BattleBots: Beyond the BattleBox review (Game Boy Advance)

Other unfortunate and minor flaws include CPU opponents that are easily tricked into sitting under pulverizers and a pit interface that's overly complicated. It can take more than 10 button presses just to fix your 'bot after a match, and sometimes the parts you purchase just disappear instead of being equipped. Still, creating your own 'bots is rather interesting despite the clunky interface, and the fighting itself is fun in that same mindless, button-masher sort of way that keeps people flocking to knock-off boxing games.

The game's audio and two extra gameplay modes are also worth mentioning. The music is fast-paced and clear, while the matches are full of digitized sound clips taken straight from the TV show. As for the extra modes, the game includes exhibition and multiplayer options that let you set up four-player brawls with adjustable time limits and additional power-up items. The power-up items actually bring a bit more depth to the game, so it's unfortunate that they're not available in the tournament mode.

In the final analysis, BattleBots: Beyond the BattleBox does have a certain charm about it, but not to the extent that anyone but die-hard fans of the TV series should risk their hard-earned dollars to play it. It's a shame, too, because you can feel a great game crying out from behind the flaws that are holding BattleBots: Beyond the BattleBox back.