Jett Rocket

System: WiiWare
Developer: Shin'en
Publisher: Shin'en Multimedia GmbH
Genre: Platformer
Players: 1
Points: 1,000

From their powerful GBA sound engine to Nanostray giving an early glimpse of what the DS' humble processor was capable of, German developer Shin'en have always had a certain knack for pushing the limits of Nintendo hardware. Their latest title Jett Rocket is just another fine example to add to this praise-a-thon-paragraph. My knees are already starting to ache.

Despite being trapped within the WiiWare's meager 40 MB size limit, Jett Rocket is quite easily one of the best looking games on the system, period. Its landscapes are rich with detail, boasting impressive visual effects not seen in at least 96.2% of the Wii's disc-based lineup - and it all runs at a fluid 60 FPS. But wait! The best part is that there's actual substance to go with all that style.

Jett Rocket is a 3D platformer that has you in control of... Jett Rocket; some kid that looks and sounds like a complete wanker. He's actually a 'planetary inspector', and it just so happens his home planet Yoroppa is under attack. What luck! Set over three areas with around 12 levels in total, there's your beach world, ice world and swamp world. Standard platforming themes, although going with a murky bog instead of say, some kind of lava land is a bit surprising. Maybe that'll be in the sequel, so everyone can purposely hurl the main character into its fiery depths just once.


The game feels very much like it's taken inspiration from the earlier days of 3D platforming (not including Bubsy 3D), in that it keeps the objectives fairly simple, its level design is tighter, more focused and there's nothing to slow your progress down. The adventure kicks off with a tutorial that lasts all of one minute and a cutscene that takes up even less time - my heroes. Jett Rocket can smash into enemies and activate machinery with a quick flick of the Wii Remote and he's got a jet pack to hover around with. It only has a limited amount of fuel, so you'll have to regularly refill at any one of the dedicated pads strewn about each level.

A typical level will have a major objective such as 'destroy this machine all the way over here, then run across to the other side of the stage and something something, you win'. Naturally, playing it is a lot more enjoyable than reading that extremely well-written sentence. There are plenty of solar cells to collect along the way, many of which are actually quite cleverly hidden. These are important, as you'll need to have found a certain amount of solar cells in order to unlock the game's final world.

It's not all running and jumping, however. Shin'en's packed in some brief moments of variety, including a jet ski level, parachuting and even some bit where you're suddenly flipping off ramps on a hoverboard for no real reason. Jett Rocket's a pretty spontaneous fellow. The game's background music is rather smooth and laid-back, which just makes his extreme antics even more amusing.


All up the game took just over four hours to beat, which really isn't too bad at all for the cost of admission. It'll take longer if you wish to stick with it and collect every single solar cell for a 100% completion rate. There's also an achievement system built-in, so you can get a virtual pat on the back for 'breaking 12 ice blocks in one level' and 'playing a video game'. I certainly enjoyed my time with Jett Rocket, but it's not all triple ply toilet paper with radioactive unicorns. The camera knows exactly when to be a pain in the arse, zipping around at the worst possible moments. Thankfully you can quickly fix it back up.

Jett Rocket doesn't offer much in the way of a challenge, either. This actually wasn't much of an issue for me personally, because a lazy afternoon game is exactly what I was in the mood for, but you're not me. That could throw the Earth's rotation off balance. I managed to see Jett cark it twice; once during a boss fight, the other time because I accidently forgot to use my jet pack whilst attempting to cross a bottomless pit. At least, I'm pretty sure it was an accident.


Score: 8/10 - "Good buy"
A bit on the easy side, but Jett Rocket crams in a whole heap of fun. It also has the added bonus of being one of the nicest looking games on the Wii. Bring on the sequel, Shin'en! Just uh, staple Jett's mouth shut.

Review by Lance McGill (Infernal Monkey)
Email: lance@aussie-nintendo.com