Carnivals gone bad isn’t a new setting for video games, but SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake puts its own fun and unnerving twist on this tried and true concept. SpongeBob has to pass through a beloved setting in its darkest hour to rescue his best friend, Patrick, as reality is under threat.
Abandoned stands, Jelly Monsters, and evil intercom messages await the beloved sponge as he works to undo the damage done to the world. Here’s the rundown on Jelly Glove World in The Cosmic Shake, available on Xbox Series consoles, Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
Have You Seen This Starfish?
Dumped into Glove World, SpongeBob finds that Patrick has gone missing, and finding him is now a top priority for the determined sponge. As Glovey Glove, the park’s mascot who has been driven insane, taunts SpongeBob over the park’s intercom. Players will pass three games that offer a Doubloon token as a reward, the Whack-A-Glove, The Mitten rollercoaster, and a gong-banging matching game off to the left behind two cowering park visitors. They will pass to the right of the first of many real and poorly edited photos of Patrick and Glovey, defeat a Jelly Monster, and take the slingshot to enter the Tunnel of Glove attraction and the amusement park proper.
Following a series of platforming challenges through a boat tunnel section of the ride, players will be boxed into a fight with Jelly Monsters. Upon their defeat, SpongeBob pushes forward through the ride, enduring more taunts from Glovey Glove. Exiting the ride and passing over sunken buildings submerged in the surrounding jelly, SpongeBob finds an old friend that another tear in the universe has spat out for him to use: The Reefblower.
Glovey Glove Fun & Ferris Wheel Fright
The Reefblower limits SpongeBob’s moves while in use and is highly situational. SpongeBob cannot melee while wielding it, and he cannot bring it with him when using a slingshot to travel. Falling into a trap and landing in Glove World jail, SpongeBob has to defeat a massive Jelly Squid to make his escape. Players will have to grab a nearby Reefblower and suck up projectiles and enemies to charge up a shot and fire them at the squid to deal damage.
With the Squid defeated and the gate opened, SpongeBob shoots back up to the surface. Players can rescue Plankton’s pet, Spot, in Glove World Theater and can complete several more arcade games to collect more Doubloons. This includes a button-mashing strength-testing game and a bubble-blowing target game next to the theater.
Fight Glovey Glove
Riding a series of obstacle-dodging Bubble Surfboards to a massive Ferris Wheel, taking it up towards the top of a massive rock structure, players will find the long-lost Krusty Krab, now occupied by Glovey Glove and Patrick, who’s being held hostage by him. Being thrown out and into a fight, SpongeBob has to defeat Glovey Glove to rescue his job and his best friend. Avoiding a constant barrage of Jelly Slime raining down, SpongeBob has to blow Glovey Glove away with the tried and true Reefblower.
The first phase sees SpongeBob grabbing a Reefblower from the Krusty Krab sign, sucking up enemies and crates to fill a charge shot, bouncing up on a jump pad, and firing at Glovey Glove. The second phase transitions to a horde fight, and the loss of the Reefblower, where SpongeBob has to defeat the Jelly Monsters before a Bubble Surfboard spawns that players can take to a glove statue holding a new Reefblower. Again sucking up enemies to ready another charge shot, SpongeBob fires on Glovey Glove, who recoils and blows SpongeBob to a platforming challenge.
Platforming up to a set of three debris segments, Glovey Glove is taking the gloves off and is directly fighting SpongeBob. Players will have to dodge bombardments of Jelly Slime while using one last Reefblower to suck up bundles of Glove World merch that Glovey will throw at SpongeBob between bursts of slime. Hitting Glovey Glove one last time, the day is saved. Glovey Glove is brought down from his maddened state, Patrick and the Krusty Krab are rescued, and the last pieces of repairing reality are falling into place.
