Bionicle Heroes is a 3D video game of the
third-person shooterThird-person shooter is a genre of 3D action games in which the player character is visible on-screen, and the gameplay consists primarily of shooting.-Definition:...
genre, based on
LegoLego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
popular
BionicleBionicle is a toy line from the Lego Group marketed at 7-16 year-olds. The toy line was launched in December 30, 1999 in Europe and June/July 2001 in Canada and the United States. The concept was derived from Lego Group's earlier themes Slizers/Throwbots and Lego RoboRiders. Both of those lines had...
franchise. It was released in November 2006 by
TT GamesTT Games group is a large British video game developer and publisher. It is made up of three divisions, Traveller's Tales, TT Fusion and publisher TT Games Publishing...
on
PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony. The PS2 console is the sequel to the original PlayStation console. The successor to the PlayStation, and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation 2 forms part of the PlayStation series of video game...
,
Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles....
,
Nintendo GameCubeThe is Nintendo's fourth home video game console with Wii being fifth, and is part of the sixth generation console era. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 and predecessor to Nintendo's Wii....
,
Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of software operating systems and graphical user interfaces produced by Microsoft. Microsoft first introduced an operating environment named Windows in November 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces...
and It was released in November 2006 by
Amaze EntertainmentAmaze Entertainment is an American video game developer that has sold over 100 games in its ten-year history , for several video game platforms, with headquarters located in Kirkland, Washington. Amaze’s primary focus is top-tier licensed games based on movie franchises, comic series, and original...
on
Game Boy AdvanceThe Game Boy Advance is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color...
, and
Nintendo DSThe is a dual-screen handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in 2004 in Canada, the United States, and Japan. The console features a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP, with two LCD screens inside—with the bottom one being a touchscreen...
, a Nintendo
WiiThe is a home video game console released by Nintendo. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of both...
version was later released in April 2007. The game stars Bionicle's 2006 feature characters, the Toa Inika and the Piraka. Players must destroy enemies, solve puzzles in order to progress further, and throughout the game, maximize their individual special powers and gain better and deadlier weapons.
While the game is loosely based on the first part of the
Bionicle LegendsBionicle Legends is the third book series based in the Bionicle universe. It had ended in 2008 and was succeeded by a new series simply titled Bionicle. The series covered the events that are occurring in the storyline's 2006-2008 story arc...
story arc; it is non-canonical and features several characters from previous arcs in the franchise.
The Nintendo DS version of
Bionicle Heroes is in the
first-personFirst-person shooter is a video game genre which centers the gameplay around gun- and projectile weapon-based combat through the first person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits...
perspective instead of third-person, and is the first LEGO game to be rated T for Teen.
Bionicle Heroes is a 3D video game of the
third-person shooterThird-person shooter is a genre of 3D action games in which the player character is visible on-screen, and the gameplay consists primarily of shooting.-Definition:...
genre, based on
LegoLego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
popular
BionicleBionicle is a toy line from the Lego Group marketed at 7-16 year-olds. The toy line was launched in December 30, 1999 in Europe and June/July 2001 in Canada and the United States. The concept was derived from Lego Group's earlier themes Slizers/Throwbots and Lego RoboRiders. Both of those lines had...
franchise. It was released in November 2006 by
TT GamesTT Games group is a large British video game developer and publisher. It is made up of three divisions, Traveller's Tales, TT Fusion and publisher TT Games Publishing...
on
PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony. The PS2 console is the sequel to the original PlayStation console. The successor to the PlayStation, and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation 2 forms part of the PlayStation series of video game...
,
Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles....
,
Nintendo GameCubeThe is Nintendo's fourth home video game console with Wii being fifth, and is part of the sixth generation console era. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 and predecessor to Nintendo's Wii....
,
Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of software operating systems and graphical user interfaces produced by Microsoft. Microsoft first introduced an operating environment named Windows in November 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces...
and It was released in November 2006 by
Amaze EntertainmentAmaze Entertainment is an American video game developer that has sold over 100 games in its ten-year history , for several video game platforms, with headquarters located in Kirkland, Washington. Amaze’s primary focus is top-tier licensed games based on movie franchises, comic series, and original...
on
Game Boy AdvanceThe Game Boy Advance is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color...
, and
Nintendo DSThe is a dual-screen handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in 2004 in Canada, the United States, and Japan. The console features a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP, with two LCD screens inside—with the bottom one being a touchscreen...
, a Nintendo
WiiThe is a home video game console released by Nintendo. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of both...
version was later released in April 2007. The game stars Bionicle's 2006 feature characters, the Toa Inika and the Piraka. Players must destroy enemies, solve puzzles in order to progress further, and throughout the game, maximize their individual special powers and gain better and deadlier weapons.
While the game is loosely based on the first part of the
Bionicle LegendsBionicle Legends is the third book series based in the Bionicle universe. It had ended in 2008 and was succeeded by a new series simply titled Bionicle. The series covered the events that are occurring in the storyline's 2006-2008 story arc...
story arc; it is non-canonical and features several characters from previous arcs in the franchise.
The Nintendo DS version of
Bionicle Heroes is in the
first-personFirst-person shooter is a video game genre which centers the gameplay around gun- and projectile weapon-based combat through the first person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits...
perspective instead of third-person, and is the first LEGO game to be rated T for Teen. The Game Boy Advance version is also vastly different, having a top-down perspective instead of over the character's shoulder.
Console version
Players control an anonymous hero out to stop the evil Piraka, who have used the power of the Mask of Life to transform the wildlife of the island of Voya Nui into aggressive, evil creatures. The hero is able to wear the masks of the
Toa InikaToa is a Polynesian word for warrior.Toa may also refer to:*Toa River, a river in Cuba*Toa, stage name of Tanoai Reed, competitor on the TV show American Gladiators*Toa , a fictional race of beings made by the Lego toy company...
in order to take on their appearances and powers. Players can switch between any collected masks at will, but if they run out of health the current mask is lost and a new one must be found before the character can become that Toa again. Collecting a mask also restores health, even if it is one the character already has.
During gameplay, players collect Lego pieces with different point values. Collecting enough points fills a meter and activates "Hero Mode", turning the character golden and giving invincibility as well as an offensive boost. After completing a level, points collected can also be used to purchase items and upgrades from the in-game Lego Shop. Players are able to upgrade weapons throughout the game, starting with the Toa Mata's tools before upgrading to the Toa Metru's tools and finally the Toa Inika's tools; armor and special abilities can also be upgraded.
Throughout each level are several Lego "constractions", or "construction-actions", that can be assembled. Two kinds that must be activated to proceed are normal constractions activated by Toa Hewkii and golden constractions that can be activated by anyone in Hero Mode, though doing so causes Hero Mode to end and more points must be collected before it can be entered again. Also found are character-specific constractions that provide bonuses when activated.
Scattered throughout the levels are several canisters that give bonuses when collected: collecting all of the silver canisters in a level unlocks a common enemy for viewing between levels, while each gold canister found unlocks a collectible item for viewing. Each regular level includes five silver canisters and four gold canisters, and Piraka levels include four gold canisters apiece. Boss enemies are also unlocked for viewing after they have been defeated.
There are 25 levels and 19 bosses in total. In addition to the levels and viewable collectibles, players can also explore a bonus area called Piraka Playground, where the Piraka can be seen walking around after you defeat them in the main levels. Players can purchase additional items for Piraka Playground from the Shop and watch the Piraka use them. There are also 3 bonus levels available for purchase, which are accessed through Piraka Playground.
DS version
The DS version has 37 levels and 6 bosses. The 37 levels are divided among 7 regions: five levels for each of the six Piraka regions, and seven levels in the final region: "Makuta's Domain". In the last of these seven levels, "Final Showdown", the player must battle all six Piraka.
When the player loses all their health, they do not lose a mask as you would in the console version, but some of the Lego pieces the player has collected. Instead of an in-game Lego Shop, collected Lego pieces are used in conjunction with runes in order to unlock one of 12 bonuses, which can affect gameplay in unique ways. These bonuses can be switched on or off once unlocked.
Playable
The Toa Inika:
- Toa Jaller: Toa Jaller can walk over lava
Lava is molten rock expelled by a volcano during eruption. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at temperatures from 700 °C to 1,200 °C...
, and after upgrading he can burn down passage-blocking vines. His Fireblast weapons are rapid-fire and are good at short- to mid-range, but spread out and become inaccurate at long range. Jaller's weapons include Toa Tahu's Fire Sword, Toa Vakama's Launcher, and his own Energized Flame Sword. Jaller is the third fastest toa.
- Toa Nuparu: Toa Nuparu is the slowest Toa but is quite powerful. He can climb certain walls and cliff faces, and after upgrading can dig up treasures. His Earthburst weapons fire grenade-like energy balls with a large blast radius that are slow to reload, but can be launched around corners and detonated manually. Nuparu's weapons include Toa Onua's Claw
A claw is a curved, pointed appendage, found at the end of a toe or finger in most mammals, birds, and some reptiles. However, the word "claw" is also often used in reference to an invertebrate. Somewhat similar fine hooked structures are found in arthropods such as beetles and spiders, at the end...
, Toa Whenua's Earthshock Drill, and his own Laser Drill.
- Toa Hahli: Toa Hahli can cross streams and rivers, and after upgrading can manipulate blue water-based constractions. She has medium speed, but is stronger and faster when in water. Her long-range Watershock weapons don't have as much power, but as long as they are firing they cause steady damage. Hahli's weapons include Toa Gali's Hook, Toa Nokama's Hydro Blade, and her own Laser Harpoon.
- Toa Hewkii: Toa Hewkii can assemble normal constractions from the various LEGO
Lego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
pieces found scattered in each level, and can upgrade this to the ability to collapse certain walls. Like Nuparu, he is slow but very strong. His Stonesmash weapons act like rocket launchers, and are slow to reload but have a large blast radius. Hewkii's weapons include the "Po-Koro", Toa Onewa's Proto Pitons, and his own Laser Axe.
- Toa Kongu: Toa Kongu is the second-fastest toa. Kongu can leap certain gaps marked by green landing pads, and can gain the ability to use green wind-based constractions. He has medium strength. His Airshot weapons are of medium strength, but grow weaker over long distances, as they possess a function similar to that of a shotgun. Kongu's weapons include Toa Lewa's Air Axe, Toa Matau's Aero Slicer, and his own Laser Crossbow.
- Toa Matoro: Toa Matoro has the ability to zoom in towards targets, and some faraway white targets require the closeup view; he can also upgrade his ability to freeze water in places to make pathways. He is one of the slowest among the Toa, but has one of the strongest weapons available, able to kill some enemies in one hit. Toa Matoro's Icecrack weapons are similar to sniper rifles, with the ability to shoot lethal blasts at the expense of recharge time. Matoro's weapons include Toa Kopaka's Ice Sword, Toa Nuju's Crystal Spike, and his own Energized Ice Sword.
Each of the Toa's weapons can be compared to a real weapon: Jaller's and Hahli's can be compared to an
SMGThe initials SMG may refer to:* Boston University School of Management* Super Mario Galaxy, a video game for Wii featuring Nintendo's mascot Mario* SMG plc, a Scottish based media company, now called STV Group plc* Submachine gun...
, Nuparu's can be compared to a
grenade launcherA grenade launcher is a weapon that launches a grenade with more accuracy, higher velocity, and to greater distances than a soldier could throw it by hand....
, Hewkii's can be compared to a
rocket launcherA shoulder-launched missile weapon is a weapon that fires a projectile at a target, yet is small enough to be carried by a single person, and fired while held on one's shoulder. "Missile" is used here in the original broad sense: today the word has a strong connotation with the concept of a guided...
, Kongu's can be compared to a
shotgunA shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
, and Matoro's can be compared to a
sniper rifleIn military and law enforcement terminology, a sniper rifle is a rifle used to ensure accurate placement of bullets at longer ranges than small arms. A typical sniper rifle is built for optimal levels of accuracy, fitted with a telescopic sight and chambered for a military centerfire cartridge...
.
In console versions of the game, each
Piraka can also be played after they are defeated, though only in their own regions; and they can activate special Piraka constractions. Once the game is completed, the individual Piraka are replaced by
Vezon, who can activate not only Piraka constractions but black constractions found in each level.
In the
Game Boy AdvanceThe Game Boy Advance is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color...
version of the game, the six Toa Mata are playable instead of the Inika, in both their original and transformed Toa Nuva incarnations. Later on, if you go back you can find the Toa Inika Masks and play as the Toa Inika.
Non-playable
Common enemies, which are encountered in each level, include each of the six breeds of Bohrok, Visorak, and Vahki. If the player collects all of the silver canisters in a level, they unlock one of the breeds of a common enemy, which can be viewed between levels.
In addition to the seven Piraka, there are 12 bosses which are unlocked for viewing after they are defeated: each of the six Rahkshi, Roodaka, Sidorak, Nidhiki, Krekka, Brutaka, and Axonn. The six Rahkshi are Guurahk, Korahk, Lerahk, Panrahk, Turahk, and Vorahk. However, in the story-line Axonn is an ally of the Toa Inika, and also Nidhiki, Krekka, and Sidorak are all dead in the story.
Players also encounter Balta, a Matoran who lives on Voya Nui. In the game, he speaks in the introductory movie and runs the Shop where the player can purchase items and upgrades. He has Piruk's claws as hands in the intro, but in the upgrade shop, he is seen with his katanas. Once the game is 100% complete and the last level finished, a cutscene plays where Balta congratulates the hero and shows them how everything has returned to how it was before.
Reception
At its release in November 2006,
Bionicle Heroes was mostly overshadowed by higher-profile releases; specifically the launches of the
PlayStation 3The PlayStation 3 is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment, and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series...
and
WiiThe is a home video game console released by Nintendo. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of both...
consoles later that week. Nearly all reviews noted the similarity to TT Games' previous
Lego Star WarsLego Star Wars is a Lego theme which incorporates the Star Wars saga. The first Lego Star Wars, released in 1999, included model 7140, the first Lego X-Wing. Star Wars was the first intellectual property to be licensed in Lego Group history. The first few sets based on the original trilogy were...
games - several suggested that
Heroes was perhaps
too similar, and having two such games released within a couple months of each other was tiresome as
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy had been released the previous September.
Nintendo PowerNintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #240 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US....
noted that the game "doesn't feel very LEGO-ish; block-building aspects seldom come into play, and the scenery is only rarely reminiscent of LEGO pieces."
GameSpotGameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which purchased...
blamed Hero Mode for making the game repetitive: "By being even remotely selective with how you pick up Lego pieces, you'll be invincible a good two-thirds to three-fourths of the game, which means that nearly every situation before a boss battle is utterly trivialized." Another common point in several reviews was that the game lacked a real story.
As of December 2006, the
Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles....
version of
Bionicle Heroes has been the subject of the most reviews according to
GameRankings.com, and has an average rating of 60%.
Though reviewed less than the console versions, both the Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance scored quite well in comparison, with reviews around 70 to 80%. The DS version of the game is considered a very competent first-person shooter, with responsive, but not perfect, controls and fast, smooth visuals; several reviews stated that it holds up well to the critically acclaimed
Metroid Prime HuntersMetroid Prime Hunters is a first-person shooter and adventure game for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It was developed by American video game developers Nintendo Software Technology, and was released by Nintendo in North America in March 2006, in Europe and Australia in May 2006, and...
. However, one major drawback is its lack of online play. The Game Boy Advance version was reviewed only twice, but both reviews agree that the game's nonstop, relentless shooting is shallow though very entertaining; both also praised the game's musical score.
Development
When creating many of the 100 collectible bonus items in the game, producers turned to the
BZPower fan community for help. A sample of suggested items can be found
here.
External links