Bolt: The Video Game

Bolt is a video game based on the Disney film Bolt, though it is actually about the fictional TV show the titular character stars in. The video game was developed by Avalanche Software and published by Disney Interactive Studios. Mark Walton, Sean Donnellan, and Malcolm McDowell reprise their roles as Rhino, Penny's TV Dad, and Dr. Calico respectively. 
==Synopsis==
In the game, the player follows and controls Bolt and Penny on various missions taking place in the fictional Bolt TV show from the movie.
The game was released in North America on November 18, 2008, in Australia on December 4, 2008, and in Europe on February 13, 2009. By using Bolt's superpowers, the player can fight enemies. New powers, such as Superbark and Laser Eyes, can be unlocked during the game. The levels are shared between Bolt and Penny. While Bolt has superpowers, Penny has maneuverability by using her Wheelbar. However, the game focuses on the Bolt TV show, not the actual movie storyline- Penny's father has been kidnapped by Dr. Calico, and Penny and Bolt must travel through 5 different countries to rescue him.
The story is framed as Rhino watching a DVD pack of the Bolt TV show, possibly at the rural home at the end of the movie with Bolt's family (Penny, Mittens, Bolt himself, and Penny's mother). Rhino is only glimpsed in the game's opening cutscene and the ending, though he can be heard in the pause menu. The DS version has a mini-game called Rhino's Mission, where Rhino has to go through mazes and avoid obstacles, like cannons. In the intro, Rhino claims the DVD has over 940 minutes of Bolt. However, there are only 25 "episodes", and the player does not see the rest due to Rhino falling asleep at the end of the game.
==Variations==
Disney has released multiple versions for different game systems including Nintendo Wii, PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 2 and 3, but the Nintendo DS has a different feel and more of a 2D look to it. In addition, the DS version does not have character voices, but instead uses words across the screen to tell the user what the character's saying.
A mobile game was also released. The game was developed by Enorbus and Disney Mobile. The mobile version has a 2D look and 4 levels in three different locations, making for a total of 12 levels. The three different locations are (in order): L.A., Bolivia, and Dr. Calico's Secret Island. The player uses Bolt's Super Bark, Super Bite, and Super Speed to battle enemies and level bosses. One interesting difference between the various platforms are the "host" characters, or the lack thereof. For instance, in the Wii edition, Rhino is the "host", appearing at the beginning and end of the game, and making comments when the "pause" button is selected. In the mobile game, Mittens and Rhino are both seen before and after each level as watching the Bolt TV show. In the DS version, there is no "host" character to be seen (even though Rhino does get his own mini-game), but letters are displayed onscreen, informing the user on the storyline.
==Summary==
The game's story begins in Italy at a big mansion. Penny travels around the property until she reaches the roof and eavesdrops on some of Dr. Calico's men talking about their mission. Suddenly, the glass breaks and Penny falls down into the room and gets captured. Luckily, Bolt comes to the rescue and has a big battle with Dr. Calico's men. After the battle, Penny is told where Dr. Calico is by the last minion before Bolt drops a piano on the minion's head. Dr. Calico is hiding in a temple in the Yucatan jungle.
Penny and Bolt head to the jungle. Bolt takes out Dr. Calico's men while Penny looks for a way inside the temple. They make it inside and Bolt battles more of Dr. Calico's men.
They make it to Dr. Calico, but he finally managed to capture Penny. To prove Penny was alive and in custody to her father, Calico gave Penny a cell phone with her father on the other line. Calico then attempted to flee the crumbling temple with his new captive, but decided to leave her there with Bolt to die, saying, "As long as the professor believes she's alive, he will do what is asked and finish the weapon. Too bad we can't all have nine lives."
However, Penny and Bolt survived and discovered Calico's new arctic base with a large rocket in the center. But upon entering, Penny notices micro-focusing mirrors and realizes that it is her father's satellite instead of a warhead. All too late as Calico seals the entrance and, to Bolt's horror, launches it with Penny inside saying. Bolt then jumped onto the rocket and dismantled it in mid-flight, crashing it into the snow.
The two then ventured to Calico's harbor in China, (they found it out through a computer system) where they discovered a ship full of warheads. Just then, Calico arrived at the harbor, enraged to find Penny still alive, and even more so as he watched his prized freight ship sink into the water, thanks to Bolt, who then pursues Calico, escaping in his car to a nearby train station. He arrives at the station and boards his train, closely followed by Penny and her dog. Just as the duo finally corners the doctor, he slips into a hidden room and escaped on his private jet. Not before Penny secures a homing beacon onto the hull, leading them right back to Calico's base.
Penny and Bolt traced his jet back to his main base, where Penny's father was being held. However, upon arriving, Calico used his new weapon on Bolt, draining him of his powers and strength and capturing Penny. Once Penny is inside, he explains his plan to use Penny's father's micro-focusing mirror-equipped satellites to bounce a beam around the Earth and neutralize and destroy all atomic weaponry execpt for his own. And as he leaves, he violently kicks Bolt's cage proving Penny of her limited knowledge. However, during this, Penny maneuvered her way out of her hand bindings.
Once free, she attempted to find her father to save Bolt. Unfortunately, she is only captured by the doctor once again, just as Bolt regains his powers and Penny sabotages the control panel, however, raising the bridge so Bolt could reach her. Once he did, Penny escaped from her guard captors yet again and launched a pre-prepared, rocket powered cart at the main power generator (which Bolt exposed). Then, using what power remained in the generator, Calico dueled with Bolt, using powerful lightning bursts. After the lengthy and hard-fought battle, Bolt finally defeated him. Beaten and weakened, he attempted to escape on his private helicopter, launching numerous missiles as a decoy, just as Penny finally finds her father (aboard the helicopter). But while Bolt tried to apprehend Calico by grabbing his foot, Penny's father pleads to her and Bolt to allow Calico to escape with himself to stop the missiles, reminding her that she had the power to find him again. Regretfully, Penny ordered Bolt to stop the missiles as Calico escaped with her father.
== Cast ==
* Ashleigh Prather as Penny
* Frank Welker as Bolt
* Mark Walton as Rhino
* Malcolm McDowell as Dr. Calico
* Sean Donnellan as Penny's father
* Stephen Stanton as Henchmen
* Fred Tatasciore- Additional voices
* Anna Graves-Additional voices
* Jim Ward-Additional voices
* Josh Robert Thompson-Additional voices
== Trivia ==
* Miley Cyrus and John Travolta don't reprise their roles in the game. In fact, Bolt doesn't even have lines in the game, he just barks.
* In some levels, Penny's wardrobe somewhat changes as an error. One example is during gameplay; when she is trapped in her father's satellite, she is wearing her iconic red T-shirt and striped leggings. However, in the cut scenes of that level, she is wearing her scarf, red T-shirt and white pants for unknown reasons.
* Despite the game taking place in the fictional TV show, most of the episodes seemingly take place before the events of the film, which begins with the episode when Penny and Bolt are chased by Calico's forces in a city. Because of this, the episodes in the game shortly take place after Penny's father is captured by Dr. Calico. 
** In fact, according to Rhino, the episodes are 940 minutes long. 
** Also, in the film itself, there are past pictures of Penny and Bolt during their adventures in the show, heavily implying that these episodes take place after the game and before the film.
** Since Rhino is watching the episodes on TV, it possibly takes place after the end of the film itself.
* Dr. Calico doesn't have his feline minions in the game for unknown reasons.
* In the game, Calico's henchmen have different variations, while in the film, they appear the same. 
* Penny's gameplay seems to be similar to the Splinter Cell and Uncharted video games, since her gameplay focuses on stealth takedowns, levers and hacking devices.
* This is the only Disney video game based on a movie to have an original storyline which is mostly the fictional Bolt TV show itself, rather than a storyline that focuses on the movie's plot with elements not featured in the movie.
==Reviews==
* GameSpot - 7/10
* IGN - 5.1/10
* Metacritic - 3/5
* Common Sense Media - 4/5
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