The Amazing Virtual Sea-Monkeys - PS1 (2002)

From developer Creature Labs. A very late release for the PS1, and it’s a sea monkeys based puzzler. What hack thought kids wanted a sea monkeys game where you can’t even raise them? That was the best aspect of having real sea monkeys, watching them grow and swim around with all their little legs. Gameplay wise it’s actually kind of fun, it’s like Lemmings but underwater so your goal is clearing dangerous sea life and sea obstacles, and sometimes your monkeys will randomly float off into odd directions or carefully weave around a barrier instead of bouncing away. There’s just enough challenge in these early levels to avoid being too frustrating, and pretty quick load times keep it paced nicely. The opening FMV is almost blinding with how bright and saturated the colors are, and all the noise and video artifacts are so pronounced when upscaled to 1080p it might be the worst PS1 FMV I’ve ever seen.