Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands
First posted on 27 October 2008. Last updated on 10 August 2009.
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| At the Cool Tapes band rehearsal, Strong Bad tries to convince the band to sell out. |
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| Strong Bad and his band mates get ready to rock out. |
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| Strong Bad poses in a collectable costume at the photo booth. |
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| Pom Pom scouts for talent at Club Technochocolate. |
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| The StrongBadian fence is overrun with graffiti from local bands. |
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People
The season is comprised of 5 episodes:
- Episode 1: Homestar Ruiner
- Episode 2: Strong Badia the Free
- Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands
- Episode 4: Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective
- Episode 5: 8-Bit is Enough
Another month has gone by, and another SBCG4AP (Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People) episode has been released. For the few of you who are not yet familiar with the gang at homestarrunner.com, I recommend checking them out right away for a very unique web cartoon experience. Even so, no prior knowledge of the cartoon or past episodes is required to play this game, although it certainly helps to understand the many in-jokes and self-references that are littered across the episode. The entire main cast makes a return to the series as well as many of the locales explored in the past episodes—all of which are becoming gradually more fleshed out as Strong Bad has had reasons to visit the homes of all his friends.
While the first episode is a classic prank caper, and the second episode a tale of militant military revenge, the third episode brings Strong Bad into uncharted emotional territory as he goes on a quest motivated solely by love—specifically, by Strong Bad's love of his video game system, which melts down in the throes of furious arcade action and forces him to raise enough cash to fix it. This propels Strong Bad on a quest to convince the denizens of Free Country USA to join his battle of the bands for a steep entry fee, all the while conspiring to alternately support and sabotage their musical efforts to ensure he comes out on top.
A few gameplay conventions have changed in this episode from previous episodes. Strong Bad's Videlectrix game system has been a reliable diversion in the past, but since it is caught up in the plot of this episode you need to wait until the extended play epilogue to play any of the old arcade games. Strong Bad's Teen Girl Squad cartoons make an appearance, but the cartoons have been changed to a pre-scripted rather than an interactive form. You will not be collecting cards for the story, but the resulting cartoon can be enjoyed without any responsibility on your part. The Tarantula black metal detector makes a return, allowing Strong Bad to scour areas for hidden items or outfits, but the current episode also introduces a somewhat redundant item to the detector that can reveal some hidden items if used in an area. What has not changed, however, is the use of in-game statistics that track how many of the secret items you have acquired and optional tasks you have done throughout the game.
The current episode makes a significant improvement on its predecessors in the size and quality of puzzles. By my own estimates, the number of puzzle driven actions required to beat Episode 1 and Episode 2 number around in the 20s for each, but for Episode 3 the number is in the 30s (or about half as many more puzzles as the previous episodes). In addition to the increased length of the game, I have also found the game's puzzles to be better conceived in scope. The previous episodes frequently have phases where you are left with only a single goal to accomplish, which given how many items and characters you are likely to interact with in a given phase of the game, the solution to the puzzles you are expected to solve sometimes reeks of a certain inevitability. By contrast, this episode gets around that by asking you to accomplish a few tasks in parallel at each phase of the game, so that the usage of a particular item is not as obvious since it does not have to be applied to a single purpose. I have spent more time investigating the world and actively thinking up possible solutions this time than the past.
This episode, like previous episodes, relies mostly on inventory puzzles and mashing items together to form the bread and butter of its core gameplay. There are a couple interesting examples of puzzling where you are expected to perform the right actions in sequence which requires some more careful thought, and I have found a technique employed for basing puzzle solutions off of subtle clues given to the player that may otherwise be overlooked to provide some rewarding "A-Ha!" moments.
A comment is needed about the "adaptive" hint system designed to spur you on if you are having difficulty making progress. I have played through all the episodes so far at each of the levels of hints offered. The "high" level, as I have found to be the case, is like playing alongside a backseat adventure game driver in a bit of a hurry. At this level, Strong Bad often chimes in prematurely with advice while I am still in the early phases of trying out different paths to find the correct solutions. The "low" level is reserved enough to not get in my way at all while solving puzzles, but it is doubtlessly lurking in the background to save me from myself if my wits fail me. The "medium" level reliably chimes in with a nudge in the right direction whenever the game finds that I am spending a particularly long time trying to figure out a puzzle. It is good to see TellTalle Games has a measure in place for dealing with adventure game angst; the developer even goes so far as to post complete walkthroughs of the games on its website. Even though I prefer the pure joy of figuring out all the puzzles on my own, the hints are gradual enough to still leave me some measure of satisfaction.
Despite the episode's focus on the bands and their music, Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands is more about poking fun at music than playing it, and the few original musical efforts that are in the game are not particularly special. Although the storyline of Strong Bad trying to repair his video game console is a decent setup for the band competition, it is not the most engaging premise that the series has seen. The game is also somewhat lighter on mini-games than the others, but where it really shines is in the craft and design of its puzzles. That alone makes for an enjoyable single play through, which ultimately is what an episodic game is all about.