Kenny's Adventure: Scuba in Aruba

Sidescrollers are the type of games that can hypnotize you into playing them for a few hours without even realizing it, mostly due to the fact that the levels themselves are rather short and they make time fly much more quickly. On the other hand, they also need to have what it takes in order to captivate your attention, which usually means a sturdy set of mechanics, challenging obstacles and plenty of mind bending traps.

Kenny's Adventure: In search of family treasures is a classic 2D sidescroller in which you control a teenage boy on a mission to gather as many rare artifacts and coins as possible from the bottom of the sea, all while avoiding the dangers that lurk below the surface. Hence, you get to explore fascinating underwater landscapes and tackle a variety of dangerous sea creatures, ranging from common crabs and blow fish, to hazardous jellyfish.

However, while there is some sort of story behind the events unfolding on the screen, it is pretty well hidden and it can take a bit of effort to find out what's going on and what's your end goal. On the other hand, it is not that important, since you are usually too busy trying to avoid underwater mines to pay attention to the plot line, as well as collect gems and pretty artifacts.

Like any other sidescroller of this kind, your purpose is to collect as many things as you can throughout the levels, whether it's coins, diamonds, or ancient artifacts recovered from the bottom of the ocean. Although you cannot really use these items, they do look quite interesting and they seem to be worth the trouble you are going through, especially if they turn out to be expensive.

Technically, the game fares quite well, especially since the 2D environments are very well drawn and they certainly relay the proper atmosphere as you explore them. The creatures are nicely animated and the main character is quite expressive through his movements, even if you cannot really see his face more often than not.

In the end, Kenny's Adventure: In search of family treasures is definitely worthy of a few hours of your time, especially since the levels are quite varied and interesting. Moreover, they get more and more challenging as you advance through, requiring a lot of coordination and good reflexes in order to complete the final stages.