If you were born at some point after the 90s, then it’s safe to say that SpongeBob SquarePants played some role in your life. Regardless of whether you watched the series when it first premiered, watched the numerous films as they premiered, or got into the TV show recently, you probably have a core memory related to the sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea. Thanks to the franchise’s iconography, the character has made the jump to countless other mediums, including video games.
The world of SpongeBob video games has as many high highs as it does low lows. While you may get some incredible 3D platformers like Battle for Bikini Bottom, you are just as likely to get something more mediocre, like Plankton’s Robotic Revenge. Thankfully, thanks to the recent work of developer Purple Lamp, the SpongeBob gaming franchise is in a good place with games like The Cosmic Shake. Which brings us to its latest game: Titans of the Tide.
SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide picks up right where The Cosmic Shake left off in many ways. Same visual style, similar mechanics, and even a similar premise with the idea of Patrick Star being a floating ally to SpongeBob. However, there is a brand-new story, the ability to switch between SpongeBob and Patrick on the fly, and countless new features to entice those who played The Cosmic Shake. How does it hold up compared to its predecessor? It’s a mixed bag.
A Story Right Out of a SpongeBob Movie
Titans of the Tide starts in the same way you’d expect any episode of SpongeBob to start: with the Krusty Krab in the middle of a busy period. One of the many customers who arrives to pick up a Krabby Patty is the Flying Dutchman, the malevolent spirit who occasionally likes to steal people’s souls. Before he could pick up his meal, King Neptune, the aptly named king of the sea, skipped him in the line to get a completely free order.
In a rage, the Flying Dutchman turns most of Bikini Bottom into ghostly apparitions, including SpongeBob, and declares war on King Neptune. You soon switch to Patrick’s perspective, who notices the commotion and arrives to save his best friend. SpongeBob and Patrick, as well as the surviving members of Bikini Bottom, must then band together to undo the Flying Dutchman’s curse and stop the warring titans from causing any more trouble.
Right off the bat, it’s worth noting that the tone of Titans of the Tide is perfect in that it feels just like an actual episode of the original cartoon. There’s a right balance between humor that gets a chuckle out of you and that makes you wanna tear your hair out. For instance, there’s a moment where the Flying Dutchman explodes in rage, and it transitions into a classic cartoon-styled “Later…” screen. Immediately, without any time to breathe, it cuts to a scene of a nuclear mushroom cloud engulfing Bikini Bottom, and the absurdity of the situation had me cackling.
On the flipside, there are a few moments with the writing that don’t really land, namely in the midst of gameplay. It’s possible that this could be a technical glitch, but when you are playing through the platforming segments, a lot of dialogue will repeat itself. Some of it is the exact same soundbyte of SpongeBob laughing over and over again, while in other cases it’s entire exchanges between characters that repeat multiple times in a row. It gets pretty repetitive and often has me contemplating whether I should mute the dialogue.
Despite my frustrations with the repeating dialogue, the voice actors in Titans of the Tide are fantastic. It helps that most of the original actors from the cartoon reprise their roles in the game, including Tom Kenny as SpongeBob, Bill Fagerbakke as Patrick, Clancy Brown as Mr. Krabs, and Carolyn Lawrence as Sandy Cheeks, among others. All of them feel right at home here and help to further the idea of the game feeling like an actual episode of the original series.
Throughout your journey, you’ll encounter multiple characters from SpongeBob‘s past. Obviously, there are the mainstays, like Sandy, Squidward, Plankton, and Gary. But you can also find the likes of Larry the Lobster, who constantly asks you to undertake a race around the level, and even that one guy who very obsessively asks for chocolate at any chance he gets. Even if you’ve somehow never watched a SpongeBob episode in your life (seriously, how have you managed that?), the references may go over your head. If you’re a long-time fan, though, you will definitely get a kick out of all the easter eggs.
As for the actual narrative and its progression, things are pretty good. The concept of the Flying Dutchman and King Neptune going to war with each other feels like the setup for a classic SpongeBob TV special, akin to Atlantis Squarepantis or Truth or Square. The characters that the game introduces and showcases also help with this vibe, with Sandy especially getting a lot of screen time in the late game.
I do wish certain characters were highlighted more. Beyond SpongeBob, Patrick, Sandy, the Flying Dutchman, and King Neptune, don’t expect to see much of Mr. Krabs, Squidward, or Plankton, save for a few instances here and there. A lot of that is due to just how short the game is; if you focus primarily on the main quest, you can easily beat the game in about five hours. Furthermore, the story ends on a very abrupt note.
In any other game, everything I have mentioned thus far would be a major issue and enough justification to discount the game entirely. Yet, if you consider what you would come to expect from a SpongeBob game, it’s actually not all that bad. The visual style, simplistic narrative, voice acting, and short runtime all help to deliver a package that feels extremely faithful to the original SpongeBob cartoon. While some of the specific issues were slightly frustrating, when the game came to a close, I can’t say I was particularly displeased with the finished product, narrative-wise.
That said, there are still a few issues that are harder to shrug off completely. Namely, with the gameplay, which walks the line between being really fun and continuing the repetition problem found in the dialogue.
More of the Same
If you’ve played The Cosmic Shake or even the Battle for Bikini Bottom remake, you will know exactly what to expect from Titans of the Tide‘s gameplay style. It, like its predecessors, is a 3D platformer with collectathon elements and an emphasis on exploration. That said, several new features that Titans of the Tide introduces to differentiate it from previous games in the franchise.
For starters, you can now switch between Patrick and SpongeBob on the fly. Each character has their own list of moves it can execute, which are key to traversal. For instance, Patrick can use a grappling hook to cross big distances, while SpongeBob can use his karate talents to do a dash to cross the same amount of distance. As you progress, you’ll need to become skilled at switching between the two characters very quickly on the fly to solve platforming challenges.
You can also now use a ghostly surfboard to traverse around the levels, which are fairly big and filled with countless smaller areas to explore. Along your journey, you’ll find massive open areas, such as Jellyfish Fields, and smaller, more tight spaces, like King Neptune’s Gala. Each level has its own variety of mechanics and puzzles to unravel and utilize to its fullest potential.
For instance, King Neptune’s Gala has a lantern that you can hit to generate green or blue platforms. Certain doors will only open if a certain colored lantern is turned on at a time, so you may need to backtrack and find different routes to get to your primary destination. You also get a boulder to ride in a later level, which is also used for certain puzzles (and is surprisingly easy to control). The actual moment-to-moment platforming mechanics feel great to play around with, and despite some of my overall issues with the gameplay, I was never bored playing Titans of the Tide.
I will say that the level variety isn’t as interesting as The Cosmic Shake. Whereas the previous game leaned into the multiverse aesthetic to great success, the levels in Titans of the Tide feel a lot more generic. There’s a dark, spooky level, a castle level, an ice level, and then a level that goes right back to where the game started. While the mechanics were cool, I didn’t find any of the specific levels to be particularly memorable. The same issue applies to the boss battles and combat, which felt far too easy at times.
On the other hand, the customization options are fantastic. You can pick from countless costumes spanning the TV show’s history to wear as both SpongeBob and Patrick, which is a wonderful touch from the developers. I especially appreciated the reference to the “Band Geeks” episode for SpongeBob and the fact that you can unlock a “realistic” looking Patrick for his floating apparition.
As for the process of unlocking the costumes, it’s a bit more lackluster. Most of them are unlocked via one-off minigames or through side quests. Sadly, I didn’t find too much enjoyment in either, as it only furthered my biggest issue with Titans of the Tide‘s gameplay mechanics: repetition. A lot of the game, you’ll spend doing the exact same things over and over again.
If you have played any SpongeBob 3D platformer before, there really isn’t anything new that Titans of the Tide offers that makes it worth the $35.99. Even the new mechanics feel rudimentary in the grand scheme of things, and pale in comparison to just how new and fresh Cosmic Shake felt.
It doesn’t help that, regardless of the new gimmicks that each level introduces, the game doesn’t really feel all that memorable. Even now, I’m struggling to think of a specific part of Titans of the Tide that stood out to me because it all feels the same. As such, this is a hard game to evaluate as a complete package.
If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It?
Looking back at my childhood, I have very vivid memories of playing multiple SpongeBob-related games. I had the Game Boy Advance cartridges, which played entire episodes of the TV show; I had the movie game, and I had Lights, Camera, Pants for the PlayStation 2. As such, I believed that jumping into Titans of the Tide would be like riding a bike. Yet, when the credits rolled, I found myself conflicted by what I had just experienced.
On the one hand, the story and overall style of the game are a lot of fun. The fact that all of the iconic SpongeBob characters make appearances, along with their respective voice actors, helps the game feel like a classic TV special brought to life. While the repetitive dialogue and short runtime would make any other game lesser, I can’t deny that I enjoyed the story.
On the other hand, the gameplay feels frustratingly similar to every other game in the series. In many ways, that’s not a bad thing since the actual platforming of The Cosmic Shake felt great, and as such, so does Titans of the Tide. However, there aren’t really a lot of new and exciting mechanics to chew on. While the ability to switch back and forth between SpongeBob and Patrick feels great, plus the fantastic customization options, the lacking side quests and generic levels put a dampener on the entire experience.
The problem is that Titans of the Tide is pretty good if you’re only looking at it from a family-friendly perspective. If you’re looking at it compared to other 3D platformers on the market, though, it comes up lacking. As such, I would recommend this game to younger audiences and people who are diehard fans of the SpongeBob series, or if you’re someone looking for simple, mindless fun. If you’re looking for something more elaborate as a fan of The Cosmic Shake or other 3D platformers, though, you may be better off looking elsewhere for your Spongebob fix.
Disclaimer: Purple Lamp provided a PlayStation 5 copy of SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide for review purposes.
