Looney Tunes: Back in Action (video game)
Looney Tunes: Back in Action is a platforming video game released in 2003 by Electronic Arts. The game is based on the film of the same name.
Gameplay
Gameplay involves playing as Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck. Each character has their own unique special abilities and the game requires using both characters. Along the way, money is found all over the place, usually as coins and bills. Gold bullions are also found but rarely. Coins are worth $5, bills are worth $50, and gold is worth $100. Some items are buried in the ground. The money is used to access any of 4 other regions in the game such as Vegas or Paris. Each character can take 3 hits. Upon the third hit, they return to the last checkpoint. There is an unlimited number of lives.
Special abilities
Bugs Bunny has the special abilities of digging and double-jumping. By digging into the ground, buried items can be bumped up and be collected. It can also be used to get under low pathways. Double-jumping is used to get to high areas that Daffy cannot reach.
Daffy Duck has the special abilities of fluttering and swimming. Fluttering allows Daffy to cross large gaps (Bugs Bunny could if his double-jump is well-used). Bugs Bunny would drown upon falling in the water, but Daffy can swim in the water and collect items in it.
Challenges and regions
Bugs and Daffy must accomplish 4 to 6 challenges within each of 5 regions. Each region has about 5 different rooms that, at first, are not all accessible, but as challenges are fulfilled within the area, they become accessible. There are many types of challenges:
To move between regions, a varied amount of money is needed, from $2000 to $5000, depending on the area. It's a one-time fee and switching between areas is done in the map screen.
Areas and Challenges
- Warner Bros. Studio Backlot
- Chimp Chase-Hit the munkey 3 times to collect it.
- Wanted Duck-Destroy all "Wanted" posters of Daffy.
- Kaboomer Tag-Use a studio cart to sabotage the others (Duck Danger challenge).
- Plugs and Clouds-Use Daffy to unplug the drains and follow the munkey through the clouds.
- Paris and the Louvre
- black Jacque bashing -Defeat the art thief and retrieve the paintings.
- Duck, Wabbit, Duck-Stop Elmer by turn the hunting season signs to Fudd Season and blast him.
- Chimp Chase-Follow and capture the munkey before he gets away.
- Buckaroo Bully-Stop the crazy bull in the courtyard (Duck Danger challenge).
- Kaboomer Tennis-Use Daffy's frying pan to hit kaboomers back at Elmer.
- Las Vegas (Wooden Nickel)
- Gamble, Ya Varmints-Destroy Sam's speakers and enter his casino.
- Rollercoaster ride-Rescue Daffy from Yosemite Sam.
- Chimp Chase-You know the drill, follow and catch the munkey before he gets away.
- Duck Danger vs. The Crusher-Defeat the Crusher and leave for Area 52 (Duck Danger challenge).
- Area 52
- Foghorn's Body-Find Foghorn's body and return it to him.
- Race of the Instant Martians-Win the race against the Intant Martians (Duck Danger challenge).
- Chimp Chase-stop him from getting to the teleporter!
- Instant Martian Invasion-Defeat the Instant Martians and destroy their teleporters.
- Bugs in a Blaster-Use the laser to defeat the Instant Martians and Marvin the Martian to protect Daffy.
- Jungle Ruins
- Jungle Falls Walls-Another chimp chase.
- Giant Monkey Food-Feed Yum-Yums to the giant monkey heads.
- Not Overdone-Rescue your friends form the tribesmen: Foghorn Leghorn, Porky Pig, Pepe Le' Pew, Speedy Gonzalez, and Owl Jolson.
- River Rescue-Rescue Daffy from the tribesmen.
- Taz Hungry!-Use Taz to take out all of the Tribesmen (Duck Danger challenge).
- Crouching Monkey, Hidden Daffy-Defeat the giant stone munkey.
Monkeys and other special items
Monkeys are the most important items in the game. There are also Michigan J. Frog statues and bird seed boxes. Monkeys are obtained in a variety of ways.
Each region has 20 Michigan J. Frog statues and 7 bird seed boxes. The Michigan J. Frog statues collected do not reset upon leaving the region but the bird seed boxes collected does reset (meaning that they must be recollected when revisiting the area, if all were not collected in the previous visit).
Munkeys can be collected by:
- Hitting them 3 times in a Chimp Chase challenge
- Rescuing Tweety 3 times from Sylvester
- Buying them from Foghorn Leghorn
- Completing certain challenges
- Collecting all 20 Michigan J. Frog statues
- Winning the Fast and Furry-ous bonus level
Costumes
Each area has a unique costume for each character. For some challenges, such as the bull ride, the Duck Danger costume is required in order to access and fulfill the challenge. A small fee is used to rent the costume, usually $50 or $75 and can be reentered from the same door indefinitely until certain conditions are met.
Characters
- Bugs Bunny: One of the biggest stars at Warner Bros. Studio, he joins the chase to stop the Munkey for the sake of the world. He specializes in vertical travel like jumping and burrowing. Bugs is able to slip into different costumes that give him advantages against various foes.
- Daffy Duck: Another star at Warner Bros. Studio, he joins the chase for the Blue Monkey Diamond so that he may steal it and retire in wealth. He specializes in horizontal travel with the ability to glide as well as being able to swim for treasures. Daffy is able to slip into a Duck Danger costume which gives him the strength and courage to fight foes like Crusher the wrestler and Torro the Bull.
- Tweety Bird: After being chased by Sylvester the cat throughout the game, Tweety is accidentally turned into a pterodactyl by the Blue Monkey Diamond and so is the only one capable of fighting off the Stone Munkey Guardian. After the battle, Tweety is returned to his original state.
- Wile E. Coyote: A coyote living in the desert, he is involved in a minigame where he is strapped to an Acme Rocket in chase of his foe the Road Runner on a crowded highway. Each chase ends in the capture of the Road Runner who turns out to be a munkey in disguise.
- Gossamer: This red haired beast, making his debut in the Bugs Bunny short Hair-Raising Hare, is an optional costume in the Warner Bros. Studio level accessible by imputing the code GOBBLE in the cheat code screen. While Bugs is in this costume he has the ability to eat his opponents as well as the addition of Daffy's horizontal jumping skills to his own.
Enemies
- Munkey: This monkey is the main drive of the plot as the characters chase him after he steals the Blue Monkey Diamond from the ACME chairman. He is revealed in the end to be Michigan J. Frog.
- ACME Chairman: He attempts to stop Bugs and Daffy from getting the Blue Monkey Diamond from the Munkey so that he can use it for his own diabolic plans.
- Porky Pig: A stuttering pig working security at the Warner Bros. Studio. Confused by the chaos brought on by the chase for the Munkey, Porky and his partner Speedy attack Bugs and Daffy. He is part of the group kidnapped by the African tribesmen.
- Speedy Gonzales: A Mexican mouse who works security at the Warner Bros. Studio. Confused by the chaos, Speedy attacks Bugs and Daffy backed up by his partner Porky. He is part of the group taken by the African tribesmen.
- Elmer Fudd: Hunting in the Louvre Museum, he tries to shoot Bugs and Daffy with his shotgun. He is a boss.
- Yosemite Sam: Owner of the Wooden Nickel in Vegas. He is after Bugs and Daffy for disrespecting the casino in their chase for the Munkey. He is one of the bosses Bugs and Daffy face.
- Marvin the Martian: An alien who abducts Bugs and Daffy for experimentation. He is stationed on Earth to prepare it for the oncoming Martian fleet which plans on concurring the planet. He is unable to stop Bugs and Daffy's escape from the Area 52 base he mandated as his base.
- Tasmanian Devil: Found in a deep part of Africa, he poses a threat to the local tribesman which can be used to the players advantage..
- Stone Munkey Guardian: He is the ancient guardian of the Temple of the Blue Monkey Diamond. He is defeated by a prehistoric Tweety who throws him into lava.
- Sylvester: Appearing throughout the adventure trying to catch Tweety. The player is rewarded a Munkey if they stop Sylvester from eating Tweety thrice in each level.
- Toro the Bull: Found rampaging the Louvre.
- Blacque Jacque Shellacque: Found thieving paintings from the Louvre by utilizing invisible ink to sneak in unseen.
- Crusher: A guest at Yosemite Sam's casino, he is challenged and defeated by Daffy disguised as Duck Danger.
- Nasty Canasta: A henchman of Yosemite Sam's. He serves the purpose of guarding several doors around the casino.
- Cottontail Smith: Another henchman of Yosemite Sam's. Is seen in the last mission of the Las Vegas level trying to pop the balloons keeping Daffy afloat.
- K-9: Marvin's loyal canine sidekick. Can be found roaming the hallways in Area 52.
- Instant Martians: Found in the Area 52 level, they are creations of Marvin the Martian and work as his army.
- Tribesmen: Local African natives who are offended by the main characters' assault on the Temple of the Blue Monkey Diamond. They are afraid of the local monster Taz the Tasmanian Devil. They kidnapped a group of Bugs and Daffy's allies to feast on but they gang is saved by the two protagonists.
- Tourists: These crazy men are Bugs and Daffy's biggest fans, and they'll try to take their picture with cameras which stun them with the flash.
- Golf Karts: Rowdy assistants that drive recklessly.
- Guards: Security forces that create short battles utilizing the continued pressing a designated button.
- Scientists: They work at Area 52 and will try to zap you.
Others
- Michigan J. Frog: This small frog is discovered to be the true identity of the Munkey.
- Granny: The owner of both Sylvester and Tweety, she rewards the player for finding her pets in each level of the game.
- Foghorn Leghorn: A loud mouthed Southern rooster. He appears in each level to sell a munkey to the characters. He was kidnapped by Marvin the Martian where his head was put on a munkey's body and vice versa. He is part of the group taken by the African tribesmen.
- Pepe Le Pew: A detective at the Louvre Museum. He gives the player the mission of Blacque Jacque Shellacque in the museum. He is part of a group kidnapped by the African tribesmen.
- Mr. Warner: The head of the Warner Bros. Studio. He is kidnapped by the ACME Chairman and saved by the end of the game.
- Road Runner: The foe of Wile E. Coyote, he appears in several minigames involving the pair which are unlocked by collecting 7 cans of birdseed in each level.
- Owl Jolson: Makes several appearances through the game singing the title song from his debut short, I Love To Sing. He is part of the group taken by the African tribesmen.
- Beaky Buzzard: Has a cameo appearance as a statue in the Louvre museum.
- Marc Antony: Makes a cameo appearance as a statue in the Louvre
- Penelope Pussycat: Known as the love interest of Pepe Le Pew, she can be seen in several background shots in the Wooden Nickel level.
- Lola Bunny: A love interest for Bugs Bunny debuting in Space Jam. She can be seen in the audience of the Crusher fighting level of Las Vegas.
Cast
- Joe Alaskey - Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, ACME Chairman, Sylvester, Marvin the Martian
- Jeff Bennett - Foghorn Leghorn, Mr. Warner, Golf Kart Drivers, Scientists, Tribesmen
- Bob Bergen - Porky Pig, Tweety, Speedy Gonzalez, Tourists
- Jim Cummings - Taz, Guards
- June Foray - Granny
- Maurice LaMarche - Yosemite Sam, Pepe LePew, Blacque Jacque Shellaque
- Billy West - Elmer Fudd
External links