SpongeBob SquarePants: Revenge of the Flying Dutchman (GameCube, PlayStation 2)

SpongeBob SquarePants: Revenge of the Flying Dutchman
Developer: BigSky Interactive Publisher: THQ Platforms: GameCube, PlayStation 2 Released in US: November 21, 2002 Released in EU: March 14, 2003 This game has unused animations. This game has uncompiled source code. This game has a hidden developer message. This game has hidden development-related text. This game has unused modes / minigames. This game has unused graphics. This game has unused models. This game has unused cinematics. This game has unused abilities. This game has unused music. This game has unused sounds. This game has unused text. This game has debugging material. This game has a hidden level select. This game has a prototype article This game has a prerelease article This game has a bugs page

SpongeBob SquarePants: Revenge of the Flying Dutchman is BigSky Interactive's last game, and the first SpongeBob SquarePants game to be released on sixth generation consoles. After SpongeBob and Gary play fetch, Gary finds the Flying Dutchman's treasure. The Flying Dutchman curses all of SpongeBob's friends to be part of his crew.

Sub-Pages

Prototype Info

Prerelease Info

Bugs

Unused Graphics Everybody's a critic.

Unused Dialogue People talk loud when they wanna act smart, right?

Unused Animations First go like this... spin around - STOP!

Development Text Friends, students, juvenile delinquents, lend me your ears.

Debug Features

Performance Metrics

A display with details regarding the game's performance can be enabled by using the following command in SCRIPT.TSC:

DisplayFps

Alternately, you can use one of the following codes, which will also render player coordinates:

PlayStation 2	GameCube
204E7384 00000018	041E9E28 00000018

(Source: Punk7890 (PS2 code), escape209 (GCN code))

Level Select

In the GameCube version, press and hold L, R, B, X, use the control stick to select a level and press Z to enter. In the PlayStation 2 version, hold L1, R2, Square, O and press SELECT to enter. The level names will appear in the top left corner.

Unused Attacks

Whirlpool

To do: Actually restore the attack and make it work, if possible.

An animation and sound effect for an unused Whirlpool attack can be found among the assets for the Mermaid Man costume.

Speaker	Sound	Subtitle
French Narrator		Use the Whirlpool attack to hit targets in all directions.

In addition, there is an unused line from the French Narrator describing the attack.

Power Chop Attack

An animation of SpongeBob charging up an unused power chop attack.

Scrapped GBA Link Feature

Thanks to various evidence, it is known the game was at some point meant to have GBA Link functionality with the GBA version of the game. To make this happen, collaborative efforts were made between the developers of both versions, but difficulties arose at some point relatively late in development, leading to the feature being scrapped.

In a 2019 interview with YouTube channel Who Needs Normal?, Producer Billy Joe Cain gives his thoughts on what led to the feature being dropped:

At the end things started getting all fast, and although our team was small, just trying to make that kind of thing happen was not going to occur. I was really disappointed about it but even then, we tried to get in touch with Vicarious. I'm sure just as much as they tried to get a hold of us. But nobody had time to communicate because they were so busy trying to rush to get their own products out.

radar.bin

Present at the root directory of the GameCube version is a file named radar.bin. This is actually a working GBA ROM which was clearly intended to be used in a more finalized form for the scrapped GBA Link functionality.

The ROM can be manually loaded on a GBA, and a looping test demo will play on the GBA, shown below:

Attempting to connect a GBA with the ROM loaded to the GameCube will result in a simultaneous crash on both systems.

Voice Clips

Voice clips describing another version of the Jellyfish Rodeo mini-game present in the GBA version using GBA Link remain in the game's audio files. Certain levels would have a special Jellyfish Rodeo Tent that appears when a GBA is connected and you would enter one to start the mini-game.

Bikini Bottom

Audio	Speaker	Subtitle	Notes
	SpongeBob	I don't remember this tent being here before.	This conversation plays when you walk up to the Jellyfish Rodeo Tent in Bikini Bottom for the first time.
	French Narrator	The Jellyfish Rodeo must have left that tent behind, the last time they were in Bikini Bottom. Perhaps it is still occupied.
	SpongeBob	A Jellyfish wrangler! That must be the neatest job under the sea, except for being a fry-cook.
	SpongeBob	If only I could ride a wild Jellyfish!
	French Narrator	This is possible. You simply need to connect your GBA to your GameCube and insert the Game Pak for Revenge of the Flying Dutchman. Then, enter the tent to ride the Jellyfish inside it.
	French Narrator	If your GBA is connected to your GameCube, but you don't have the Game Pak inserted, then you can at least see a radar whenever you go treasure hunting.	If you connected a GBA to the GameCube without a Game Pak inserted, you would have been able to use a Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles-style radar that would show the location of the Dutchman's Treasure for that area. In the final game, you instead use the controller's rumble feature for a similar purpose.

Jellyfish Fields

Audio	Speaker	Subtitle	Notes
	Unknown	Don't tell me you're one of those Jellyfishers, too.	Played when you talked to the character - complete with horrible southern accent and audio reverberation problems - who starts the GBA Link mini-game in Jellyfish Fields for the first time, but you don't have a GBA plugged in. A cut character named Whirlpool is mentioned, and was likely exclusive to the Jellyfish Rodeo mini-game.
	Unknown	What kind of sissy-fish uses a net to catch the little ones? You gotta find the biggest one in the herd and ride it until one of you gives! Whirlpool will show you what I mean if you can bring me one Game Boy Advance.
	Unknown	Stop wastin' your time with those little Jellyfish. Bring me one Game Boy Advance and Whirlpool will show you a real challenge!	Plays when you talk to him again while a GBA is not plugged in.
	Unknown	You've got enough Game Boy Advances for me, but there's still somethin' you've gotta do, pardner.	Plays when you have at least one GBA plugged in.
	Unknown	Your own Game Boy Advance must be connected with your GameCube, and the Game Pak for Revenge of the Flying Dutchman must be plugged into it.	Tells the player to make sure everything is set up correctly before starting the mini-game.
	Unknown	If your Game Boy Advance is connected to your GameCube, but you don't have a Game Pak inserted, then you can at least see a nifty radar whenever you go treasure huntin'. Now, hit the trail!

Apparently, you would initiate the mini-game (at least in Bikini Bottom) by going into a special tent with a Jellyfish inside.

SDK Leftovers

The GameCube version contains many leftover files from the GameCube SDK.

Voice Clips

File Name	Audio	Translation
gcn.pcm16		Nintendo GameCube
left_channel.pcm16		Left channel
right_channel.pcm16		Right channel
center_channel.pcm16		Center channel
rear_channel.pcm16		Rear channel

Sound Clips

File Name	Audio
stream
helicopter.pcm16

MIDI Files

The axdemo folder has the standard GameCube SDK midi files and sound tests.

File Name	Audio
2nd_time.mid
annie.mid
autumnal.mid
j_cycle.mid
worm.mid

Unknown Task

Tasks have a setting which determines whether or not they are "available." Checkbox tasks use this setting, but they simply don't appear in the list if set. If set for a letter tile task, the task's description becomes "Unknown Task". No letter tile task uses this setting, so all letter tile task descriptions are shown from the start of the game. This is likely a development oversight, as this spoils the entire progression of the game from the outset.

Version Differences

• If the music starts again after being interrupted in any way, it will reset to the beginning of the track in the GameCube version and continue from where it was stopped in the PlayStation 2 version.
• Lighting in the PS2 version appears lighter than the GameCube version.
• The PS2 version features the show's intro and a special DVD trailer. While the GameCube version does not, the disc still contains the files for both movies.
  • The PS2 version's theme song would later be used for the title screen in SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom.
• The tile puzzles make SpongeBob's eyes transparent in the PS2 version.
• The level models are of much higher quality in the PS2 version.
• Collision in the PS2 version is slightly modified, as SpongeBob won't get stuck on a platform if he is holding an object.