Over the Hedge

It won’t win any awards for originality, but with quality visuals, outstanding voice acting, and challenging gameplay, Over the Hedge is guaranteed to entertain and delight young and old alike, and should make the perfect companion piece to the upcoming film.

It's packed with missions and objectives, clever yet straightforward level design and delivers co-op and single player switch-on-the-fly movie derivative critter-foolery. [July 2006, p.72]

Simple, clean and fun - this is a fine example of a children's videogame, with some jokes for the grown-ups too. Surprisingly entertaining. [Aug 2006, p.76]

The game will provide a good deal of fun for younger fans of the film, even though older kids may not find it to be as entertaining.

The humor and style of the film translate well here and are helpful in filling the gaps where the simplistic gameplay and rushed mini-game mode fall short.

As it stands, Over the Hedge is entertaining enough to hold its own, and that is a victory in itself.

Over the Hedge is a game that doesn’t add anything new to its genre or to the movie it came from originally, but makes for a decent tie-in.

The game isn’t particularly original, creative, or inspired, but for fans of the movie and parents looking for an entertaining, if harmless division for their kids, this is a good choice.

Lastly, the main game isn't all that long, coming in at about five or six hours. In a way, that's a good thing, as I can't imagine the game lasting much longer without things starting to get a bit old, plus the multiplayer and mini-games will probably add a few more hours to the mix for younger gamers. Still, it's something to be aware of, especially if one is considering spending $40 on the title.

Rated next to proper, real life combat platform games like Jak & Daxter and Sly Raccoon it's evidently a pale shadow of what else is out there, but next to other kids' games it's a massive improvement over what we've seen this year.

If there's one true complaint we could lodge against Over The Hedge, it's the game's real lack of camera control.

A few unique touches are overshadowed by crushingly dull gameplay in this perfunctory animated movie tie-in.

Nothing but a mediocre button masher with weak combos, boring platform gameplay, frustrating mechanics, and minigames you’ll only enjoy if you’re evil enough to force a friend to play along.

Like the film this will keep you amused for a good hour and a half but not a lot more. [Issue 142, p.94]

Over the Hedge has exactly what you’d expect the typical movie-licensed video game to have: unoriginal, repetitive gameplay that’s obviously cashing in on a movie which had much more work put into it.

Repetitive platform action. It's playable, just, but staggeringly uninventive, uninspiring and instantly forgettable. [Aug 2006, p.101]