Many a Saturday morning in my youth was spent watching the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, I actually spent enough time watching those fearsome fighting teens to still, all these years later, be able to sing the theme song (turtle power!). Out of a sense of nostalgia for my youth, every time a new video-based TMNT product (film, games, video, etc.) appears, I feel compelled to check it out, if only momentarily. And, unfortunately, it is only momentarily that the latest TMNT release, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Smash-up, a 2D fighter, is exciting.
On the Nintendo Wii, the game can be played either with one's remote and nunchuk, remote alone, classic controller, or Gamecube controller, and no matter the control scheme chosen, players will be very underwhelmed. In a vein very similar to the most recent Smash Bros., there's nothing terribly complicated about the fighting moves (which is perfectly fine), but Smash-up also lacks other crucial elements to a fighter, things like good graphics and compelling gameplay. In the end, Smash-Up feels more like a stripped-down, minimalist version of a release, and rather inferior to Smash Bros., which admittedly set the bar pretty high for this style of game on the Wii.
Smash-up lacks the special moves contained in Smash Bros. and most other fighters. The different characters do perform slightly differently, but not to the point where one can't easily switch from Michelangelo to Leonardo to April and then to Splinter without ease. There are some special "ninja" power-ups which allow players to utilize some throwing stars or dynamite or bombs, all of which function the same way for every player in the game.
The truly surprising thing however about Smash-up is that it starts off so well. A quick look at the menu indicates that there are several different modes of play available including Tournament, Battle Royal, Survival, Arcade, and Mission. Selecting the Arcade mode – essentially the "story" mode – one is treated to a none too in-depth introduction in which Splinter explains to his students that he's decided to hold a fighting tournament in which they are all too participate (along with himself, Casey, and April). While it's not a terribly great story, fighters aren't really none for their genius attempts at intricate and clever storytelling. No, what's fun about it is the comic-book inspired look to it. The graphics aren't the sharpest, but the style certainly indicates some effort and thought went into creating the background to the game. Of course, the incredibly slow pace at which the story unfolds turns out to be a far better foreshadower of what is to come than the manner in which the story is told.
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