Prince becomes a Superfrog
A rather obscure game from Team 17, better known for their work on the Worms series, Superfrog is a neat little platformer similar to the likes of Sonic, Rayman (or even James Pond for those who remember the fishy superagent). The minimal plot is conveyed through a short introductory animation and revolves around a prince who is turned a frog by a jealous witch and who must then save his princess after she is kidnapped by the same witch. Helping him out in his quest is a bottle of Lucozade which magically confers a range of powers upon the frog, thus turning him into the eponymous Superfrog. In gameplay terms, this translates into a side-scrolling platfomer that sees Superfrog exploring several themed worlds, collecting coins and completing objectives, while all the time avoiding and bouncing his way around a series of imaginatively designed enemies. A key factor of any platformer is the controls, and fortunately Superfrog delivers the goods in this respect. They are tight and responsive, allowing for jumps and manoeuvres to be completed smoothly and with ease. Visually, the game also provides exactly the sort of charming graphics such platformers require, with vibrant, exciting colour schemes, varied environments, and nicely detailed and chunky enemy sprites. Superfrog himself makes for an endearing hero (certainly better than the obnoxious Skunny) and lends further charm to the game. There is also a nice sense of humour to proceedings and all of this combine to make an entertaining, if unoriginal, little platformer that is definitely worth seeking out.
