How can you not love a game with hand-drawn artwork made by children across the globe (in this case Ethiopia, Canada, and Australia), and where all profits are donated to charity? So it is with “Bibz”.
But what kind of game is it, and is it even a good game? It’s a local multiplayer platformer/brawler hybrid, and it has strengths in the variety of characters on offer when paired with the customisation options. The levels (18 in all) are often their own reward, and moving through the game to see new level artwork provided by the little chill’uns can be a big part of the game’s appeal; these levels show a tremendous amount of variety and creativity, and some are heart-meltingly cute.
If you get tired of brawling the game also has a short trivia mode, though the questions aren’t generally the hardest. The gameplay is further bolstered by unlockable customisations (over three dozen, all of which appear to be compatible with every character so far in my experience) and unnoficial achievements (aka “awardments”) and stat tracking. Four game modes round out the package but, for me, paying 80 Microsoft Points (with all profits going to charity) and the crazy and cute artwork alone made this purchase more than worthwhile.
Here’s what the developer (SMEWebsites) has to say about the game:
“Bibz is a multiplayer party platform brawler with lots of unlockables and customizable characters. Artwork is by kids in Ethiopia, Australia, and Canada. 100% of profits from the game are donated to Beyond The Orphanage. http://www.bibzgame.com”