It was a dark and stormy night. In the distance, thunder rolled. Rain fell in sheets across the windshield. The bright blue and neon green paint job was dull, almost black in the night. Inside, an athletic blond young man drove, a pretty red headed girl clad in purple in the passenger's seat. A bespectacled girl in an orange sweater read a book by a tiny flashlight. In the back, a wild-haired, scruffy youngster and a large brown dog munched on bone shaped snacks. Mystery, Inc. was on its way to the scene.
The quintet of private investigators entered the home. Inside, a small boy waved around a video game controller. So engrossed was the lad in the game, he barely noticed the arrival of the newcomers. Next to him, on the couch, was the body. It was man in his mid thirties, stretched out, still grasping a pair of controllers, like the boy's. The man made a loud snoring noise, and the dog leaped ,whimpering, into the arms of the scruffy young man. "Zoinks!" Shaggy exclaimed. "I thought he was a goner, like, for sure! What's the mystery here, Fred?"
The tall youth frowned slightly, and scratched his head, his elaborately styled hair bobbing with the motion. "I'm not sure, Shaggy. I thought it might have been foul play.
The girl in the orange sweater peered through her large glasses at the screen. "Wait a second, Fred. It looks to me like he's playing our new game, Scooby Doo First Frights! What a coincidence..." she said. The boy, still caught up in the game, laughed out loud at the on-screen antics. He looked perfectly happy. The girl in purple sat down on the couch next to him, and took the controller from the hands of the sleeping father.
"Looks like we do have ourselves a mystery to solve, then, after all! Why would a grown man fall asleep playing Scooby Doo First Frights, while at the same time, a little kid seems to be having the time of his life?" The kid cackled in glee once again. "Let's investigate and see if we can find some clues..." She pressed a button on the controller and soon she was in control of Fred, on screen. The other members of Mystery Inc. settled in and watched, while the dog headed to the refrigerator.
"Hey, this is pretty cool. Fred looks cute! Look at him smacking those gargoyles around. He can even double jump in the air. I wish we could do some of these moves in real life, it might come in handy." Daphne chewed on her lip, and frowned slightly. "I have to say, this is a bit odd. I'd have expected something more like an adventure game, where you have to find clues and such. All we're doing is running around and bashing enemies. A LOT."
The girl in orange looked up from reading the game manual. "Actually, it says here that you can find clues. You pick up puzzle pieces by breaking boxes and defeating enemies. Once you find all the puzzle pieces, you get a clue, and then the game takes you to the next scene." She walked over the Daphne and took the controller from her. "Let me take over for a bit. I want to know more about my video game character!"
On the screen, the animated Velma threw books all over the screen, breaking boxes. Scooby snacks flew everywhere. "Man, I wish I had some Scooby Snacks right now, don't you, Scoob?" Shaggy exclaimed. The dog returned to the living room, carrying a plate full of sandwiches and chips. Scooby mumbled something, and began eating the sandwiches at an alarmingly quick rate. "Hey, save some for me!" Shaggy ran over and grabbed the last sandwich.
"Speaking of Scooby Snacks, they work a bit like money. You can save them up and buy things with them. Let's check it out!" said Velma. She navigated around a few menus. "Hey, you can buy costumes for all of us! Fred can be a football player. Well, that makes sense. Daphne is a rock star? A bit random, but still cool. WHAT?!" Velma's face curled up in fury. "My alternate costume is a SUMO WRESTLER? Did we ever solve a case where I was a sumo wrestler?" Fred and Daphne laughed. "Scooby gets an opera singer costume? Why?"
"Who knows, Velma? Try out the Sumo costume, just for fun. You might like it!" said Fred.
"Fat chance!" came Velma's reply. In the background, canned laughter could be heard. "I'll try it out anyway." After a few minutes, she groaned and gave the controller to Fred.
"Well at least you have different abilities in the Sumo suit," said Fred. "Rolling around on your belly and crushing enemies is better than throwing books anyday." He played for a few minutes as the girls watched on. Shaggy and Scooby lay, content, on the floor, hands on their full bellies. "Wow! I'm really strong! I'm the only character who can push these levers, how about that? Looks like Daphne's special ability is to shimmy up or across poles, which makes sense when you think about it." Daphne's jaw dropped and she hit Fred in the arm. "Velma can operate control panels, Scooby can walk through doggy doors, and Shaggy can use his slingshot as a grappling hook. Hmm."
On screen, a boss battle was taking place. The action was fast, and frantic. Fred died a lot, but kept respawning over and over. Eventually, he and the boy wore the boss down. After the fight, the game gave them a choice, asking them to predict which in story character was behind the mystery. After this, a long, nicely animated cut scene explained everything. Fred sat back, and handed the controller to Velma. He turned to speak to Daphne.
"Well, the voices are spot on, they really sound like us. I'm not sure about my hairstyle, but whatever. Looks like the laugh track and cheesy jokes are all included too, just like the show." He looked down at his watch. "Wow, we finished an entire mystery already, and we've been here, what, two hours?" he said. Velma nodded.
"Seems pretty short, to me. And the back of the box says there's only four mysteries to solve in all." Velma put down the controller. The man on the couch snored loudly, and began to stir. "I guess you can go back and try it again with different characters, if you wanted. But still, not a lot of game here." The boy giggled as, on screen, Scooby Doo bashed enemies with nunchuck sausage links. "It doesn't bother him, too much, though, does it?"
Finally, the man who had been sleeping sat up. When he saw all the strangers sitting in his living room, he let out a brief cry. "Who are you people? What's going on here?" He grabbed his son protectively. Fred walked over to the man.
"We're here investigating a mystery. We are trying to figure out why you fell asleep playing Scooby Doo First Frights, but the kid is having a great time," he said. The man began to speak, but Fred shushed him. "I think we have it figured out. The game is repetitive. It has a silly story, and the plot makes little sense. The puzzle elements are very basic and there is very little challenge due to the respawn mechanic. Also, the unlockable costumes are just pretty weird. Is that pretty much it?" Fred looked at the man expectantly. He nodded, and his face fell.
Velma spoke up. "You have to remember, sir, that all the things that bugged you about the game are exactly what your son loves! Did you hear him laugh at Scooby in an opera singer's costume?" She stuck out a finger as she scolded the man. "Do you think he cares if it's just a simple beat 'em up? Remember, this game is made for kids, and when it comes to pleasing kids, this game has a lot going for it!"
The man grimaced, and growled, "I might have enjoyed it myself, if it hadn't been for the easy-to-please kids!" Shaggy laughed, and Scooby Doo howled:
"SCOOBY DOOBY DOOOOO!!!"