The gameplay in Squinkies is very simple, as players will move their Princess around by either using the d-pad or pointing the stylus on the screen where they want her to go. The Princess is either in her castle, which serves as a hub to all the worlds, or in a maze looking for Squinkies. As players make their way through the maze, they’ll need to avoid turtles as the look to discover the “lost” Squinkie balls.
The real fun in Squinkies lies in discovering and collecting Squinkies. Whenever a player enters one of the different themed mazes (such as beach or farm) and encounters a Squinkie, they’ll need to play a quick mini-game in order to earn them for their collection. In all, there are more than 250 Squinkies to collect.
These mini-games consist of fun activites like coloring or puzzles, but usually have a time limit. Although younger 3 or 4 year olds might enjoy these mini-games, the time limit makes it difficult for them to have much success.
Squinkies does a great job of explaining everything verbally in addition to text, which should appeal to parents looking for games for non-reading younger siblings. Even though the controls and even the content of the games are fun, the time-limit on the mini-games makes them a bit too difficult for young pre-schoolers, and unfortunately there’s no way to access them in any sort of “free play” mode. We recommend this for older toddlers and younger kids (4 to 6) as a game that’s designed for their level of play.
INFORMATION FROM COMPANY PRESS RELEASE:
This DS game is based on the phenomenally popular children’s toy, Squinkies, which was recently voted as one of the best new toys at Toy Fair in London. Squinkies brings the squishy, pintsized characters to life on a magical adventure.
Players immerse themselves in the Squinkies world playing as Squinkies Princess in search of their lost lovable Squinkies friends. Successfully completing a mini-game will free Squinkies which will then be added to the player’s collection. The games are easy to engage and fun to play including: Squinkies Match, Squinkies Puzzle, Squinkies Pool, Squinkies Chains, Squinkies Paint or Squinkies Chomp.
With over 250 Squinkies to find and collect, the game is packed with hours of engaging game play. Magic coins can also be earned as bonuses to collect more Squinkies. Just like the toy play sets, players can insert the magic coins into an interactive Gumball Playhouse to add new Squinkies to their collection. All collected Squinkies will be cataloged in their interactive Bubble Bank, complete with animations, music and sound
effects.
Squinkies for Nintendo DS will come packaged with four ultra-rare Squinkies. Fans will be able to add to their growing collection of adorable, tiny-sized toys with the exclusive Squinkies pack-in. Not available in the regular toy packs, these special Squinkies will be released only through the video game.
Available April 12, purchased games will contain one of two different sets of toys. Each set contains four toys, three visible and one hidden “surprize inside.” Squinkies fans will get the opportunity to add up to eight new characters to their collections. In addition to the exclusive pack-in, specially marked Squinkies toys will include exclusive codes that unlock new content in the videogame, increasing the already evident replay value of the open-ended adventure gameplay.