Evolution Worlds (GameCube)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.0 stars Good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 6.5 (3.0 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Greg Kasavin
• Reviewed on: 12/20/2002
• Released on: 12/02/2002
• Originally published on GameSpot: Evolution Worlds (GameCube) Review

The GameCube isn't exactly bristling with options for would-be role-playing gamers. Only a mere handful of these games have been released for Nintendo's console, and of them, nearly half are ports of older games from other platforms. Evolution Worlds is one such example: It's a gussied-up hybrid of Evolution and Evolution 2, a pair of role-playing games that first appeared on the Dreamcast respectively in late 1998 and 2000. Even back then, neither Evolution game was particularly well received. Despite their cute and endearing characters, the games themselves were rather simple and bland, offering up at best an average role-playing experience. That being the case, perhaps the best thing to be said about Evolution Worlds is that the games it comprises have aged reasonably well. It can make for a decent though relatively brief diversion for GameCube owners really hurting for an RPG, and its lighthearted style makes it suitable for Pokémon fans.

Evolution Worlds is the story of young Mag Launcher, a go-get-'em kid who's the heir to the estate of a family of legendary adventurers. Unfortunately, his father disappeared a while ago, and the estate has fallen into ruin. Mag wishes to discover what's become of his dad and to restore the Launcher estate to its former glory. To do this, Mag will first need to recruit the help of some colorful characters with some decidedly strange names. Mag and company will then be charged with completing a series of missions on behalf of The Society, sort of an archeological institute located in Mag's hometown. Basically, The Society sends Mag and a couple of friends on dungeon crawls.

These dungeon crawls take place in multistory mazes that contain three things: enemies, traps, and treasure chests. It's like the developers had a bare-bones checklist of stuff to throw in. Enemies, check; traps, check. But no one thought to put in anything else. The dungeons are all really simple, and their designs look random and pointless--just lots of straight hallways and large, empty rooms. At least you run quickly through these mazes, though rotating your 3D perspective to get a good vantage point can be pretty cumbersome. Also, at least you don't run into random encounters like in most role-playing games. You see the enemies minding their own business on the map, and if you get close enough, they'll come running to get you. You can run right past certain foes, but avoiding combat too much is a bad idea, since you'll want to win battles and gain experience points if you're going to survive against some of the game's tougher encounters.

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