Incorporations of well-known television programs into the video game world are held to a different standard than the more usual video game fair. The expectation is that you’ll have less of a game and more of a novelty for fans. Some call this a bad reputation, but is it? Perhaps for a hardcore gamer it is, though those aren’t the only folks who own Playstation 2’s in this day and age. In the case of Family Guy, if you are a fan of the show looking for a fix, rather than a hardcore gamer seeking something to mix up your night between rounds of Halo, you will find some of what you’re looking for here.

Best news first: the cast is here for the voice-acting and there is original content. That alone might be worth the roughly $20 you’d pay for this title at the time of writing. Early on the player is introduced to their favorite characters and their respective catchphrases. Sadly, much of this is not based on interaction with those characters; a good deal of it simply happens as you cruise by fulfilling your tasks. Sometimes you feel a little like you’re on the rails of a Disney ride. Perhaps this ignores the power of an interactive medium, but granted this is an action and platform title, not a role-playing game.

Ignoring the moments the long-dead jokes reintroduced for novelty’s sake, some of the new situations and humor are quite funny. The voice-acting and gags are on par with any episode of the show. Even mixed in with old material, it isn’t so sparse that you’re left alone with the game waiting for the next nugget of non-sequitur hilarity for too long.

The game beneath all this needs discussing of course, even if it is seen as little more as your means of exploring the comic material. The game is made up of a series of segments based on different styles of play, each with its own character. It ranges from Peter’s arcade-style fisticuffs (in much the style of his lengthy yet legendary combat with a man in a chicken suit) to Brian’s sneaking about a police station, striving to keep from the officers’ limited lines of sight. The difficulty level isn’t as toned down as much as you’d expect in a game aimed at more casual players and even a more experienced gamer might find themselves attempting even earlier scenarios several times. The mechanics are fairly simple, yet in the tradition of platform games good eye-hand coordination and timing are needed. Simple as they are, mastery of a few advanced techniques are needed to play. In Stewie’s shooter levels, a button can be held to alternate between moving and aiming mode. While this technique is effective, it might be a foreign concept to non-gamers, and playing the game without it will cause some heartbreak.

Sadly, difficulty doesn’t imply depth, and much of the challenge is frustrating rather than stimulating. Defeating innumerable foes of the same sort in the same situation, only to fail due to a slip up and restart the process, will become a familiar pattern. Most boggling are Brian’s stages in which the notion of the puzzle is reduced to a mindless trial-and-error process. Here is where the dialog, as sharp and well-executed as it is, will lose its strength as you hear the same wisecracks on your tenth attempt.

The strengths and weakness of the game are fairly pronounced. Is it worth a purchase? An educated decision from a buyer who knows what they want might be “yes” and that person might be happy to spend a rainy day with the Family Guy cast. The lower-than-average price tag will of course weigh into such a decision. However, is this the case for most people? Probably not. The frustration of the game play itself is likely to drive off players too early to consider the game a good value.

The Godfather loved music, he loved to dance and he loved life in general. He also loved the ladies, as he was married four times and had six children.

James Brown was more than just a singer. His stage presence was electrifying. He poured passion and emotion into his performances. He created an atmosphere that left all the seats vacant. He surpassed music genres by creating his own unique style, which blended, but was not limited to, gospel, rhythm and blues, soul, funk, and rock and roll. In 1986 Brown was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He was also more than just a musician. He played small roles in many movies including Rocky IV and even helped Jake Blues see the light in the movie Blues Brothers as Reverend Cleophus James. He appeared on Saturday Night Live several times and was even parodied by Eddie Murphy on SNL in Murphy’s James Brown Hot Tub Party sketch.

Not so commonly known, was James Brown’s role in the BMW Films movie Beat The Devil, where James Brown plays himself. However, in the movie Browns success has come because he has sold his soul to the devil (Gary Oldman.) The transporter, and BMW driver (Clive Owen,) then must race the devil to win Browns soul back.

James Brown also was the winner of two Life Time Achievement Awards, one during the 34th annual Grammy Awards and the second a year later at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. Brown had 52 top ten singles on either the Billboard Hot 100 or the Billboard Top R&B Singles charts.

James Brown left us with some very important and, as always, passionate words of wisdom from his role in the 1980’s movie Blues Brothers, “When I woke up this morning, I heard a disturbing sound. I said, when I woke up this morning I heard a disturbing sound! What I’ve heard was the jingle jangle of a thousand lost souls. I’m talking about the souls of mortal men and women departed from this life… …Those lost anguished souls roaming unseen on the earth seeking the divine light; they’ll not find because it’s too late; too late! Too late, for they’ll never see again the light they once chose not to follow.” Reverend Cleophus James (James Brown) then addresses the congregation, “don’t be lost when the time comes, for the day of the lord cometh, as a thief in the night, AAAAAAmen! Can I get an Amen?”

Amen James Brown, Amen. He was “loud, black and proud.” And now he will be forever missed. Don McLean once wondered if music could “save your mortal soul.” Well, the soul of blues music is forever preserved in Browns recordings, just as Browns musical influence will live on forever in the records of time. The Godfather can’t die in our soul, for every time one of his songs comes on the radio, it’s as if “Papa’s got a brand new bag.”