The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King
A 2004 Game Boy Advance prequel to the 1993 film.
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King is a platform game released in October 2004 for the Game Boy Advance in North America, with a 2005 release in Japan. Developed by Tose, it was published by D3 Publisher in Japan and by Buena Vista Games elsewhere. As a prequel to the 1993 stop-motion film, the game follows Jack Skellington’s first meeting with Oogie Boogie and explains how Jack earned the title "The Pumpkin King." It launched in North America at the same time as The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge for PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
The gameplay is a platformer with exploration elements reminiscent of the Castlevania series. The story takes place one year before the film. Jack Skellington is preparing for Halloween when Oogie Boogie, jealous of Jack's popularity and wanting to take over Halloween, orders Lock, Shock, and Barrel to kidnap Jack. Instead, they capture Sally, Doctor Finkelstein’s rag doll assistant who has a crush on Jack. On Halloween, Jack finds the town empty and learns from the Mayor that everyone is hiding from a bug infestation. Lock, Shock, and Barrel cause chaos, and Jack helps townspeople, gaining weapons, upgrades, and information. He discovers Oogie Boogie lives under a treehouse at the town’s edge. Jack confronts Oogie, who admits he caused the trouble to turn Halloween into "Crawloween." They battle for control of the town, with Oogie threatening to make it "Bug Town." Jack defeats Oogie, orders him to fear him and stay in his lair, then rescues Sally—whom he already knows from the film's canon—and Halloween proceeds as planned. Oogie vows revenge.
The game was showcased at E3 2004. Reception was mixed, scoring 69.43% on GameRankings and 71 out of 100 on Metacritic. IGN rated it 6.5 out of 10, noting that while the visuals are unimpressive and the audio is poor, it offers a solid adventure for children based on the Nightmare Before Christmas license, even if it lacks the special "zing" the property could have provided.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King
- Developer
- Tose
- Publisher
- JP · D3 PublisherNA/EU/AUS · Buena Vista Games
- Series
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Released
- JP · September 8, 2005 · NA · October 10, 2005 · EU · November 10, 2005
- Genre
- Platform, Metroidvania
- Platforms
- Game Boy Advance
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The game's plot takes place one year before the events of the film. Jack Skellington is preparing for Halloween when Oogie Boogie, jealous of Jack's popularity and wanting to take over Halloween, orders his henchmen Lock, Shock, and Barrel to kidnap Jack. Instead, they bring Sally, a rag doll-like creature who is Doctor Finkelstein's new assistant and has a crush on Jack. On Halloween, Jack finds the town deserted and learns from the Mayor that everyone is hiding from a bug infestation. Lock, Shock, and Barrel wreak havoc, and Jack helps townspeople to collect weapons, upgrades, and information, eventually learning that Oogie Boogie lives under the treehouse on the edge of town. Jack confronts Oogie, who wants to turn Halloween into Crawloween. Jack defeats Oogie, orders him to fear him and not leave his lair, rescues Sally (whom he already knows in the film's canon), and Halloween proceeds as planned. Oogie vows revenge.
Reader's Guide
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King is notable as a handheld prequel that expands the film's universe by exploring Jack Skellington's rise to the title of Pumpkin King and his first clash with Oogie Boogie. Its gameplay, described as similar to the Castlevania series, offered a platforming experience for the Game Boy Advance. The game was showcased at E3 2005 and received mixed to average reviews, with aggregate scores of 69.43% from GameRankings and 71 out of 100 from Metacritic. IGN rated it 6.5 out of 10, noting that while it provided a solid adventure for children, it lacked the special 'zing' the license could have afforded. Its simultaneous North American release with the console game Oogie's Revenge positioned it as a companion title for fans of the franchise.
Did You Know?
- The game was developed by Tose for the Game Boy Advance.
- It is a prequel to the 1993 stop motion animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas.
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