Cast your mind back about, say, 30 years or so, I can’t remember that far back and some of you probably weren’t even alive. There was a massive blockbuster film starring Arnie called The Running Man, ring any bells now? The plot was that contestants of a game show had to escape with their lives by killing each in order to win. Well that is basically the plot of Jump Stars. You’re prisoners in a game show and you have to work as a team to progress but selfishly to survive. It’s The Running Man for kids.

The game is small in comparison to most so I feel like I’m cheating you a bit with this review, therefore my two kiddywinks and I sat and had a play through of Jump Stars to test the multiplayer aspect of the game. It was fun, lots of fun. Watch the video below.

Jump Stars is a party game for 2 – 4 players, altogether there are 10 mini games that you have to master in order to get top dog status. There are around 20 different characters to select from 5 different character types. They all do the same thing so it’s purely cosmetics only. Jump Stars is probably one of the most colourful games I’ve ever seen and it’s clear that fun is the aim of the game. Your character has the ability to jump, punch left and right and also punch up. Each stage has a common goal for you all to work towards, get enough point and after a series of games you and your team get to face The Gauntlet which is a side scrolling obstacle race.

Jump

To face The Gauntlet you need teamwork but also to survive you need to be selfish and make sure to make the requirement of each mini game. It’s clear that Jump Stars is all about the multiplayer aspect, be prepared for some falling out with each other but on the flip side of that be prepared for some great laughs and challenges for you and your team to complete. Each mini game is unique, from having to collect pies to stay fat, to jumping as fast as you can up a scrolling level. Sounds quite easy but it’s not because every so often a modifier card is played by the host and this switches things up slightly. This could include slowing players down to flipping the whole stage upside down adding a bit of confusion into the mix.

Jump

If you’ve watched the video then there’s not really much else to say; the game is accessible to all ages and plays extremely well. The whole Mafia family have played Jump Stars now and all of us left with a smiles on our faces. It’s not a game that will keep you occupied for hours and hours due to its limited mini-game content but it will offer you and your team and healthy chance to kick each other’s backsides and show each other who is the boss.

Jump

Jump Stars is brought to us by Jamit Games and they have created the perfect “just one more go” type of game. Small in size and definitely one to go back to again and again. Why not have a few beers while playing it, obviously not with the kids, but Jump Stars will definitely get the older generation’s coordination going.

Thanks to Jamit Games and Xbox for supporting TiX