| Snoopy vs. the Red Baron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Smart Bomb Interactive |
| Publisher | Namco Bandai Games America |
| Series | Peanuts |
| Platforms | PlayStation Portable PlayStation 2 Microsoft Windows |
| Release |
|
| Genre | Flight simulator |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
Snoopy vs. the Red Baron is a flight combat game released on thePlayStation 2,PlayStation Portable, andPC in 2006.[1] As the name implies, the protagonist isSnoopy, the dog inCharles M. Schulz's comic strip,Peanuts. The game is based on Snoopy's alter ego as aWorld War Iflying ace, battling againstManfred von Richthofen, the Red Baron, theFlying Circus:Jagdgeschwader 1, theAustro-Hungarian Empire,German Empire,Ottoman Empire, and otherenemies of the war.
This is the firstPeanuts game released on aSony platform and the second overallPeanuts game based on Snoopy's ace pilot fantasies, afterSnoopy and the Red Baron. It was followed in 2010 bySnoopy Flying Ace.
The game has 22 missions to complete, with upgradeable World War I-era planes, including Snoopy'sSopwith Camel, to control. Unlike the original comic, manyPeanuts characters appear in the game as officers and pilots for theRoyal Flying Corps. The main characters include Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Sally, Peppermint Patty, Marcie and more. There are also several enemies for Snoopy to shoot down, including the Baron himself.
Snoopy vs. the Red Baron begins with Lucy and Charlie Brown wondering what Snoopy does in his spare time, a World War I flying ace being one of them. Linus meanwhile, has just finished reading Snoopy's manuscript about his flying ace daydreams when Charlie himself comes up to read it.
In Snoopy’s manuscript, a fictional story set in 1916Europe duringWorld War I, Charlie Brown is the janitor for the Royal Flying Corps, Lucy is the general, Linus is the intelligence officer and Marcie is the head scientist. The Red Baron and his Flying Circus aided byKaiserliche Marine begins an attack on Civilization Island (or Aerodrome Island). The Allies are able to successfully destroy both the Baron's base and a battleship that attacks the allied aerodrome.
Back at the aerodrome, Charlie Brown is perusing plans for a "doodlebug bomb," aweapon of mass destruction that could change the outcome of the war when he is kidnapped by a German spy. Conrad, one of Woodstock's relatives, explains the situation to Lucy who then has Sally doing a report on the Woods ofMontsec, where theLuftstreitkräfte has built up a base. It is armed withFliegertruppen. Their plan is to destroy the base before the Central Powers can build a new headquarters. Snoopy does so easily.
As Snoopybattles theDeutsches Heer inVerdun, Conrad manages to sneak into Charlie's cell in enemy lines and Charlie writes a secret message demanding his rescue as well as information that the Germans are beginning work on the Doodlebug bomb. To complete the bomb, they needunobtanium, so they have set up a mine in theAlps. When Lucy is informed of this, she dispatches Snoopy to the Mines of theMatterhorn where he defeats several fighter planes, a military train and a drilling automation.
As the Allied Forces move into Verdun Gorge, Lucy, Rerun and Franklin are captured, leaving Linus in command. Sending Snoopy to the gorge, the beagle sinks an aircraft carrier. With his plans foiled, Richthofen takes full command of theIGA and sends out a giant airship with the Doodlebug onboard. Snoopy takes off after it. First he disables the engines, frees Lucy, Franklin and Rerun and rescues Charlie Brown from the speeding Doodlebug bomb.
After defeating the Baron and the destruction of the Doodlebug, Snoopy heads back to the aerodrome to celebrate. He awakens from his dream when he heard Charlie Brown calling for him. Snoopy salutes him, leading Charlie Brown to utter "Why can't I have a normal dog like everyone else?"
| Aggregator | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| PC | PS2 | PSP | |
| Metacritic | 68/100[13] | 73/100[14] | 76/100[15] |
| Publication | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| PC | PS2 | PSP | |
| GameSpot | 7.3/10[2] | 7.3/10[2] | 7.3/10[2] |
| GameSpy | N/A |    [3] | [4] |
| GamesRadar+ | N/A | [5] | N/A |
| GameZone | N/A | 7.7/10[6] | N/A |
| IGN | N/A | 7/10[7] | 7/10[7] |
| Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine | N/A | 7.5/10[8] | 7.5/10[8] |
| PC Gamer (US) | 72%[9] | N/A | N/A |
| PlayStation: The Official Magazine | N/A | 7.5/10[10] | 7.5/10[11] |
| X-Play | N/A | [12] | N/A |
The PSP version received "generally favorable reviews", while the PlayStation 2 and PC versions received "average" reviews according to video gamereview aggregatorMetacritic.[13][14][15]
