Jackass: The Game Review for PlayStation 2 (PS2)

About as much fun as getting kicked in the… Well, you know what I mean

Although they can hardly be considered pop culture icons, the boys from Jackass still left an indelible mark on television. Whether you were a fan or not, you are probably familiar with the insane shenanigans that this group of guys performed for years on end, and suffice to say it was probably better to leave their ridiculous brand of humor out of the gaming world.

Much like the show, Jackass: The Game is several episodes comprised of multiple stunts. The whole objective is to play each of the five stunts in the episode and earn enough cash to move on. Throughout these stunts there are multiple challenges to complete to receive bonus money. That is the game in a nutshell; there is not a lot to it. Although your expectations should not be high when you see that the names of the games you are participating in range from Elephant Poo Dive to San Fran Trash Can. This game is stupid, and in a sense it is supposed to be. It has that nonsensical feel that the show embraced, unfortunately that is about all they share. Whereas the show was funny in a sick kind of way, the game is a simplistic bore.

With the nonexistent story fallen to the wayside, you hop right into your favorite character from the series (you start with four and unlock several more as the game progresses) and begin to experience what amounts to be nothing more then a collection of button mashing contests and a series of whacked out races where you steer anything from a lawnmower to a human snowball. The names of the games may change but the gameplay really does not. For a game that boasts roughly 35 mini-games, there are about 15 that are original in some way. Thus although this game is short, it gets old long before the final credits roll. It literally is about a 4-5 hour game, with a couple of multiplayer modes mixed in. Multi should be taken lightly because it shakes down to you and a couple of friends switching off, partaking in challenges one at a time. The last option is Challenge Mode, or single player without the story, where you play all the stunts from the main game in an attempt to earn even more cash to unlock a multitude of things from the Jackass Store. The gameplay department did not exactly thrill, so what positives could the rest of the game possibly possess?

Graphics wise it does not fair all that bad; the Jackass crew looks a lot like their real life counterparts, and there are some decent cut scenes added to the mix. Sure the Playstation 2 may be headed to ever expanding console grave, but the guys behind this project did not just throw this game out there. They took their time, the animations for each specific stunt look decent, and when you bail out your limp body tumbles all over the place like a rag doll. To put it bluntly, it was more than I expected, which is always a plus.

On the control end, it is shocking that they didn’t get it right. When most games require nothing more then steering and holding the x button to accelerate, you should probably be able to execute a simple turn without careening into a wall or off an edge. It is only the racing games where the controls fail, particularly in the pogo stick race and the unexplainably frustrating game of Sumo Ball on the rooftop. With that in mind, it is hard to believe that a game which includes a version of whack-a-mole where you bash Wee Man, and yes that means the whole game is just the o, x, square, and triangle button, can make such a chore out of completing simple tasks.

Lastly the sound is also above par. Similar to the graphics department, they took a lot of time to get it right. With each guy providing their own sound work and a series of unreleased tracks from a few bands, none of which you are probably familiar with, the game does a decent job evoking the feel of the show. On the negative side, sometimes the music is too loud and you cannot hear the characters talking in the promos to the stunts. There is also only one song per stunt, it plays on a loop, and it gets pretty damn annoying after awhile.

In the end Jackass: The Game fails to capture what made the show so funny, and this is not for a lack of effort. It does feel like they tried to turn it into a legitimate title, but this is just not an ideal show to do it with. Fans of the show may appreciate it, but not for long enough to recommend a purchase. If you find yourself missing this insane group, I would suggest renting any of the CKY’s or either Jackass movie. Advice to the kids out there if you want to see what drugs will do to your brain watch the bonus video of Steve-O’s voice over work.

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