There's always the weird family in the neighborhood. Well in this one, it's the Sanderson's. With the childish dad, frog crazed kid and stressed out mom, this family has its issues. How do you fix them? Get a robot…
Story: It's Jenny Sanderson's 8th birthday. Since her dad wants to make it special, he gets her a Chibi-Robo. Sure, he may look like a toy but he does way more then that. Chibi-Robo, or Chibi, is capable of some impressive feats. Along with Telly Vision, his flying TV-like friend, manager and translator, all he wants to do is bring happiness to his new family, who seem normal. But Chibi learns that looks can be deceiving…
Game-Play
Your main goal in the game is to bring the family happiness and become #1 in the Chibi Rankings. How do you do that? Get Happy Points. To get Happy Points, you need to do many tasks around the house, from picking up trash to tea-time with Mom. To help complete tasks, Chibi gains 7 pieces of equipment and 7 suits over the course of the game. But, since Chibi's a robot, he has to watch his battery, or he'll run out of juice and need Telly to bring you back to the Chibi-House. You start with 80 battery life, which goes by pretty quick. How do you gain more battery? Get Happy Points and increase in the rankings. You also collect Moolah, the game's currency, to buy new items from the Chibi PC inside the Chibi House, your home base. Later on you'll encounter Spydorz, who drop scrap when defeated. You can use scrap to build Ultibots, used for ladders, bridges and warps to help Chibi reach new places in the house. It's pretty hard to get around when you're 4 inches tall. Chibi needs to help his new family become happy, but he'll encounter many adventures along the way…
Graphics
The graphics, in my opinion, are good. Sure, they aren't Xbox 360 material, but they don't refrain you from enjoying other aspects of the game. They look nice and smooth to me, but you may think differently.
Sound
Chibi's world is like a living orchestra and Chibi is the maestro. Every step Chibi takes brings a harmonious sound, like he's walking on a piano. Even when you change from rug to floor, the sound changes into a different sound. In a sense Chibi makes his own music, removing the need for background music.
Closing Remarks
With a main story and loads of side quests, Chibi-Robo is a fun adventure game perfect for any age. The main thing that's lacking is some sort of replay value. After beating the game, playing it suddenly lacks any interest. Who says you need gory zombies for a good game?
Let's go exploring!
