Captain Smiley and his sidekick Star are comic book superheroes who have fallen on hard times. The latest issue of the comic book “The Adventures of Captain Smiley” was a complete failure, and both heroes (along with the rest of the comic book ensemble) are now out of work. Fortunately, the good people at Twisted Pixel Games notice this and provide them with a temporary base of operations where Smiley and his friends (and foes) may reside until they can afford to pay off the loans and re-issue the comic book.
To make ends meet, Captain Smiley’s assistant Gerda is assigned side projects in other comic books, which Captain Smiley must accept (for a monetary payment upfront, of course!). The game occurs across numerous comic book genres (aside from Smiley’s modern style), and the graphical style and antagonists correspond to the comic in which they appear. Captain Smiley will face a battle against primitive tribe members, sexist security guards, and cuddly manga animals… all in the name of regaining his fame!
The game is a mash-up of many action genres, primarily emphasizing side-scrolling platform shooter action. Most of the game is spent traveling through left or right-scrolling stages loaded with adversaries. However, this is broken up by a different gameplay in every scene. Several steps transform the game into a rail shooter, with Captain Smiley running or riding a vehicle from an over-the-shoulder perspective. While Captain Smiley can still be controlled to escape bullets and other hazards, the primary focus is managing a crosshair and eliminating foes through target shooting. Different stages transform the game into a side-scrolling shoot-them-up in which Captain Smiley can fly over the entire screen and must kill waves of opponents coming in from the left or right. Some stages contain side-scrolling beat-them-up sections where opponents must be fended off until a Twisted Pixel logo is filled up. Finally, certain fast-time events are scattered throughout the game in which the player must press the right buttons that appear on the screen to succeed.
The money Captain Smiley earns throughout missions can be used to improve his various characteristics (such as health, power, slide, and so on). Still, it can also unlock over 300 additional goods in the game. They include concept art, interviews with the voice performers, whole comic books, and unique goods like two different stages for ‘Splosion Man and avatar accessories.
Aside from the standard cut sequences in the game, others are filmed with actual actors. Real actors also appear in-game to reinforce the concept that Captain Smiley is a comic book character.
