The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge

The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge (ナイトメアービフォアクリスマス ブギーの逆襲, Naitomeā Bifoa Kurisumasu: Bugī no Gyakushū, lit. "Nightmare Before Christmas: Boogie's Revenge) is a video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox platforms. It is set after the events of the successful 1993 American stop motion musical fantasy film, The Nightmare Before Christmas. It is also the first game on Xbox to be rated E10+.

This game was released at the same time in North America as The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King.

Plot

A year after the events of the movie, a town meeting announcing awards gives Jack Skellington an award "for most spines tingled by a non-corporeal being". After the curtains close Jack, once again, gets bored and he talks with Dr. Finkelstein about a "new Halloween", with new scares and discoveries. The doctor gives Jack the "Soul Robber", a green, whip-like weapon that can change shape and fling any music note he collected. He then leaves Halloween Town and goes to look for new Halloween frights, feeling disappointed with this year's work. After Jack leaves, Lock, Shock, and Barrel bring Oogie Boogie back to life by sewing him together again. He seizes control of Halloween Town, tricks its citizens into making traps (saying Jack left because it wasn't dangerous enough), brainwashes Dr. Finklestein by switching his brain with a green brain with eyes, kidnaps and imprisons Sally in a crypt, and captures five of the seven Holiday World leaders (excluding Santa Claus and Jack himself). Oogie plans to become the "Seven-Holidays King" once he takes control of Christmas Town. But on December 23, Sally manages to send a magical paper airplane to find Jack to warn him of what has happened.

Jack returns to Halloween Town on December 24, Christmas Eve, to see a group of skeletons running around. He then stops them, just to find Oogie's shadow. After defeating Oogie's shadow, he is given the Halloween Holiday Door and finds everyone was deceived by Oogie into making dangerous booby-traps. Jack has to save the citizens of Halloween from Oogie's rule while also trying to uncover his demented plans to become the "Seven Holidays King".

Jack manages to defeat Oogie's skeleton and ghost minions (apparently created by Dr. Finklestein). He then goes to the graveyard. The Hanging Tree tells Jack his Hanging Men have run away. Jack quickly finds them and goes off to save Sally. He runs into Lock, who sends a lot of skeletons to stop Jack; however, Jack defeats them. Jack then runs into a crypt to find Sally. Once inside, spiders and ghosts randomly jump out of coffins until he gets to the center. He finds Sally and they both run to each other when a giant spider clings Sally to the ceiling and attacks Jack. Jack defeats the spider, saves Sally and receives the Valentine's Holiday Door. When Jack and Sally walk out of the crypt, Sally says to Jack, "We're all safe, now that our pumpkin king has returned," giving Jack an idea to use his pumpkin king powers to defeat Oogie's monsters.

Sally then says she's worried about Dr. Finklestein and Jack goes to find him. He gets close to the doctor's lab when Igor says he can't pass due to strict orders from the doctor. Igor says if anyone passes, then he gets no bone biscuit. Jack gives Igor a box of biscuits, gaining entrance. Inside, Jack finds the brainwashed doctor, who attacks him. Jack returns the doctor to normal by switching his brain back. Jack then goes to the Mayor's courtyard to save the vampire brothers. Each vampire gives Jack a key to the mayor's house. Jack finds the mayor and stops Lock, Shock, and Barrel; however, they drop him into a huge maze filled with booby traps. Jack escapes the maze and asks the mayor to release the holiday leaders.

Jack soon realizes Oogie wants to kill Santa, and travels to Christmas Town. Jack rescues Santa from a train-contraption by changing the tracks, but Oogie, having become enraged by Jack constantly foiling his plots, leaves in Santa's sleigh full of Christmas presents. Luckily, Sally brings Jack's sleigh to help, and Jack and Santa chase after Oogie. Oogie falls out of the Christmas sleigh into a world of garbage after being frightened by one of Jack's jack-in-the-boxes that was dropped in the sleigh by an elf. There, he absorbs the waste and insects in the environment and becomes the giant "Mega-Oogie" to beat Jack. Jack faces Oogie one-on-one. Though it seems Oogie is defeated, he revives. Jack uses his Soul Robber to fling musical notes at Oogie, Santa Jack power to send a rain of snowballs down on him and Pumpkin King power to burn him. Everyone sees the battle through the fountain, except for Sally, who's in her room not wanting to see the battle. Oogie spills his bugs, becoming nothing more than an empty husk, and ending his threat. Afterward, Jack apologizes to Santa for almost ruining Christmas again, but having a change of heart about the skeleton, Santa thanks him for saving his life.

After this adventure, Jack realizes that his home and loved ones are something more important than new discoveries. The story ends in much the same way as the film does, with Jack and Sally embracing on top of Spiral Hill.

Gameplay

Gameplay in the game is very similar to the action horror game Devil May Cry, with the exception of it being easier for younger and less experienced players. Both titles were developed by Capcom. Jack can transform into Santa Jack and the Pumpkin King later in the game. Santa Jack can lay down three types of presents to thwart his enemies, while the Pumpkin King form can set them aflame or lay down a bomb. The gameplay consists of 24 Chapters (excluding two secret chapters). Players must fight numerous enemies, perform platforming tasks, and occasionally solve puzzles to progress through the story. The player's performance in each mission is given a letter grade of A, B, C or D, with an additional top grade of S. Grades are based on the time taken to complete the mission, the longest combo performed, the damage done to Jack, and the amount of enemies you surprised.

There are doors of the holiday worlds obtained when you complete a certain level. However, they are simply plot items and do not grant the player access to other Holiday themed towns. However, later Chapters allow the player to enter Christmas town.

Costumes and abilities

Each of Jack Skellington's costumes have different abilities. For example, Santa Jack (which is obtained once Doctor Finklestein is defeated) can throw out presents to stun enemies or freeze enemies in ice, and the Pumpkin King (which you get after saving Sally from a large spider) can burn enemies, open doors by burning them etc.

Additionally, there are several unlockable costumes, however, they do not grant any additional abilities.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings (Xbox) 66.46%[4] (PS2) 64.95%[5] Metacritic (Xbox) 65/100[6] (PS2) 65/100[7] Review scores Publication Score 1UP.com C[8] Eurogamer 5/10[9] Famitsu 29/40[10] Game Informer 5/10[11] GameSpot 6.4/10[12] GameSpy [13] GameTrailers 6.2/10[14] GameZone 7.6/10[15] IGN 6/10[16] OPM (US) [17] OXM 7.1/10[18] The Times [19]

GameRankings gave The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge a score of 66.46% for Xbox^[4] and 64.95% for PlayStation 2,^[5] while Metacritic gave it a score of 65 out of 100 for both console versions.^[6][7] IGN reviewed the game, saying, "Unpolished gameplay and poor pacing won't ever make for an outstanding product regardless of however endearing the source material may be" and gave the game a 6/10 rating overall.^[16] However, The Times gave it all five stars and said, "This adventure looks great, its landscape dominated by crooked buildings and brooding grey skies; navigating Jack is simple and the characters are all well realised. A perfect children’s game."^[19]

Notes

References

External links

• Official Website
• Official Capcom Website