SpongeBob SquarePants is one of those franchises that seems like it will always be around. Think of Mickey Mouse, Mario, The Muppets, Hot Wheels, and then realize that SpongeBob SquarePants is younger than all of them, in fact, there are people who predate SpongeBob who aren't even in their thirties yet, like me. So, a new video game seemed plausible, but not very likely, since most of the SpongeBob games prior have been... Well, SpongeBob game output is probably similar to that of The Simpsons, with only like, three or so good games and a lot of mediocre at best and absolute garbage at worst schlock.

That being said, with the rehydrated version of Battle for Bikini Bottom being made, it only seemed more likely that something was gonna be coming, and now, The Cosmic Shake, which is really just a shinier Battle for Bikini Bottom.

Look, I have nothing against Battle for Bikini Bottom, I respect that a lot of people like that game, and are very nostalgic for it; but I don't like it. To me, Battle for Bikini Bottom is a mediocre platformer that never gets above average. That being said, The Cosmic Shake is... okay.

Ultimately, the game has some improvements over Battle for Bikini Bottom, like now there are actually some decent platforming challenges involving the tiki crates, and there is more variety to the gameplay, involving sea horse riding, bubble surfboarding, and some other interesting twists in gameplay specific to certain levels.

Where the game suffers, is mostly in the writing. I did tag this review as having spoilers so, you've been warned, but I figured Kassandra was going to be the ultimate villain of the game. Honestly, I don't even think they tried to hide it. On top of that, the humour never really got more than a chuckle out of me. The humour ranged from meta jokes to references, and let me tell you the references are numerous. SpongeBob veterans will be able to recognize so many memes and one off characters, the snorkeling spider from the first Halloween episode even makes an appearance, and who is going to remember that?

On top of that, I feel the game also has some gameplay issues. Combat being a major one. Don't get me wrong, using the karate kick move is super helpful and made combat a lot more enjoyable. However, when you have enemy gimmicks like, "Enemy breaks in two when you hit them", or "Enemy is beefy and can only be fought like a mini-boss", it gets tiring really fast. Plus, platforming could be a weird hassle sometimes, there were some jumps that I couldn't reach specifically because I wasn't at my peak height while jumping, and some jumps I had trouble making because I was just a bit too close to the ledge, but it's stuff one could probably get used to quickly.

I guess at the end of the day, I am still kind of waiting for a SpongeBob game that makes me think; "It's the best game ever", something I can really put onto my favourite games list. That being said, I think this one is the closest I have played. It's not a perfect game, I won't say it's a great game, but it's not a game I wanted to put down and never return to. I actually do want to go back and one-hundred percent this game. I can hope this leads to more, better, SpongeBob video games, but they do play Sweet Victory over the credits, so that makes it all worth it.

I can give this game a Slight Recommendation.