What the game is
SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated is a 3D platformer built as a faithful remake of the cult classic, with high-end visuals, modern resolutions and carefully polished gameplay. You play as SpongeBob, Patrick and Sandy, each with their own unique set of skills, and set out to thwart Plankton's plan to rule Bikini Bottom with an army of wacky robots. Along the way you run into countless characters from the series, clear out rampant robots with mighty bubbles, and take in the odd moment like an underpants bungee jump. The remake also restores content that was cut from the original, including the Robo Squidward boss fight.
Playing together
The group-friendly piece here is the brand new horde mode multiplayer, which supports up to two players both online and offline. That mode is separate from the main run through Bikini Bottom, so it works as a quick shared round when your group wants something to jump into together. The game also supports Online Co-op and Remote Play Together, which gives your group options for linking up when you are not all in the same room. For a Discord group, the horde mode is the natural pick when two of you want to play side by side while the rest watch or take turns.
Before you start
The main campaign is a single-player 3D platformer with open, colourful areas to explore and plenty to collect, so expect some running around and cleaning up sections rather than constant combat. The horde mode caps at two players, so a larger group will need to pair off or rotate. It is a family-friendly cartoon game with a comedic tone, which makes it easy to hand the controller around. Restored content like the Robo Squidward fight is a bonus for anyone who played the original, but nothing needs to be known beforehand to follow the story.