History YMMV / JamesPond

* FridgeBrilliance: As stated on the main page in OpeningShoutOut, the first game parodies the Creator/MetroGoldwynMayer logo, who owns the James Bond film franchise. However, the Sega Genesis versions of the James Pond games were published by Creator/ElectronicArts, who were actually named in tribute to Creator/UnitedArtists, the actual original distributors of the James Bond franchise, who were bought out by MGM in 1981, and the Electronic Arts splash screen at the time had horizontal lines going though it just like the UA logo at the time did, but Electronic Arts wasn't the original publisher of James Pond, just on the Sega Genesis, meaning the most accurate OpeningShoutOut James Pond had [[{{Irony}} was completely unintentional]].

* ContestedSequel: The remake of ''James Pond II: Codename [=RoboCod=]'' by Play-It, ltd., for the Platform/PlayStation, Platform/GameBoyAdvance, and recently, the Platform/NintendoSwitch, [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unsurprisingly]], isn't the most popular among the fans.

* ContestedSequel: The remake of ''James Pond II: Codename [=RoboCod=]'' by Play-It, ltd., for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation, UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, and recently, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unsurprisingly]], isn't the most popular among the fans.

** The intro to the UsefulNotes/PlayStation version of ''James Pond II'', for some reason, plays the game's SavingChristmas plot ''seriously'', and it also tries to make James Pond himself look unironically cool. Even if a fish as a spy [[AudienceAlienatingPremise can actually make a serious story]], the [=PS1=] intro is [[LimitedAnimation horribly animated]] and [[ArtStyleDissonance still too cartoony]].

** Played straight with UsefulNotes/Commodore64 and UsefulNotes/GameBoy versions of ''James Pond 2'', '''especially''' the Commodore 64 one, which have poor graphics (though not so much for the [=GameBoy=]), poor physics and jumping control, and the levels are in a confusing order, and there's only ''one'' music track used in the levels (the Gameboy version has more music overal, including a boss theme, but the level music only has one track,). In the Commodore 64 version, jumping on enemies is absurdly difficult to do without getting hurt.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: This is how some fans feel about the Play-It, Ltd. remake of ''James Pond 2'' for the Playstation, [=PS2=], UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, UsefulNotes/NintendoDS, and most recently, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, due to it revamping the entire game layouts, rearranging the levels drastically, and removing hidden levels entirely in exchange for bonus stages that you have to collect all of the bell items in each stage in order to get to. The music itself is either from the Amiga [=CD32=] version (for the console versions and Switch) or from the MS-DOS[[note]]The music from the DOS version themselves are actually modified versions of the original Amiga's [=MOD=] files, in a slightly similar way to the Amiga [=AGA1200's=] tracks[[/note]] (for the [=GBA=] and [=DS=] versions), but the musical arrangement is questionable.[[note]] The handheld versions over-use the Teddy-Bear room theme, simply called "The Bath", including ''outside'' the castle, where the main theme, "Many Cats" would be used, which itself is barely used at all, while the Playstation and Switch versions seem to play different tracks randomly, except outside the castle, where the "Spirt of An Agent" theme always plays. [[/note]] Though the Playstation version [[SoBadItsGood might be worth getting]] if you find [[LimitedAnimation the animated intro and ending]] [[{{Narm}} entertaining]].

*** ''Also'' in ''James Pond 3'', three levels in the game, "Parmesan Plains", "Slimeswold", and [[MeaningfulName "Slippery Slopes"]] have BottomlessPits. The first two levels have very long bottomless pits that actually give Pond a different death animation with him [[HellIsThatNoise giving a horrifying scream]]. In "Slippery Slopes", [[NothingIsScarier Pond just bounces off the bottom of the screen, without even]] [[CriticalExistenceFailure giving his usual death scream]]. It's hard to say which is scarier.

* SoBadItsGood: Not so much the gameplay, which is actually ''genuinely'' fun if unoriginal—James Pond 2 and James Pond 3 both clearly have a lot of Mario-type elements—and James Pond 3's gameplay style, which actually ''combines'' Sonic the Hedgehog and Mario gameplay elements, is considered genuinely fun for it's somewhat unique style resulting from said gameplay combination, but what makes the James Pond games truly entertaining is the absolutely ridiculous puns and the {{Camp}}y aspects of the games, such as the [[MundaneMadeAwesome ridiculously dramatic pause sting]] from the first game, the SavingChristmas theme of the second game being mixed with a ''Franchise/RoboCop'' parody, as well as the blatantly MisplacedWildlife of Penguins in that game, and the third game's literally cheesy puns and premise of the moon ''not'' just being made of [[CheesyMoon cheese]], but other dairy products, which a few of just happen to have sponge holes just like the swiss cheese does. This is very likely [[InvokedTrope intentional]].

* FirstInstallmentWins: {{Inverted}}, while the first game is considered to be good if [[NintendoHard frustratingly hard]], the two sequels are more popular, [[PortOverdosed especially the second one]].

* PolishedPort: In addition to the below-mentioned aversion for a [=CD32=] version, an [[BadExportForYou absurdly region specific]] Polished Port is the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnh2J66LH2s&list=PLIPq3Dh3SJ1M_BL9rk7RRA54T4U4XqIT8&app=desktop Japanese/Super Famicom version]] of the [=SNES=] version of ''James Pond 2'' (known as "Super James Pond [II]" on that console), which not only adds the original Amiga and Sega Genesis intro that the American and [=PAL=] [=SNES=] versions removed, but also added screens with Dr. Maybe that show up after each level[[note]] Since they're in Japanese, it's not clear what the screens say, but the Let's Players in that video think it lists how many levels are left and that it could be mistaken for how much time you spent in the level.[[/note]], and the bosses [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill break down and explode in the most over-the-top way]].

** Surprisingly {{inverted|Trope}} with the [[PolishedPort Amiga [=CD32=] version]] of ''James Pond 2: [=RoboCod=]'', which has a revamped CD soundtrack and better graphics than the original Amiga 500 versions, and has an animated video intro and an animated short made to preview ''James Pond 3'' (both of which only exist on [=YouTube=] in low quality, but is pretty fun for what it's worth). Quite impressive considering the quality [[Horrible/VideoGamesOther of the CD32 in general]].

* BrokenBase: The remake of ''James Pond II: Codename [=RoboCod=]'' by Play-It, ltd., for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation, UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, and recently, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unsurprisingly]], isn't the most popular among the fans.

* BrokenBase: The remake of ''James Pond II: Codename [=RoboCod=]'' by Play-It, ltd., for the UsefulNotes/{{Playstation}}, UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, and recently, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unsurprisingly]], isn't the most popular among the fans.

** The intro to the UsefulNotes/{{Playstation}} version of ''James Pond II'', for some reason, plays the game's SavingChristmas plot ''seriously'', and it also tries to make James Pond himself look unironically cool. Even if a fish as a spy [[AudienceAlienatingPremise can actually make a serious story]], the [=PS1=] intro is [[LimitedAnimation horribly animated]] and [[ArtStyleDissonance still too cartoony]].

** Surprisingly {{Inverted}} with the [[PolishedPort Amiga [=CD32=] version]] of ''James Pond 2: [=RoboCod=]'', which has a revamped CD soundtrack and better graphics than the original Amiga 500 versions, and has an animated video intro and an animated short made to preview ''James Pond 3'' (both of which only exist on [=YouTube=] in low quality, but is pretty fun for what it's worth). Quite impressive considering the quality [[Horrible/VideoGamesOther of the CD32 in general]].

** The Playstation 1 version of the Play-It, Ltd. remake of ''James Pond II'' is also this, though clearly unintentionally so. Unlike the {{Camp}} animated segments from the Amiga [=CD32=] version, which have a fairly decent, Creator/{{Hanna Barbera}}-esque animation and art style, the [=PS1=] intro has '''awful''' cel-shaded CGI mixed with even ''[[LimitedAnimation worse]]'' [[LimitedAnimation actual 2D animation]], and [[TookTheBadFilmSeriously takes itself seriously]], trying to make Pond look cool, and Dr. Maybe is shown tying an elf to dynamite ''outside'' for [[WhatAnIdiot no reason whatsoever]]. And there's a ''thunderstorm'' outside of Santa's castle! And the ending is even worse than the intro because it has [[RecursiveCanon two kids getting the game for Christmas]] for no reason at all... and then Pond winks at the screen, and [[LimitedAnimation the background visibly]] [[SpecialEffectsFailure jolts behind him]]. The Play-It remake itself is controversial, as stated above in BrokenBase, but the Playstation version is ''definitely'' worth getting for all the wrong reasons.