SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated – Review (PC)

As we say goodbye to this console generation and reflect on what defined the last seven years or so in the world of video games, a lot of talk will center on old franchises getting new life in the way of new entries as well as remakes and remasters. Franchises like Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, and Yakuza all saw new life this generation and we couldn’t be more thankful for that. Sneaking in at the last second is one more entry for us to talk about as we usher in the next wave of consoles – SpongeBob SquarePants. That’s right, SpongeBob. THQ Nordic has graced us with a remake of their classic game SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated.

For better or worse this is a very faithful remake of the original game. Often when playing reimagined games from previous generations you’ll pick up the controller and the game will feel exactly the way you remembered it all those years ago. This is generally because they were able to go in and fix everything that may have been wrong with the game in order to help the new version feel at home in the current generation. Here, it’s nearly a blow by blow remake of the original games and that means all the problems as well.

Shortly after booting up the game we tried jumping to a platform and ended up stuck in mid air just dangling there. Issues like this plague the otherwise fun game.

If you’re unfamiliar with Battle for Bikini Bottom, it plays out a lot like other platformers from twenty years ago. Fans of series like Banjoe Kazooie will feel right at home in this collect-a-thon 3D platformer. Your quest will have you in search of Golden Spatulas and Socks as well as an infinite number of Shiny Pieces that you’ll use as currency while you battle the evil robots who are dead set on destroying Bikini Bottom.

You’ll play as SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy. Each has their own special abilities that will help you reach certain areas and defeat certain enemies as you progress throughout the game. One of the biggest issues here is that most of the time these abilities only seem to be used in order to show off the ability in certain areas and then you need to switch characters (which can be done at a bus stop) or just use the everyday attack and jumping that you’ll use throughout most of the game.

Multiplayer has added a horde mode that will have you and a friend taking out wave after wave of enemies on twenty-six different islands and the ability to choose between seven playable characters. Multiplayer can be online or local co-op and only up to two players.

SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated definitely looks better than the original, this goes without saying. But other than a fresh coat of paint this game feels like the same game you played when it first released back in 2003. It feels like the equivalent of a house that was bought just to flip. It looks better than it once did, but it still has the same bones. If you loved this game when it first released and want something to pass the time as this generation dwindles down or really love SpongeBob and just missed out on this game when it was released the first time – then there is some fun for you and potentially a friend to have here. But in mid-2020, with some powerhouse titles being released, it’s hard to know who this game was made for. Sure, there is the nostalgia factor here, it had to be said, but sometimes it takes a bit more than that to make a game with spending your hard-earned money and time on.

Check out our Review Guide to see what we criteria we use to score games.

*Sponge Bob SquarePants Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated was given to the reviewer by the publishing company but this fact did not alter the reviewer’s opinion*