Rabbids Lab is Ubisoft's latest foray into WiiWare (wait, they had a foray into it before?); bringing their little demon rabbids to your Wii for a mere five dollars. That sounds good on paper - but is the execution as good as the concept?
Many things look good on paper. Breaking up Brain Age for DSiWare release is one example. Popcap games bringing their titles to systems is another. Unfortunately for Ubisoft, taking a small component out of their latest Wii release, Rabbids Go Home, and making it a downloadable release does not work too well in the real world.
I am not here to get into the aforementioned full release, though (that's for another time). Rabbids Lab is all about taking the Rabbid apparently stuck in your Wii Remote, and warping and editing it to make something entirely different. Through using the paint tool, you can really alter your little Rabbid friend - changing its many parts to a variety of different colors. When done correctly, this aspect of it looks surprisingly decent.
In fact, it is surprising how complete the painting component of it all is. You can use a variety of shapes if you don't trust your shaky hands, easily 100 colors/shades, options like using brushes or buckets, and more. It's rather like using MS Paint... on a Rabbid. That said, it is versatile in that regard, and offers a great diversion for pick-up-and-play fun. The controls are simple and intuitive, and the options while painting are there.
On the other hand, the rest of the options pale in comparison. You can choose to adjust your Rabbids' head through a painful gimmick that looks like it belongs on a kid in need of major dental work. However, you really only have about eight possibilities, ranging from normal, to squashed, to oblong. The best part is inflicting pain on the Rabbid, but even that gets boring after using this component for a few moments.
That's not all, though. The coup de grace are the so called "accessories" you can add on to your Rabbid. All two of them! Your options are a turkey (cooked to perfection) or a Santa hat! The versatility of the paint mode should have been matched in this section - as we've seen several Rabbid accessories in past games. A missed opportunity for sure. Ubisoft also limited the stamp mode of the paint section by exclusively including Christmas related stamps (mistletoe, star, snowflake, etc). This is forgivable in the sense there are more than two options, but something tied in to last the entire year would be more desirable.
To top it all off - you can't even save it. At all. You are limited to taking a picture of it (which you can send over Wifi). Joy. Nonetheless, I am ignoring my favorite part (I've clocked in at least an hour with it). Ravaging your Rabbid. Trapped inside your Wii Remote, the little devil is at your mercy. Shake the Wii Remote and it will go flying. Press buttons while he stands on them, and he is flung who knows where. The screams are hilarious on about 1000 levels, as are its comedic motions. You can even snap a picture in the midst of wreaking havoc on its world - which at least redeems how pathetic the feature is. Besides, where else can you abuse a rabbit-like creature and not have PETA at your door? Oh right... in the more robust version found in Rabbids Go Home.
Ultimately, what you get out of Rabbids Lab will range. If you are interested in what I described, but not in the full package and full price of Rabbids Go Home, then this is a game for you to enjoy at a relatively low price of $5. If you want something that will last all year, well, this may be silly to play in the midst of summer. On the chance you have Rabbids Go Home, this game is useless to you - it is in fact a scaled down version of something already found within the game. Rabbids Lab is basically Ubisoft's take on Mii Making, and just like making Mii's, your level of enjoyment will wildly vary based on your creativity, ability to adapt to limited tools, and whether or not you want to pay $5 dollars for a rather solid demo. It's fun. It's frustrating. It's what we've come to expect from Ubisoft's Rabbid line.
So basically, it's "Dress-Up a Rabbid"?
QuoteOn the chance you have Rabbids Go Home, this game is useless to you - it is in fact a scaled down version of something already found within the game.
Hey, sounds like Nintendo and the DSiWare.
Quote from: Lotos on December 09, 2009, 04:43:31 PM
So basically, it's "Dress-Up a Rabbid"?
It's basically Ubi's take on Mii's.
Quote from: MACKORMOSES on December 09, 2009, 07:47:18 PM
It's basically Ubi's take on Mii's.
If only they worked with the Mii Channel then it might be a little tempting.
It is enjoyable...but the fact it is limited to Christmas bonus features (beyond the paint) detracts from it. But you can definitely have fun with it.