Developer: Xaloc Studios
Publisher: Maximum Entertainment
Platform: Switch, PS5, PS4
Tested on: Switch
Care Bears: Unlock the Magic – Review
Chalk it up to this reviewer not having children, but we weren’t aware that the Care Bears had returned to current-day popular culture. To be fair, for something as inherently marketable as cutesy, rainbow-coloured bears, we haven’t seen any plushies sitting between Bluey and Peppa Pig on store shelves. Maybe we should’ve looked at the video game aisle, where we could’ve spotted Care Bears: Unlock the Magic, the official video game based on the animated series with the same title. Is the game a good enough calling card for us to give the show a shot too, or should the Care Bears have stayed in the ‘80s?
Story
For a game based on an animated series, with presumably well-defined characters, there wasn’t a whole lot of effort put into the story. In fact, Unlock the Magic’s so-called adventure mode simply tells you that you have arrived just in time to save the land by collecting stars and using their power… and that’s it. No explanation is given about what threatens this land, or what the “power of the stars” is supposed to do. Maybe we should watch the show to understand what’s going on, or maybe the developers simply couldn’t be bothered to write more than three lines of lore for this one.
Graphics
With a wealth of source material behind it, it’s no surprise that Unlock the Magic nails its visuals. The character designs were lifted directly from the show. Character animations are very simple, but in this case, that’s not a bad thing, as it means that Unlock the Magic’s performance is smooth too. The game’s interface is easy to read, and the titular bears’ bright, saturated colors pop against the softer, pastel-tinted backdrops.
Sound
We’re not sure whether the music was lifted directly from the show or if the tunes are new to the game. Either way, the soundtrack isn’t anything to write home about. The soothing tunes may fit with the cuddly and cutesy atmosphere of the Care Bears universe, but they’re also very forgettable. Many of the tunes would sound more at home in an elevator than in a video game based on a cartoon. For what it’s worth, Unlock the Magic also has a narrator, but there is a very limited amount of text in the game anyway, so you barely hear any voice lines while playing. To the game’s credit, the narrator’s audio changes to match the in-game language, so you’re not just limited to hearing an English voice.
Gameplay
For the purposes of this review, we’re going to assume that you are a parent trying to find out whether or not Unlock the Magic is a game worth buying for your child as their very first console game. This is a game aimed at very young children, after all. We’d be surprised if anyone over the age of eight is going to get any meaningful enjoyment out of it. With that out of the way, let’s take a look at what Unlock the Magic has to offer. The game is a collection of simple minigames. Most of these are based on classic titles you’re probably familiar with, like Puzzle Bobble, Breakout, and Flappy Bird. The Unlock the Magic versions are oversimplified with the target audience in mind. Levels typically only take about a minute or two to complete. Unlock the Magic supposedly boasts over 200 levels across a dozen minigames, although the game couldn’t hold our attention long enough to fully make it to the finish line.
There are two main modes in Unlock the Magic, being Adventure Mode and Free Mode. Adventure Mode sees you take control of Leo, the pink Care Bear with a rainbow on his belly, as he walks across a very lengthy track of tiles. Most of these tiles correspond with a minigame level. Each minigame you complete grants a star. Every few tiles, a thundercloud blocks Leo’s way, and you’ll need to pay a number of stars to remove it so that you can continue. The required number of stars is lower than the number of tiles, so in the unlikely event that a minigame level is too difficult to complete, you can skip it. There are also gift box tiles, which will grant a sticker. Collected stickers are put in Unlock the Magic’s art book, with filling this out being one of the main goals of the game. Free Mode simply lets you replay any levels you’ve unlocked in Adventure Mode.
We can definitely see the overall simplicity of the levels and the high degree of accessibility being boons for Unlock the Magic’s target audience. The game is fairly lengthy too, with the track that Leo travels on and the thundercloud roadblocks ensuring that there is a sense of progress, even if it takes a toddler a couple of weeks, or even months, to complete the game. There is a wide variety when it comes to the minigames, allowing young kids to have their first taste of different genres. In this regard, Unlock the Magic definitely achieves what it sets out to do, as it will entertain its target audience while also providing a safe and inoffensive video game environment that parents should be fine with. Unfortunately, like many of its peers, Unlock the Magic does suffer from the license tax. The game relies on the appeal and brand recognition of the Care Bears to sell you a glorified set of very simple games for a ridiculous €29.99 RRP. If your toddler is a diehard Care Bears fan, you might be able to justify that price tag, but otherwise, we’d recommend waiting for a discount.
Conclusion
When looking at a game like Unlock the Magic, it’s always important to keep the target audience in mind. This was never a game that was going to be up there with the likes of Spider-Man 2 or the latest Assassin’s Creed. Unlock the Magic is a very simple game that achieves what it sets out to do. It’s overpriced for sure, but it’s also functional, and it will entertain the youngest fans of the show without a doubt.
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