Nintendo. In it, you played as the titular animated youngsters, who competed in enjoyable cartoon versions of familiar events. SNES also had Looney Tunes B-Ball, a beautifully animated genre classic that put a colourful spin on the NBA Jam formula.
Bamtang Games hopes to bring back this forgotten subgenre with Looney Tunes: Wacky World Of Sports, a collection of four game types, pitting the original Warner Brothers animated line-up against each other in solo and multiplayer tournaments.
It’s always good to see these characters in any piece of media and Wacky World Of Sports nails the colour, sound, and zany tone of the Merrie Melodies crew. All characters are fully voiced, with the likes of Fred Tatasciore, Jeff Bergman, and Kath Souicie giving enthusiastic performances in their signature roles.
Opting for a cel-shaded 3D art style over more faithful 2D depictions stings a little, sacrificing stylistic flair for a serviceable cartoon aesthetic. It's a shame that this less ambitious style doesn't translate to reliable performance. The game is just about performant both docked and undocked, occasionally slowing down during power-up heavy match moments.
The character models are a bit too stiff, especially when compared to the quick and fluid animation of the Mario Tennis and Strikers titles. At times running up and down the court/pitch feels like it’s on rails - not the best representation of characters known for their lively demeanour. Yet, despite the lack of visual polish, the franchise iconography is well represented here.
The sports available are Basketball, Golf, Football (soccer, for US players), and Tennis. They all share the same mechanical quirks to fit the mould of the IP. There are energy meters that trigger super moves and items of Acme-manufactured destruction litter each play area.
Some game types have special ability variants that suit the format of the sport. Tennis allows players to trigger slow motion, making it easier to intercept a distant shot. Basketball uses energy to trigger 3-point opportunities, but mostly shares its interception and shooting gameplay with Football. All games have super shots, flashy canned animations that show off each character's signature buffoonery.
Golf is the most enjoyable of the four. This is mainly because you aren't moving around, removing the annoyances present in the other sports. Shots use a simple power gauge augmented with different club types. Energy charges super shots, while items can be applied to other players to ruin their shot. Taking Bugs Bunny et al through courses covered in bear traps and dynamite is a great time and goes some way to justifying the existence of this collection.
Tennis also benefits from not having to manage multiple teammates but has its own set of issues. Hit boxes feel wildly inconsistent at times, it’s never quite clear how you misjudged your positioning, as you get shunted off the court by Porky Pig’s backhand. The rock-paper-scissors shot type exchange is enjoyable when you get a streak going, but wacky Tennis just isn’t very fun.
Basketball and Football are equally bad. Controlling a team of slow-moving, blocky cartoon animals (and a game hunter who for some reason isn’t trying to shoot them) is a chore. These sports are a frustrating combination of imprecise controls, AI that feels unfair even on easier difficulties, and special abilities constantly raining down on the playing field. The Acme-made obstacles can be disabled, which removes the visual clutter, but dampens the feel of being in a cartoon. Characters have a varied set of stats that should translate to different play styles, but trying to balance a side never seems to work in your favour.
Aside from the gameplay faults mentioned above, control mappings are fine. This is a title ultimately targeted towards younger audiences, so there are no complex systems here. Tennis and Golf can be played using motion controls, detaching Joy-Con and swinging wildly to hit the balls where you want them to go. This mode only serves to add extra difficulty and is basically impossible undocked, as you lack any sort of reference to where you are in relation to your character.
Like most sports compilations, enjoyment can be had with other players. Looney Tunes: Wacky World Of Sports has four-player local co-op modes for playing each individual sport, or taking part in the Acme Ultimate Cup. This tournament format throws in every game type and has you compete against each other, or take on the CPU. Being at the mercy of terrible AI will mar the enjoyment of one-to-three players, but with four you are at least all throwing custard pies and anvils at each other. No online hijinks here, though.
Much like some of the characters in its roster, this poorly executed compilation will be an acquired taste. Cartoon fans will enjoy the faithful depictions of classic characters, but struggle to have fun with the games on offer. There are plenty of unlockables to keep you churning through matches, but these are just cosmetic benefits. There are challenge modes, too, that force you to engage further with the quirks of each sport. Though the real challenge is trying to endure another game of b-ball with Bugs and Co.
Conclusion
Looney Tunes: Wacky World Of Sports' multiplayer can be fun in short bursts, especially if you just want to play a quick round of golf with friends. From a general audio-visual perspective, this is a good franchise representation. As a sports collection, though, it’s clunky and frustrating. Playing with others will elevate this, but not by much.
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