Before THQ released the game, most people had probably never heard of Tak and the Power of Juju. It's actually based on a Nickelodeon property and is published under the Nick Games brand. That being said, you don't have to be a youngster to enjoy Tak.

The game begins with the great Pupanunu Shaman, Jibolba, describing the events that lead to Tak assuming the unlikely role of hero. Disappointed by being overlooked in favor of Jibolba for the position of High Shaman, the evil Shaman Tlaloc decides to steal the moonstones from the tribe's protector (a mystical being called the Moon Juju) and thus renders her powerless. Without the Moon Juju to protect the tribe, Tlaloc subsequently casts a spell to turn the Pupanunu people into sheep. When Jibolba discovers that even the mighty warrior Lok has been turned into a woolly animal, he has no choice but to rely on Tak for help.

This is where you come in and are immediately held by the hand in a seemingly endless and pointless training mode -- it's a platformer, so how complicated can it be, even for kids? The Moon Juju's daughter, Flora, has been appointed as your guide and proceeds to explain the simplest of things, like how to jump. After you get past this initial exercise, a whole world opens up to you. Tak's village serves essentially as a hub, from which he can access a number of vast, beautifully crafted levels. This is certainly the game's strongest point. The visuals are colorful and bright, and all the character models have a unique look to them that is vaguely reminiscent of Wallace & Gromit.

However, because the folks at Avalanche Software failed to implement any kind of map or even give hints of where to go next, you may quickly find yourself lost in the game's large environments, not sure of how to progress. If it's a bit daunting for an adult, it's probably quite frustrating for the younger set that the Nick Games brand caters to. Even more wearisome, perhaps, is that Tak's gameplay consists largely of item collecting. While this has always been a staple of the platformer genre, most gamers expect more variety nowadays. Along the way, Tak collects feathers (for health/mana), Nubu plants, Yorbels, Moonstones and more. It gets old... fast. What helps to make up for this though, is the clever use of animals in each level. You can use an orangutan to bend a tree and catapult Tak elsewhere, ride a rhino to break through barriers, ride an emu to reach a higher platform, and even use a sheep as cover the way Snake would use a box in Metal Gear Solid. Some of the Juju powers that Tak can acquire also help make things more interesting at times, although none of these are particularly impressive either.

Thankfully, the controls in Tak seem solid enough. You can do all the typical platformer moves such as run, jump, double jump, swim and attack. Moving Tak around seems smooth and responsive, but you will have to adjust the camera on the fly a good deal with the C-stick. In addition to a club, Tak is also outfitted with a blowgun. This multipurpose weapon can shoot acorns from a first-person view, be used as a staff (longer reach) for swinging at enemies, or coolest of all, as a pole vault for some extra height on jumps. The controls in the snowboarding/sandboarding areas are decent as well, but these levels feel somehow out of place. It's as if Avalanche added them in an attempt to break the tedious "collect-athon." Nevertheless, some might appreciate this aspect.

As you lose your patience trying to collect all the game's items, you are frequently harassed by little creatures called Nerbils, which look a bit like a cross between Gremlins and the character Stitch from Lilo & Stitch. The problem is that these are the opponents you encounter the majority of the time. Sure, they come in different colors, strengths and sizes, but a Nerbil is still a Nerbil. You also face some man-eating plants, but the Nerbils are more numerous -- and annoying. Simply put, the lack of enemy diversity in this game is appalling. Not only that, but there are hardly any real boss fights to speak of. The few that are included are easy to beat and don't have that "boss feel" of grandeur. In fact, the whole game in general is rather easy. Tak never really dies; he simply respawns at the closest platform to where his energy last ran out. However, this most likely was implemented by Avalanche to help out younger gamers.

One element of Tak that will probably keep gamers going is its storyline. Admittedly, it's somewhat clichéd, but the CG scenes featuring Jibolba and the in-game cut-scenes involving the various Jujus are well presented and do provide some genuinely humorous moments, even if some are slightly low-brow. The voice-acting is surprisingly very good, but Tak's constant little quips during battle such as "Owned!" "Boomshakalaka!" and "Who's da man?" will make you wish Jibolba could steal Tak's voice with a special shaman curse. The rest of the game's sound is merely average. And while the soundtrack isn't bad, none of the tunes are all that memorable.

Tak and the Power of Juju finds itself in an awkward position. It's intended for fans of SpongeBob Squarepants and the like, but the game ultimately may be too frustrating for that demographic. On the other hand, there's enough in Tak to appeal to more mature gamers if they are willing to deal with the monotonous, pedestrian gameplay. When all's said and done, Tak can provide a good deal of entertainment, but may only be worth a purchase to the most die-hard of platform fans.