Battle for Bikini Bottom

SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom
The North American Cover Art of SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom for the Xbox
Developer(s)	Heavy Iron Studios (PS2, Xbox and GCN) AWE Games (PC) Vicarious Visions (GBA)
Publisher(s)	THQ
Director(s)	Shiraz Akmal
Designer(s)	Joel Goodsell
Programmer(s)	Justin Stitz
Engine	RenderWare
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Advance
Release	PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, and Game Boy Advance NA: October 31, 2003 EU: November 28, 2003 PC NA: October 31, 2003 EU: October 31, 2003
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, Sandbox Platformer
Mode(s)	Single-player

SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom is a 2003 video game based on the animated series of the same name, developed by Heavy Iron Studios, AWE Games, and Vicarious Visions, and published by THQ. The game was released for the PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance (GBA), Xbox, and Nintendo GameCube consoles as well as a port for Microsoft Windows. The Microsoft Windows version of the game is a point-and-click adventure game, whereas the 6th generation platforms received a 3D platformer. The Gameboy Advance version received a 2D platformer. All versions of the game feature an original storyline, in which the player attempts to defend Bikini Bottom from an invasion of robots created by Plankton with a machine called the Duplicatotron 3000, playing as SpongeBob in all versions, as well as Patrick and Sandy in the console versions. The game was released on October 31, 2003, in North America and in Europe on November 28, 2003.

Battle for Bikini Bottom received mixed and average reviews. Edge magazine later included the PlayStation 2 and Game Boy Advance versions on its lists for top video games of the 21st century.

Core gameplay involves collecting items, such as Golden Spatulas, Shiny Objects, and Lost Socks, and defeating the robots which have attacked various areas in Bikini Bottom, whilst crossing platforms and avoiding environmental hazards like spikes and flames. Some areas require different characters to beat, as each character has their own unique abilities. The player can control SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy, except in the Game Boy Advance (GBA) and PC version, in which the only playable character is SpongeBob. Switching characters in console versions requires the player to find a Bus Stop. Upon using said Bus Stop, the current character will switch to another, and using it again will switch back to the previous character, giving the player an option of two characters in each level. The default character throughout the game is SpongeBob; Sandy and Patrick do not appear together as playable characters in any of the same levels.