More Girl Games, Please!
This game is yet another one from Disney Interactive to star with a TV personality. This time, instead of the pop star Hilary Duff, you play as the main character of the TV show, That’s So Raven: Raven-Symone Christina Pearman. In the show, and the game, however, she is simply called Rae. With her stylish, hip girl attitude and her psychic vision powers, Rae can be one bad girl. This game revolves around certain parts of distinct episodes, and tries to implement them into the game through missions. Be warned, though, as this game might just be the most repetitive, freaky, and frustrating game ever. You have been warned.

Starting up the game, you are greeted by Miss Raven being hit by her own name, apparently the actual beginning of the show? Then, you are able to choose from three save files, and so the game begins. The music during this portion of the game is a great, hip-hop beat that is actually nice to hear (nothing too annoying). The game plays simple enough, although it doesn’t control in the same manner. As Raven, you go around school corridors, arcades, and malls trying to find people, find items for people, and running away from people, all while spraying people in the face with perfume, or dropping water to make them stop. Some of these levels include corridors where you must avoid Hall Monitors, doing so by hiding in the shadows similar to Splinter Cell. Quite the fun experience, don’t you agree?

Laugh Out Loud funny?
The characters in this game are very funny individuals. Rae herself runs jauntily with her hands outstretched and her feet moving in a peculiar fashion. On the other hand, Rae’s male friend, Eddie, is a guy preoccupied by his dating skills. He tells you at times that his shoulder hurts because a strong girl has squeezed his arm because she likes him, and then he says that he doesn’t want to be caught with a certain individual who apparently never showers. Very bizarre stuff, if you ask me. Then, there’s a cheerleader girl who is always falling asleep, and you can wake her up every time to get her to thank you. How much more fun can this game be!?

I see psychic visions...
The visuals for this game are surprisingly good. The animations on all the characters are done nicely, and the FMV found throughout the game is nicely incorporated. Whenever Raven has her psychic visions, an FMV of her eye zooming in kinda freaky deal thing is shown, which adds an element of surprise and amazement. If that wasn’t confusing, you might just like this game. The story is told through still images taken directly from the episode corresponding with the chapter. These add a better understanding of what is going on and progresses the story further to the surprisingly near ending.

Sound-wise, That’s So Raven boasts a repetitive shuffle of five moderately different songs. The main theme is nicely implemented into the game, with the others are used throughout the game repetitively. You won’t notice the distinction between the levels by the music used, so don’t look for much in this area. A record-scratching noise sounds every time you pick up a CD, people cough when you spray them in the face with perfume, and a munching sound goes off as you pick up a burger. These little additions make the game more lively and prevents the game from becoming too repetitive. From what is available, however, That’s So Raven does a good job at its musical presentation.

I won’t go into detail of how bizarre some of the levels in this game are, but I will mention a few of them. You must go around school, meet your friends, have psychic visions, try and save those in danger in your visions, end up messing things up, you run away from them instead, end up as a smelly guy’s science partner, try and give the smelly guy a bath, realize you’re being a jerk by doing the previous thing, learn a lesson, protest uniforms, make your enemies your allies, eat cheese, sit on pizza, go on a date, be a pirate, dance alongside a bear and a robot, and end it all with a kiss... Now wasn’t that fun?

Closing Comments
Truly a fetch quest at heart, That’s So Raven blends music and visuals to make a good looking and nice sounding experience. When I played the game early on, I did all the Bonus missions – which consist of you looking for someone’s lost CDs, homework papers, and burgers – but then I just gave up on them; there was really no point in going on. I ended with an 86% completion, yet I had no interest to go back and get all the Year Book pictures. Unresponsive controls, along with repetitive levels and enemies makes this game much less enjoyable. If you’re a fan of the show, It’d be wise to stick with the show and skip this game.