Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003 video game)

This article is about the game released on consoles and PC. For the Game Boy Advance game, see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Game Boy Advance video game).

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2003 video game

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

North American PS2 cover art

Developer(s)| Konami Computer Entertainment Studios
Publisher(s)| Konami
Director(s)| Yuji Kojima
Producer(s)| Kengo Nakamura
Composer(s)| Yuichi Tsuchiya
Masanori Akita
Series| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Platform(s)| PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Microsoft Windows
Release| GameCube, PlayStation 2 & Xbox

* NA: October 21, 2003[1]
* PAL: April 16, 2004 (PS2, Xbox)
* PAL: April 30, 2004 (GC)

Windows

* NA: November 25, 2003
* PAL: April 23, 2004

Genre(s)| Beat 'em up
Mode(s)| Single-player, multiplayer

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a 2003 beat 'em up game developed and published by Konami, based on the 2003 TV series.

## Gameplay

[edit]

Screenshot of gameplay

The player can play as either Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo or Raphael. Each turtle has his own unique set of levels to complete. There is a story mode for one or two players, and also a versus mode where two players can fight head to head. In the versus mode, players can fight as all four turtles, Splinter, Casey Jones, Hamato Yoshi, the Turtlebot, Hun, Oroku Saki, and Shredder.

A "Challenge" mode is unlocked by defeating Oroku Saki with any Turtle in the Story Mode, which needs to be complete to unlock Hamato Yoshi and his dojo.

## Plot

[edit]

The main gameplay loosely adapts the following season one episodes: "Things Change", "A Better Mouse Trap", "Attack of the Mouser"s, "Meet Casey Jones", "Nano", "Darkness on the Edge of Town", "The Way of Invisibility", "Notes From the Underground" (Parts 1-3), and "Return to New York" (Parts 1-3).

Shortly after a group of Mouser Robots destroy the Turtles' old home, they begin to look for a new one. Michelangelo eventually gets on Raphael's nerves, causing Raphael to leave for the surface. There, he is confronted by Purple Dragon thugs, Casey Jones, and Dragonface. Baxter Stockman soon uses invisible Foot ninjas to capture Raphael, and Donatello is forced to rescue him. Afterward, Donatello analyzes a strange crystal he found in their home, noting that they look like mutated brain cells. Raphael kicks Michelangelo into a wall, revealing a large tunnel behind it. Donatello's crystal start glowing and the Turtles decide to investigate. They follow the tunnel and they are confronted by genetically mutated humans. After a few scuffles with these mutants, the Turtles find that these mutants were turned into their current state by past experiments of Shredder's scientists. The crystals Donatello found are the only thing keeping these mutants alive, and cannot leave their underground home as a result.

They plead the Turtles to defeat Shredder, so that no more humans will suffer as they have. The Turtles decide to defeat Shredder once and for all, and promise the mutants that they will come back for them if they ever find a way to reverse their condition.

## Reception

[edit]

Reception

Aggregate scoreAggregator| Score

|

GC| PC| PS2| Xbox
Metacritic| 57/100[2]| 55/100[3]| 59/100[4]| 56/100[5]
Review scoresPublication| Score

|

GC| PC| PS2| Xbox
Computer Gaming World| N/A| 1.5/5[6]| N/A| N/A
Electronic Gaming Monthly| 6.17/10[7][a]| N/A| 6.17/10[7]| 6.17/10[7]
Eurogamer| N/A| N/A| 3/10[8]| N/A
Game Informer| N/A| N/A| 7.75/10[9]| N/A
GameRevolution| N/A| N/A| C−[10]| N/A
GameSpot| 6.5/10[11]| 6.3/10[12]| 6.5/10[11]| 6.5/10[11]
GameSpy| 2/5[13]| N/A| 2/5[14]| 2/5[13]
GameZone| N/A| 6.5/10[15]| 5/10[16]| N/A
IGN| 5.3/10[17]| 5.3/10[18]| 5.3/10[17]| 5.3/10[17]
Nintendo Power| 2.6/5[19]| N/A| N/A| N/A
Nintendo World Report| 8/10[20]| N/A| N/A| N/A
Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine| N/A| N/A| 2.5/5[21]| N/A
Official Xbox Magazine (US)| N/A| N/A| N/A| 5/10[22]
PC Gamer (US)| N/A| 69%[23]| N/A| N/A

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles received "mixed" reviews on all platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[2][3][4][5] The D-Pad Destroyer of GamePro said of the PlayStation 2 version, "For old-school beat-em-up fans, Turtles likely will be a guilty pleasure. It's long, difficult, and a treat to the eyes and the nostalgic heart. It's just that humans have evolved a bit since this type of game ruled the world."[24]

Jason D'Aprile of X-Play gave the Xbox version two stars out of five, calling it "the perfect example of a licensed game that focuses too much on visuals and marketing power, and not enough on gameplay. Even by side-scrolling basher standards, the gameplay here is weak and uninspired. The lack of complexity in the fighting system, combined with the lack of variation in the action itself leads to a game that, despite being gorgeous, is still a total snooze."[25]

Edge gave the Xbox version a score of four out of ten, saying, "Feels cheeky to be criticising a scrolling beat 'em up for being too shallow, but TMNT is possibly one of the most tedious ever. Repetition is only acceptable when you're repeating something gratifying."[26]

## Sequels

[edit]

The game received two sequels: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus in 2004, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3: Mutant Nightmare in 2005.

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Three critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the console versions each a score of 5.5/10, 6/10, and 7/10.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Calvert, Justin (October 22, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ships". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 27, 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
2. ^ a b "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) critic reviews (GC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
3. ^ a b "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) critic reviews (PC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on August 10, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
4. ^ a b "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) critic reviews (PS2)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
5. ^ a b "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) critic reviews (Xbox)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
6. ^ Coffey, Robert (May 2004). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 238\. Ziff Davis. p. 89\. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
7. ^ a b c Byrnes, Paul; Intihar, Bryan; Lopez, Miguel (December 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (GC, PS2, Xbox)" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 173\. Ziff Davis. p. 195\. Archived from the original on December 29, 2003. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
8. ^ Bramwell, Tom (April 16, 2004). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PlayStation 2)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on July 6, 2016. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
9. ^ Zoss, Jeremy (December 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PS2)". Game Informer. No. 128\. GameStop. p. 144\. Archived from the original on November 12, 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
10. ^ GR Chimp (November 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Review (PS2)". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
11. ^ a b c Navarro, Alex (October 21, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Review (GC, PS2, Xbox)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 12, 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
12. ^ Navarro, Alex (December 11, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Review (PC)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 10, 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
13. ^ a b Padilla, Raymond (October 25, 2003). "GameSpy: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (GCN, Xbox)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
14. ^ Padilla, Raymond (October 24, 2003). "GameSpy: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PS2)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on June 25, 2007. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
15. ^ Hopper, Steven (December 26, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - PC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 4, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
16. ^ Watkins, Rob (November 1, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on March 25, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
17. ^ a b c Irwin, Mary Jane (October 21, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on May 27, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
18. ^ Irwin, Mary Jane (January 16, 2004). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on May 27, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
19. ^ "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (GC)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 174\. Nintendo of America. December 2003. p. 146.
20. ^ Shughart, Ty (November 16, 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (GC)". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
21. ^ Baker, Chris (December 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 75\. Ziff Davis. p. 152\. Archived from the original on December 30, 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
22. ^ "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. December 2003. p. 144.
23. ^ David, Mike (March 2004). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". PC Gamer. Vol. 11, no. 3\. Future US. p. 75\. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
24. ^ The D-Pad Destroyer (December 2003). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PS2)" (PDF). GamePro. No. 183\. IDG. p. 126\. Archived from the original on February 12, 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
25. ^ D'Aprile, Jason (December 9, 2003). "'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' (Xbox) Review". X-Play. TechTV. Archived from the original on February 5, 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
26. ^ Edge staff (January 2004). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Xbox)". Edge. No. 132\. Future Publishing. p. 109.

## External links

[edit]

* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at MobyGames

* v
* t
* e

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video games

Konami|

* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (NES)
* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (arcade)
* Fall of the Foot Clan
* The Manhattan Project
* Turtles in Time
* Manhattan Missions
* Back from the Sewers
* The Hyperstone Heist
* Radical Rescue
* Tournament Fighters
* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003)
* GBA
* Battle Nexus
* Mutant Melee
* Mutant Nightmare
* The Cowabunga Collection

Ubisoft|

* TMNT
* GBA
* Turtles in Time: Re-Shelled
* Smash-Up

Activision|

* Out of the Shadows
* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2013)
* Danger of the Ooze
* Mutants in Manhattan

Other|

* Legends
* Shredder's Revenge
* Mutants Unleashed

Related|

* Pinball
* Nickelodeon Super Brawl
* Nickelodeon Kart Racers
* 2: Grand Prix
* 3: Slime Speedway
* Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl
* Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2

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