The budget-priced Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum is a throwback by design, harkening back to the era when strange and difficult licensed titles dominated the video game aisles in department stores. While it was announced through a silly marketing campaign that positioned the new release as an unearthed find, it actually received a special edition and fully playable NES cartridge. The version on modern consoles and PC has a few more bells and whistles, though, but it’s still as repulsively alluring and old-school as the Garbage Pail Kids license itself.
A 2D platformer that feels right out of the ’80s, Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum features four different playable characters that form an interesting base for the game. Mad Mike is the most basic one and is armed with an axe, but players can switch to the other three characters at any time — which is key to success as they each have different abilities and separate health bars. Luke Puke lives up to his namesake and projectile vomits and, even if there’s a learning curve to learning when to let the vomit out (this game really is gross), it’s a useful and unique tool. Patty Putty’s bounce jump isn’t as outwardly nasty, but her stunningly ugly looks make even her typical spin dash pretty gnarly. Leaky Lindsay just shoots snot at foes (again, this game is disgusting).
While you can potentially brute force your way through by primarily sticking with one character, the gameplay is at its best when you’re switching between all four and taking out enemies. For example, Luke’s barf sticks to the ground, thus laying a trap for moving enemies to step on. Meanwhile, the high jumps of Patty allow her to make some jumps that other characters cannot. Experimentation like this gives the game some depth and charm that elevates it slightly above other typical vintage platformers.
As one would expect from a NES-era licensed title, this is a very difficult game. However, there are some helpful assists and items that make sure that almost anyone can beat it. There are several difficulty options, including one that makes players unable to die, and the ability to rewind, which is something often seen in Digital Eclipse’s other retro collections. As far as actual game mechanics go, there’s help in the form of collectible Topps cards that can be traded within the game, all of which have different abilities (such as Adam Bomb damaging all enemies or Mad Max reviving a downed kid). So, even if it has that old-school difficulty, these sorts of modern additions mean that it’s not as intimidating as it could be.
The levels themselves are pretty fun from a thematic standpoint as the game has the four kids traveling through time to get stale gum — it’s a goofy plot device but it fits in with the general weirdness. From the Stone Age and Egypt to Transylvania and Hell, there are distinct and very different settings to go through. There are only six stages, though, and the repeating assets within each world can evoke a sense of déjà vu and confuse the player into thinking they’ve accidentally backtracked (pro-tip, you almost always want to be moving to the right). However, no stage wears out its welcome and the game is very short, clocking in at around two hours.
While the regular levels are enjoyable, albeit nothing truly special, the boss stages are a bit more memorable. These climactic fights are typically against huge Garbage Pail Kids and will test players’ skills as they have to remember patterns and figure out how to attack the boss’ weak points. While certainly not up to the standard of the best NES fights, they’re more than serviceable and there’s a great style to these encounters. The only real shame is that there’s no actual final boss as the game just ends once the six levels, which can be completed in any order, are finished.
Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum is the definition of a niche product, but it delivers the franchise’s signature crude spirit in a game good enough to not have to solely rely on the brand it is attached to. Developer Retrotainment Games did a great job of capturing the feel of the era — a necessity given its NES release — and Digital Eclipse’s usual shine and suite of options ensure that it is a smooth and contemporary package. The retro appeal works both to its detriment and advantage, but the rough spots add to the charm. Something overly polished wouldn’t quite fit in within a world filled with this many bodily fluids and Quest for Stale Gum utilizes this freakish appeal from beginning to end.
SCORE: 7/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” A successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
