The Secret Saturdays: Beasts of the 5th Sun review

The Secret Saturdays stars 11-year-old Zak Saturday and his super scientist parents Solomon “Doc” Saturday and Drew Saturday. The three of them together study supernatural animals called Cryptids – which are kind of like Pokemon only less cute. The DS game takes advantage of the Saturdays’ special items from the show, like Zak’s grappling claw and Drew’s Tibetan fire sword, to switch up gameplay between platforming and combat.

The game begins with the Saturdays’ headquarters being attacked by rival scientists Leonidas Van Rook and V.V. Argost. Van Rook is onto something about an ancient (and totally made-up) Aztec legend about the sun and Cryptids, etc. Anyway, he steals something and the Saturdays first have to chase him and then race him across various jungle, icy and fiery locales all over the world finding Cryptids.

Zak’s levels easily steal the show with his ability to swing around and scale impossible heights, like a baby Bionic Commando. The game tends to make you play as him more than any other Saturday, which is a shame, really, because Mrs Saturday’s fire sword is pretty sexy. But what do you expect from a kids’ show where the kid is naturally the star?

Aside from the Saturdays themselves, there’s also a Cryptid section or two to most levels where a Saturday has to summon a specific one to get past obstacles like locked doors or unbeatable enemies. Additionally, new Cryptids can be found within levels to add to the Saturdays’ lineup and some special doors require a combination of Cryptid DNA from three various subjects to unlock them.

Secret Saturdays is for the most part an enjoyable experience for fans of the show and preteens that need something to do on their DS. The rest of us might be better off with Pokemon and Bionic Commando elements in their pure forms, however.

Nov 16, 2009