Ooga Booga

Wondering how to appease a god? Through a steady offering of shrunken-head hurling and visceral Boar Polo matches.

Got a Dreamcast? Got at least three other friends? Then you should probably get Ooga Booga. Like Mario Party, Bomberman, and Super Smash Bros. before it, the amusement level in this ridiculous frenzy increases exponentially with the number of people in the room. And while it doesn?t quite have the longevity or polish of those other party-game classics, it has variety and personality to help make up for the loss.

The Gods Must Be kRaZy
The premise (for what it?s worth): Ooga Booga, an island volcano goddess, is looking to bestow heavenly favor on one of the local tribes. In order to determine who is most worthy of her divine lovin?, she sets up a contest that pits the big Kahuna of each tribe in a four-player deathmatch, armed with shrunken-head projectiles, magic spell power-ups, native beasts of burden, and other methods of good ol? fashioned tropical ass-whupping.

Ooga Booga?s graphics are simple but loaded with colorful Retro-Tiki Polynesian funk personality. Especially bizarre are the game?s unlockable hidden characters, which are leagues cooler than any of the four Kahunas made available at the start. The sound effects are appropriately silly, and the taunts and voice-overs?while sounding strangely like they were recorded on the world?s first Gramophone?are frequently hilarious. The 3D controls get the job done, though minor annoyances like clunky head-hurling control, iffy range on your default smack-attack, and a tendency to be whacked by things you can?t see get in the way.

Group Dynamics
The main deathmatch-style game doesn?t quite have the variety of Super Smash Brothers?each Kahuna basically has the same set of moves, and there really aren?t all that many spells to choose from. Two other nifty multiplayer modes?a ?king of the mountain?-style Rodeo, and the way-fun 2-on-2 team sport of Boar Polo?help make up for the lack of main-game variety.

Yes, make no mistake: Ooga Booga is very much a party game. The one-player mode is essentially an extended tutorial and ?unlock stuff? ladder that?s really only there to make the multiplayer experience more fun. The anti-social can dial-up and play Ooga Booga online in lieu of making human contact, though the sheer ridiculousness the game lends itself more to having everyone involved while sitting on the same couch. The offline mode is done split-screen style?a minor bummer, sure?but the frame rate is solid and consistent.

The Tribe Has Spoken
Ooga Booga is a nifty multiplayer romp that?s more chaos than strategy, but the sheer cartoonish energy of it all could easily turn it into a regular tribal custom, given the right group of friends. Aside from Chu Chu Rocket and Power Stone 2, there aren?t too many better ?party games? for the Dreamcast.

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