Steven Universe is one of Cartoon Network’s most popular shows right now.  It’s about a boy named Steven who befriends some gem-based intergalactic warriors and they go on adventures together.  As popular as the show is, there aren’t too many video games based on the franchise, surprisingly.  Until now, as Dreamland Arcade is not one, but nine games in total for mobile devices (reviewed on iPad here).  In one of the episodes, Steven and his friends visit the local Funland arcade.  One of his gem warrior friends gets addicted to a game that bears a striking resemblance to Samba de Amigo.  It’s called Meat Beat Mania and in this mobile game, Steven falls asleep while she plays it.  Then he has a dream where he’s in an arcade featuring games starring him and all his friends.  You get to unlock and play these games that Steven dreamed up.

Right off the bat I was disappointed that you can’t play Meat Beat Mania.  It’s the main focus of that particular episode of the cartoon, and it’s in the intro to this game as well.  Also, before I get started, please forgive me if I don’t know about all the characters featured in this game.  A year or so ago, I reviewed another mobile Steven Universe game called Attack the Light.  Before I reviewed it, I watched a few episodes of the cartoon so I knew what was going on.  I would’ve done the same thing for this game, as it’s been a while since I watched the show.  But Cartoon Network makes it very difficult to watch Steven Universe anymore, which is unfortunate because it has many story arcs.  Usually when I turn on Cartoon Network nowadays, they’re always showing Teen Titans GO!  Blech!  But anyway, here are the nine games you can play in Dreamland Arcade.

Lion’s Beach Racer

So apparently Steven has a pink pet lion now?  This game is a continuous runner.  Steven rides the lion and you can jump over pits and obstacles by tapping on the left side of the screen.  Tap on the right and the lion will let out a roar that can dispatch enemies.  Collect stars to power up a meter and when it’s full, the lion will do a charge attack for more distance.

Meep Morp Masher

I don’t understand the title, but in this one you play as a green character who is collecting falling objects.  Tap left and right on the screen to make the character move in those directions.  Gunk will fall on the ground to slow you down, and avoid picking up any green stinky objects.  When you have a good stack, tap it to receive points.

Bug Hunt

This game features a character who looks like a marshmallow and speaks in baby talk.  He is hunting for bugs, and you can help him.  Draw circles on the screen to catch bugs inside.  Doing so will add more seconds to the timer.  But watch out for paper airplanes.  If your lines touch one, you’ll lose time!

Gauntlet Smash

I forget her name, but this game features my favorite character from the show.  She likes to punch things and she’s also the one who gets addicted to Meat Beat Mania in the cartoon.  In this game, enemies come from the left and right side of the screen.  Two meters at the top go up and down.  Try to tap the sides of the screen when the meters are full and she’ll unleash powerful attacks to her left and right.  Try to last as long as you can without getting hit too many times.

Cluster Buster

Pilot a drill machine as you dig deep into the ground.  Tap left and right to make your drill move in that direction.  Avoid enemies and try to drill into gems for points.  I should mention that not all the games are unlocked at the start.  You have to buy them with tickets.  Earn tickets by getting high scores in other games, and collecting them in the games themselves.  Not only can you spend tickets to unlock new games, but you can also buy permanent power-ups in each of the games to give you an edge.  You can also view the power-ups in a trophy room in the arcade lobby.

Sworn to the Sword

In this game you play as a girl who uses a sword.  To attack and block in these one-on-one fights with holograms, you must trace patterns as close you can that are shown on the screen.  Draw as quickly as possible and stay inside the lines to improve your attacks and defense.

Laser Light Panic

This is a Space Invaders style game.  You pilot a rose (?) who shoots at flaming tribal masks, I think.  Tap left and right to move the rose on the bottom of the screen.  If you release your finger, the rose will charge up a powerful shot.  Tap the screen again to release it.

Sky Swimmer

A blue winged character carries Steven around as they fly through the sky.  Tap above or below them to make them fly up or down, and avoid obstacles and collect tickets along the way. It reminds me of Balloon Trip from Balloon Fight. This game and Lion’s Beach Racer are the best games to collect tickets quickly, by the way.

Kindergarten Climber

And finally, help a purple character leap from wall to wall as she climbs a tower.  Tap left and right to make her wall jump in that direction.  Try to collect power=ups and tickets while avoiding obstacles.  Keep tapping or she’ll fall!

And those are all the games. I think it’s pretty neat that this game has so many mini-games in it, where usually in mobile titles, one of these games would suffice.  And it’s free-to-play, too.  But unfortunately, the games aren’t engaging enough to want to keep playing to get a high score, and play control isn’t as responsive as I would’ve liked either.  I think only die-hard Steven Universe fans will enjoy this.

Kid Factor:

Violence is only cartoony and very minimal.  If you get hit, you usually just flash or fall off the screen while Steven says ‘ouch’ or something.  If you’re OK with your kids watching the cartoon, they’ll be OK with this game.  You can view ads to continue where you left off in a game, or if you want extra tickets, but I didn’t see any in-game purchases.  Reading skill is helpful for some of the instructions, but the games are easy enough to figure out just by playing.

Tags: Game Reviews, Television