I'm not a religious person, but sometimes I wonder if I should be. It was getting towards the end of the day in my broom cupboard of a reviews office, and the sun was lying low against the sky through the window behind my desk. I put my palms together and prayed to whatever unseen power that might have been watching for some divine intervention that might bring me a copy of 'Grand Theft Toybox' to review.

Lo and behold, within seconds, a knock came at my door, and Doran came into my office, holding a copy of that very game in his hand. Well, not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, I stood up, leapt over my desk, grabbed the game, and kicked Doran straight back out of the door, remembering to lock it tightly shut, because you never know who might be trying to get in. And a good thing, too, as for the next twenty minutes, someone was banging and shouting outside. But when I've got a game to review, I don't let anything distract me, despite what they might be threatening to do to my door, any of my potential offspring, and various parts of my anatomy if I don't 'give it back right now'.

By the way, Doran, if you read this, I appreciate the gift and all, but why did it come with a note saying 'Happy Birthday Brian'? You've known me long enough by now to know my name is Azakir, and my birthday is in the other half of the year. I worry about you sometimes.

On with the review!

A Whole New Toyworld

Toyworld is not just another toy store. Toyworld is the biggest, coolest, most diverse toy store in the entire world! Kids love to go there, wandering the aisles and floors with their parents, getting to see and even play with some of the newest and best toys ever created. Open twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, fifty two weeks a year, its aim in existence is to make sure that anytime anyone needs a toy, they know that they can go to Toyworld. It's a happy place, filled with joyous children and contented parents.

Or at least, that's what the management would like you to think.

In reality, beneath the surface of the seemingly untroubled Toyworld store lies a dark underworld. An underworld of crime and corruption, where gangs of children wage continuous running battles along the aisles for control of the best parts of the store, and hence ownership of the best toys.

The security guards constantly patrol the floors, using CCTV cameras and other such methods to keep the peace, but they are seemingly powerless to stop the underage gangsters. Concerned parents protect their children, but most are unwilling to get involved beyond their own offspring, and the mini-mobsters somehow manage to keep one step ahead of everyone else. The management considered shutting down the open-all-hours store, but the loss of revenue was deemed to be too great while they kept the problems under wraps.

Into this situation steps Tommy Turnpike, a ten year old 'fourth-grader' from out of town. His parents brought him to Toyworld on a trip to see the huge toy store, but Tommy had already heard rumours of its notoriety from other kids in the playground. In his growing desire to get a head start in becoming a teenage delinquent, Tommy decided that he would stake his claim to some of the underworld action and make his name the most infamous in Toyworld history.

It's A Me-toy-polis!

Grand Theft Toybox is a free-roaming adventure game. The entire Toyworld complex is available to explore, although initially only about the first floor is open, the rest becoming unlocked through various in-game events as certain objectives are completed.

The action all takes place from a third-person perspective, the view being tied to Tommy at all times, although the camera is fully rotatable, giving a good view of the surrounding environment. The graphics aren't the most detailed ever seen, but there is good reason for this, as there is so much going on. The size of each floor is immense, covering many different toy 'departments', and each is packed with characters that move around, and objects that can be interacted with and driven into.

Driven? Oh yeah, driven. But we'll get to that in a minute.

The action starts as Tommy and his parents enter the front doors of the toy store. Tommy, being just ten years of age, only comes up to the waistline of most of the adults, causing them to be portrayed as some sort of Charlie Brown-esque semi-giants. The rows of checkouts, each bleeping away with toy sales, pass by the camera as it pans out to show the first floor of the toy store stretching into the distance.

The first mission Tommy has to complete is to make his escape into Toyworld, evading his parents and the security guards. After their entry to Toyworld, this can be attempted at any time. As soon as Tommy wanders a certain distance away from his parents, they will seek to stop him and bring him back to them. It's up to Tommy to make sure that doesn't happen. Helpfully, there are a number of basic weapons and vehicles to make this a rather easy task.

The number of ways this initial mission can be completed belies the open nature of the game. For instance, Tommy can grab a handful of marbles from one of the shelves and throw them behind him, making his pursuers fall over while he escapes, or he could hijack a tricycle being pedalled by another child and use that to outrun those chasing him. Just plain running from the adult characters in the game will rarely end in success, as they're much bigger and faster, but there are many subtle and not-so-subtle ways of getting away, and Tommy will have to use all of them to get by in Toyworld.

Out and About

Once the first mission is complete, the true free-roaming nature of the game reveals itself. The entire first level of Toyworld is open to explore, and it is so much more than just row upon row of endless random toys. Each area on each floor has a special theme, with environments based on those themes. And it's not restricted to, say, a dolls house or two, there are some really interesting ideas out there, like an indoor off-road BMX bike track, a massive indoor playhouse, fully kitted out with swings and ropes, and even a penthouse swimming pool on the top floor!

Around the store wander various adult patrons of Toyworld, along with many children who wander freely about the aisles, just as Tommy intends to. There are also store guards that patrol randomly around the store, keeping an eye out for any of the children involved in the dark underworld that thrives inside the store. If they identify Tommy, the guards will chase him down, but by keeping a low, lawful profile, Tommy can reduce the risk to himself. But where's the fun in that?

The store can be fully explored. There are no doors that go nowhere, no blocked passages, and no invisible 'glass' walls (save for the one covering the entrance to the store, which Tommy will refuse to go through - "I'm not done here yet!"). There are literally hours and hours of store to wander around, and all kinds of transport that can be 'borrowed' from other patrons or the store shelves. There's the aforementioned tricycle, pedal go-karts, motor-driven mini-moped type vehicles, and even a space hopper or two! Over 50 types of vehicle are present in the game, each with different handling characteristics.

There's so much to see, many will find themselves loading the game up merely to play around in what amounts to a giant playground, a toy store of the sort that everyone wanted to be let loose in when they were children. But, to see everything, the other floors must be unlocked, and to do that, missions must be completed. So lets join Tommy as he makes his bid to become accepted in the shady underlands of Toyworld.

You Must Be Shorter Than This To Enter Gangland

There are different areas of Toyworld are 'controlled' by different factions within the store, fighting against the security guards and other factions for survival. If he's going to get anywhere without treading on some toes, Tommy's first priority after escaping his parents has to be to meet some of the key players.

Fortunately, finding these key players is rendered simple through use of the mini-map that inhabits the corner of the screen. The surrounding area, along with its inhabitants, is mapped out in overhead form, allowing easy navigation, and any critical mission waypoints or places outside the short range of the map are identified by a small coloured marker placed around the edge of the circular map, showing the direction it lies in.

After escaping his elders, Tommy's map shows the direction of three different gang 'bosses' on the floor. Each gang in the toy store is based around a different theme, so there's the 'Bicycle Bruisers', who 'own' the indoor BMX track and race around on all manner of bikes, the 'Bitz Hakkors', a group of pint-sized cyberpunks who control the video game section, and the 'Dollhouse Daisies', a bunch of 'girl power' kids who braid their hair with ribbons and call the playhouse section of the store their 'turf'.

It's up to Tommy which of these gangs he sides with, with each offering different missions and advantages to the others. Siding with the 'Bicycle Bruisers' means he can get access to a lot of bike transport quite easily, but then, being on good terms with the 'Bitz Hakkors' means that he could persuade them to use their computer skills to hack into the local CCTV camera network and take out some of the cameras, making access to certain special areas easier. It's a balancing act, although it is impossible to complete missions for any gang without offending at least one of the others at some point. After all, each group wants to dominate the toy store, and that means getting rid of the others, by hook or by crook. And Tommy is the crook.

Trouble in Toyworld

More than once, Tommy will find himself off to steal supplies from one or the other gangs, or from some part of the store itself. The vending machines come under constant attack, as does the store cafeteria, and it is often these supply gathering missions that end up causing the most spontaneous conflict between the gangs. Of course, if Tommy is well enough involved with one gang, he can stir up a fight just by walking into a rival gang's territory!

Of course, cause enough trouble and the security guards will get involved. Just below the mini-map is a row of greyed-out teddy bears. As Tommy causes more trouble, those bears will start to light up, indicating an increased interest from the guards in the store. Getting into a scuffle or two might get a couple of teddies lit, whereas knocking over shelves and displays might get a whole lot more lit! Although, there really is nothing quite as satisfying as finding a display of stacked items and driving through it as high speed in a pedal go-kart.

More lit teddy bears means that the guards will come at you in greater numbers, and with greater firepower. Patrons of the store may get involved too. High levels of guard activity can mean that they will start using such things as glue-guns and net launchers to try and slow Tommy down. If they succeed, and Tommy is captured, then he will be deposited at the entrance of the store, with all his weapons and most of his cash gone, and will have to sneak his way back inside. Otherwise, it is up to Tommy to fight his way out of trouble and run far enough away that he can hide up until the guards give up and the teddy-level reverts to zero. Fortunately, there are plenty of weapons Tommy can use to get himself out of trouble.

Oh yes, I said weapons...

Pint-Sized Protagonist, Maximum Sized-Mayhem

If there's one thing that is apparent throughout the length of this game, it is the imagination that has obviously gone into crafting every last line of code, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the array of weaponry that Tommy can wield.

The vast majority of weaponry can literally be found stacked on the many shelves and displays around the toy store. These range from the basic, quite obvious options, like a baseball bat from the sports section as a melee weapon, to the more unusual, like marbles strewn on the floor to slow Tommy's pursuers, or foam rocket launchers as a ranged weapon.

As can be seen from the above, not all the weapons are purely intended to damage opponents. Many can be used to distract, like a flurry of bangers, little pea-sized explosive charges, more noise and smoke than damage, or used to slow down pursuers and attackers, like with a well-aimed water balloon or two.

On more than one occasion, Tommy will find himself running away from store guards or rival gang members, and be able to grab weaponry from the displays in the toy store, creating a running battle through the store as Tommy fights for his survival, weapons of all sorts being unleashed in the frenzy. It's in these moments that it becomes clearly apparent just how much fun this game is to play. It's worth noting, though, that there is never any death in the game. At worst, opponents are knocked unconscious, and if kept in range of the camera, slowly fade out of view after a short while. No blood, either, but that's not really a complaint. It's refreshing that a game of this type can be violent, non-violent, and extremely good fun at the same time.

To The Top Of The Tree

As much time as it is possible to spend just freely roaming about the store, causing havoc and having fun, especially once the upper levels of the store are unlocked, there is actually a mission structure to the game, as previously described, and along with that comes an ultimate aim to the game.

Tommy starts the game wanting to become one of the notorious names in Toyworld, but depending on what allegiances he builds, and who he sides with, there are a number of different story evolutions and outcomes to the game, ranging from taking control of one of the big gangs, right to finishing his campaign of toyland terror and going home with his parents. Each ending is varied enough in story concept that it is worth playing through again a few times to see them all. The bonus is that the game is fun enough on its own that playing through again is about as far from a chore as it is possible to get, and it's very exciting to find a game that can be described like that.

One thing is left clear, though, after playing this game. As much fun as it is to wander around the store causing random mayhem in a hundred different ways, how much more fun would it be to have other real human players in there to battle against? Imagine, being able to wage large-scale battles among the aisles, fighting against friends across an online network! Surely this must be a future evolution of this game, and indeed, there are rumours that Wreckstar are working on just such a game right now. I can't wait! But for now, the adventures of Tommy Turnpike in Toyworld will do nicely for me. A classic.

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