Squinkies are a line of popular miniature toys for young girls. Think of them as squishy Polly Pockets (or Micro Machines if you have boys instead). In Squinkies 2 for DS, a new shopping mall has opened and tons of Squinkies are coming to visit! It’s up to you to give them all party invites so you can make friends with all the Squinkies!

Play as one of the many Squinkies toys as you run around little 2-D platforming areas that are about two screens long and wide. Visit the Food Court, Aquarium, Wedding Castle and Amusement Park. In each stage are five Squinkies that you must give invitations to. You may have to chase them down, because they’re shy. When you invite all five, you win the level.

If you beat the stage quickly enough, you will earn more Squinkies to view in your Gumball Bank. There are hundreds of them to collect, too! Hidden in each stage are coins to collect, and if you nab five purple numbered coins in the right order, you’ll go to a bonus stage where you can earn even more coins! Gather enough coins and you’ll unlock a special rare Squinkie who can do a double jump if you play as it in a stage. Only problem is the game won’t let you pick which one to play as when you start a level.

Kid Factor:

It’s clear that Squinkies 2 is geared toward very young kids. You can’t die or lose in a level. The game is a bit short, but with tons of Squinkies to collect, kids will probably go back and replay levels until they unlock them all. Reading skill isn’t needed as all instructions are narrated to you in a very squeaky voice. The game even comes with a couple of real life toy Squinkies and a car for them to ride in, but the only problem is the DS game doesn’t come in a hard case so it may be tougher to keep up with the cartridge. At least it’s not exactly like the first game, as the Zhu Zhu Pets DS titles have fallen into that fault. Squinkies 2: Adventure Mall Surprize is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews