Elf Bowling
Elf Bowling is a computer game developed by NStorm and released in 1998. In the game the player, as Santa Claus, attempts to knock down elves who are arranged like bowling pins.[1] A later release of the game on Nintendo handheld consoles Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance was universally panned by critics.
Overview
In Elf Bowling, Santa Claus gets revenge on his striking elves by using them as bowling pins.
During the game, the elves say phrases such as "Is that all the balls you got, Santa?" when the player misses their first spare opportunity or "Gutter ball!" in a silly-sounding voice when a ball is rolled into the gutter. Other potential distractions for the user are a deer that walks up along the bowling lane that can be "hit" with the bowling ball if the arrow is positioned to the far left, and a frog wearing a Santa hat hopping back and forth across the player's field of vision (resembling Kalvin Kroaker from Frogapult, also made by Nstorm). If one hits the frog with the bowling ball, his body is hauled away from the screen by a bird from Frogapult. A white rabbit also jumps and defecates across the bowling lane. The elves moon Santa (asking "who's your daddy" as they do it). Both during the game and after a game finishes, the elves do a dance, shouting "Elf elf, baby!" in reference to Vanilla Ice's song "Ice Ice Baby". The elves can also randomly move out of the way of the ball, and one elf can be decapitated by the pin setter.
Elf Bowling 2
In the sequel to Elf Bowling, the elves return, as they attempt to go on an island vacation with old Kringle. Dingle Kringle (a failure as a used ice salesman) is Santa's elder brother, who Mrs. Claus takes a shine to. The brothers make a double-or-nothing wager in a game of shuffleboard. The winner gets the title of "Father Christmas" while the loser loses his job. The elves are used as pucks.
Gameplay and scoring
The player grabs the thong bathing suit that the elf is wearing, then snaps it to propel the elf forward. There are 100, 200, and 300 point scoring zones, and a player can score 400 points if their elf slides all the way to the edge of the board without falling into the ocean; elves falling into the ocean get eaten by sharks or crushed by a falling Moai (Easter Island monolith). There is also the possibility of an elf not advancing far enough to score, which happens if a player does not get enough power behind the snap. Only elves that are on the board after Santa and Dingle have taken their turns count towards the score, and it is possible for an elf to be knocked off the board by another elf (although it is also possible for the elves to be moved into higher scoring zones after contact). One elf per round is worth bonus points, indicated by a flashing bathing suit. In the first and second rounds the bonus elf is worth double the throw, and in the third he's worth triple the throw (meaning that the maximum amount of points in these rounds that can be earned on one turn is 800 or 1200). The elf only appears once per round, and appears randomly.
Bonus points can be gained by shooting the penguins and their balloons on an iceberg located to the right of the ship. The iceberg can also be shot, but doing so (in the right spot) will sink it and take it out of play.
Other Elf Bowling games
To date, there have been eight editions of the game for PC computers.
- Elf Bowling 3 involved slinging elves in Mrs. Kringle's pink bra onto distant ice-bound targets.
- Super Elf Bowling (Elf Bowling 4) was a 3-dimensional upgrade of the original with more complicated ball control and a wider variety of backgrounds, elf antics and elf jokes. One could also play as a variety of characters, including Santa, Dingle, and Mrs. Kringle.
- Elf Bowling - Bocce Style (Elf Bowling 5) used the elves as bocce balls.
- Elf Bowling 6: Air Biscuits involved bowling the elf over a mound of snow which sends the elf airborne. The elf could remain in the air by using "fart" power.
- Elf Bowling 7: The Last Insult returns the game to its original bowling but with new wrinkles. A story mode is added, and the Elves can and will do anything to stop Santa from rolling a strike. Santa, however, has power ups that can foil them.
- Elf Bowling Hawaiian Vacation - Elf Bowling in exotic places.
Elf Bowling 1 & 2
The first two Elf Bowling games were released under the title Elf Bowling 1 & 2 on the Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance. The pack was universally panned by critics and is considered one of the worst video games of all time, citing poor graphics, crude audio and controls, and no extras beyond the original freeware version. It ranks as one of the lowest scoring games at both GameSpot and Metacritic, receiving only 1.4 out of 10 at GameSpot[2] and 12 out of 100 at Metacritic.[3]
Elf Bowling movie
| Elf Bowling the Movie: The Great North Pole Elf Strike | |
|---|---|
| Directed by |
Dave Kim Rex Piano |
| Produced by |
Dave Kim Rex Piano |
| Written by | Martin Olsen |
| Starring |
Joe Alaskey Sean Hart Tom Kenny |
| Music by | Chris Anderson |
| Edited by | Dave Kim |
| Distributed by | Film Brokers International |
Release dates | October 2, 2007 |
| Country |
 USA |
| Language | English |
There was a film based on the games released in 2007 entitled Elf Bowling the Movie: The Great North Pole Elf Strike. The film was directed by Dave Kim with Rex Piano as co-director.[4] It received mixed, but mostly Negative reviews.
Synopsis
Santa and his brother, Dingle, are pirates roaming the open sea. After getting kicked off their ship by their own crew, they become trapped in ice and don't thaw out until they reach the north pole. There, they meet elves who recognize Santa as the prophesied "white beard" and ask him to lead their factory. The elves already had been making toys, but they didn't have anything to do with them, so they kept them in storage. Santa had the idea of giving the toys to the world's children, and thus, Christmas is born. After 600 years, Santa becomes sick of his brother Dingle loafing around in his apartment and insists that he leave. This upsets Dingle, so he plots against Santa in order to take over Christmas from him. He challenges Santa to a game of Elf Bowling, but after the elves discover he cheated, his plan is foiled. He then tricks Santa into getting frozen, and writes a fake note about how Santa hates the elves and is leaving. This upsets the elves, and Dingle uses the opportunity to make them follow him on a trip to Fiji. After Santa's wife finds him, Santa must get back to the elves in order to save Christmas. While Dingle hypnotized the elves, Santa figured out a way to reverse the process, thwarting Dingle's plan and saving Christmas.
Voice cast
- Joe Alaskey as Santa Claus
- Sean Hart as Lex the Elf
- Tom Kenny as Dingle Kringle
References
- ↑ Elf Bowling NStorm.com
- ↑ Provo, Frank (2006-01-03). "Elf Bowling 1 & 2 Review for DS - GameSpot". Gamespot. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ↑ "Elf Bowling 1 &2 (ds) reviews at Metacritic.com". Metacritic. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460811/