When the Planet GameCube staff heard that Konami was doing a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game, it was fairly certain that we were hit with a wave of nostalgia that could only be the result of all the NES and SNES TMNT games that we bought and spent entirely too many hours playing. Heck, 15 years ago, most of us were probably just kids, and Ninja Turtles were the most radical thing ever. We knew this in our hearts when we were playing with Turtleblimps or whatever out in the playground. Oh, I remember all too well, the endless futile hours trying to finish the original NES game; saving, like, 40 bucks to get the sequel. For a kid back then, that was a fortune and a half. I even bought the 3rd NES game, and both of the SNES titles the first day I could find them. You know why? Because Ninja Turtles were totally awesome, and Konami's games kicked ass.

Starting in on TMNT, this reviewer got the great idea to just go ahead and start on 'hard' difficulty, believing it'd be no sweat compared to the mean streets of Metro City. It worked out pretty well, in fact, until I fought Razorfist in the underground chapter. I was promptly bought and owned by that critter. A kiddie game, it's not - at least on hard difficulty. Easy mode is manageable for the younger crowd - any parent readers out there can rest assured that there's a proper level of difficulty for their local household Turtle fan. Hardcore old-school dudes should be right at home on normal or hard difficulty, too.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles looks and sounds just like the cartoon. The game starts with the exact cartoon theme song and video, and even between-level cinematics are just footage from the cartoon, along with some real-time cinematic & dialogue. Turtles endlessly spew their voice-acted lines, again and again and again, even. The other characters add quite a bit of voice, too: April, Casey Jones, Hun, Baxter, and of course, Shredder. The game has a soundtrack to match; many of the songs include variations on the new cartoon theme, just like many of the old Konami TMNT games had their own takes on the the old theme. Additionally, there are big on-screen sound effects ("CRASH!!" "WHAM!!" "GET!!" etc.) to emphasize the cartoon style, and they can be turned off if they're too bothersome. They're actually pretty cool, but just in case they get old...

Putting the turtles in 3D seems to have worked out very well. Aiming for an enemy is easy enough, and there's a nice repertoire of attack options. Any character can chain a set of quick attacks (A), and cap off the combo with a powerful hit (B). 'A' four times will yield a standard combo; 'A' and then 'B' will do a quick hit followed by an attack that puts an enemy in a daze. 'R' will knock the enemy into the air for a juggle combo. Experimentation, especially with two players, can reveal some really cool techniques. It's possible to keep the enemy in the air for a 999-hit combo if one has mastered the combo techniques. Each turtle has different moves and attack ranges, so experimenting with different two-player teams is fun and definitely opens up for innovative new ways to beat up a million thugs/foot soldiers/mousers/mutant critters. Another interesting feature is that turtles can gain a jumping attack technique and other improvements in the course of the story mode.

Speaking of the story mode, here's how it works: Each turtle has their progress saved separately. After all four have beaten the Shredder, there's a new final showdown (and some delicious goodies to unlock). Since each one has separate degrees of progress, turtles can't be changed mid-game (by Player 1, that is). To be honest, it can get fairly monotonous with just one person, and being able to change turtles would help keep things fresh in a single gaming session. Levels seem to take a little too long with just one player, as well. Two-player is definitely the way to go. Player 1's turtle is the one that makes progress in the story mode; Player 2 just assists (Player 2 can also change turtles when they lose a life).

Did you hear there's no 4-player in this game? What a downer. Although to be fair, things are fast and hectic enough with two players, but it still would have been much better if Konami reworked it for four...

There's a versus mode with a whole mess of playable characters: the turtles, Shredder, Splinter, Casey Jones and some other guys. It's a fun little diversion, but it's not like it's the most in-depth technical fighting game ever. Actually, it gets old after only playing two or three rounds. It's great as just a little novelty, though.

There are secrets abound in this game. Not just a few, but an NBA Jam-level of pumpkin-headed nonsense. Stuff opens up by finishing levels, finding makimono scrolls in the game, or entering passwords found in GameFaqs.com action figure packages. There are even a couple surprises during certain holidays, thanks to the GameCube’s internal clock. One can even play as other characters in story mode - and just wait until you find out who!

Does Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles uphold the fine legacy of its arcade-style beat-'em-up predecessors? Oh, that it does, certainly. Although there's no 4-player, it makes a pretty sweet 2-player cooperative game. To be honest, it gets boring fast on one-player, but it magically turns insanely fun on two-player. If you're an older gamer that still has a soft spot for the old games, or you're a parent of one of the new generation of turtle fans, it's worth buying.