Ribbit King

Ribbit King

North American PS2 box art
Developer(s) JamsWorks Co., Ltd.
Publisher(s) Bandai
Distributor(s)
Artist(s) Yosuke Kihara
Composer(s) Yūsuke Takahama
Platform(s) GameCube, PlayStation 2
Release date(s) GameCube
  • JP 11 July 2003
  • NA 8 June 2004
  • PAL 3 September 2004
PlayStation 2
  • JP 18 December 2003
  • NA 15 June 2004
  • PAL 3 September 2004
Genre(s) Sports
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer (up to 4 players)
Distribution 2 × DVD-ROM, GameCube disc NA
1 × DVD-ROM, GameCube disc PAL

Ribbit King is a 2003 sports video game developed by JamsWorks Co., Ltd. and published by Bandai for the Nintendo GameCube (Japanese title: Kero Kero King DX (ケロケロキングDX)) and PlayStation 2 (Japanese title: Kero Kero King Super Deluxe (ケロケロキング スーパーデラックス)). The game is based on the fictional sport of Frolf, which is a golf-like game that is played with frogs. The frogs sit on catapults, which the player whacks with a hammer to send the frog flying into the air. It is the successor to Kero Kero King (ケロケロキング), released only in Japan in 2000 for the PlayStation.

Gameplay

The objective is to earn the most points possible by landing the frog in the course's hole in the quickest time possible. Players can also earn points by sending their frogs through various spheres scattered through the level. In addition, they can score points by having their frogs eaten by giant worms, by having their frogs swim, or by any number of other things.

North American versions of Ribbit King come packaged with a bonus disc called Ribbit King Plus!, which is an assortment of 28 short CGI films about Scooter and his friends. These films are unlocked during the main game.

The main character of Ribbit King is a young carpenter named Scooter. Scooter is trying to become the Frolf Champion—or the namesake 'Ribbit King'—and in doing so win the 'Super Ribbinite', a fuel source his planet needs in order to survive. The game also includes such characters as a pile of rocks, a gumball machine, and a kung fu panda named Pan-Pan.[1]

Characters

Ribbit King Plus!

Ribbit King Plus!
Also known as Kero Kero King DX Plus
Country of origin Japan
Original language(s) Japanese
English (dubbed)
No. of episodes 30 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time 1 minute (approx.)
Distributor Bandai
Broadcast
Original channel TV Tokyo
Picture format NTSC (480i 4:3)
Audio format Stereo
Original run 16 June 2003 – 25 July 2003

Ribbit King Plus! is the bonus disc included with Japanese and North American versions of the game. It was initially transmitted as a 30-episode short television series from 16 June to 25 July 2003 to promote the game, under the title Kero Kero King Deluxe Plus (ケロケロキングデラックスプラス), on the TV Tokyo weekday morning children's show Oha Suta, before being included on a bonus DVD with the Japanese PlayStation 2 release later in the year; however, three of the shorts were cut from the North American version. Exclusive to the disc is a two-minute video titled "Special", a montage of the various cutscenes from the story mode set to the main title theme of the game.

Episodes

No. Title Original transmission
1 "Frolf Intensive Training"
(ケロフ超特訓) 
16 June 2003
2 "Ribbit King Band"
(ザ★ケロキンバンド) 
17 June 2003
3 "Confession"
(告白) 
18 June 2003
4 "Ribbit King Shopping"
(ケロキンShopin`) 
19 June 2003
5 "Gone Fishing"
(フィッシング) 
20 June 2003
6 "Sluggy After Work"
(ぬるぽんアフター5) 
23 June 2003
7 "Frolf Dance"
(ケロフダンス) 
24 June 2003
8 "Fun with Hammers"
(赤白ハンマー) 
25 June 2003
9 "Ribbit King Shopping Part 2"
(ケロキンShopin`(2)) 
26 June 2003
10 "Frolf Beach Party!"
(サマービーチ・ダンディ) 
27 June 2003
11 "—"
(屋台にて) 
30 June 2003
12 "Ribbit King Band Part 2"
(ザ★ケロキンバンド(2)) 
1 July 2003
13 "Ultra Seed Grow"
(育て! タネ!) 
2 July 2003
14 "The Secret of Sir Waddlelot"
(ペンギンロボの秘密) 
3 July 2003
15 "—"
(ダルひめのシエスタ) 
4 July 2003
16 "Frolf-Man to the Rescue"
(変身! ケロフマン!) 
7 July 2003
17 "Frog Work-Out!"
(カエル体操!) 
8 July 2003
18 "Frog Revolution!"
(カエル会議) 
9 July 2003
19 "Frolf Hip-Hop!"
(ケロキン音頭!) 
10 July 2003
20 "Ribbit King Shopping Part 3"
(ケロキンShopin`(3)) 
11 July 2003
21 "The Great King"
(偉大なる王様) 
14 July 2003
22 "TV Commercial"
(コマーシャル) 
15 July 2003
23 "The Frogs Strike Back"
(カエルの逆襲) 
16 July 2003
24 "Chomp's Big Date"
(オオグチのデート) 
17 July 2003
25 "When We Were Kids"
(ちっちゃい頃) 
18 July 2003
26 "Fast Food Surprise Part 2"
(屋台にて(2)) 
21 July 2003
27 "Ribbit King Band Live"
(ザ★ケロキンライブ) 
22 July 2003
28 "—"
(ハエ会議) 
23 July 2003
29 "Scooter Gets Serious"
(月にちかえば) 
24 July 2003
30 "Farewell, Frolf Tour"
(ツアー打上げParty!) 
25 July 2003

Kero Kero King

Kero Kero King

Cover art
Developer(s) Amedio
Publisher(s) Media Factory
Artist(s) Yosuke Kihara
Platform(s) PlayStation
Release date(s)
  • JP 2 November 2000
Genre(s) Sports
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer (up to 4 players), PocketStation
Distribution CD-ROM

Kero Kero King (ケロケロキング) is the predecessor to Ribbit King, developed by Amedio and published by Media Factory. It was released exclusively in Japan on 2 November 2000 for the PlayStation.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(PS2) 63.64%[2]
(GC) 63.07%[3]
Metacritic(GC) 60/100[4]
(PS2) 58/100[5]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Game Informer7/10[6]
GameSpot5.9/10[7]
GamesTM6/10[8]
IGN5/10[9]
NGC Magazine45%[10]
Nintendo Power3.6/5[11]
Official PlayStation Magazine (US)[12]
PlayStation Magazine5/10[13]
PSM322%[14]
X-Play[15]

The game received mixed reviews upon release. Aggregating review websites GameRankings and Metacritic gave the GameCube version 63.07% and 60/100[3][4] and the PlayStation 2 version 63.64% and 58/100.[2][5] Former GameSpot journalist Ryan Davis gave the PlayStation 2 version 5.9 out of 10, saying that it focused more on the bizarre storyline than the gameplay,[7] while Mary Jane Irwin of IGN gave the GameCube and the PlayStation 2 versions a score of five out of ten.[9]

In Japan, Famitsu gave Kero Kero King a score of 30 out of 40.[16]

References

  1. Buchanan, Levi (24 June 2004). ""Ribbit King" hits our fairway". Chicago Tribune. p. 5.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Ribbit King for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Ribbit King for GameCube". GameRankings. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Ribbit King for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  5. 5.0 5.1 "Ribbit King for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  6. Helgeson, Matt (June 2004). "Ribbit King". Game Informer (134): 123. Archived from the original on 12 November 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Davis, Ryan (30 June 2004). "Ribbit King Review (PS2)". GameSpot. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  8. "Ribbit King". GamesTM: 107. October 2004.
  9. 9.0 9.1 Irwin, Mary Jane (28 May 2004). "RibbitKing". IGN. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  10. "Ribbit King". NGC Magazine. November 2004.
  11. "Ribbit King". Nintendo Power 183: 122. August 2004.
  12. "Ribbit King". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine: 96. July 2004.
  13. "Review: Ribbit King". PSM: 30. July 2004.
  14. PSM2 staff (2004). "Ribbit King". PSM2. Archived from the original on 26 May 2005. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  15. Speer, Justin (29 June 2004). "Ribbit King (PS2, GCN) Review". X-Play. Archived from the original on 29 October 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  16. "プレイステーション - ケロケロキング". Famitsu 915: 25. 30 June 2006.

External links