the genre" but stated there was "little else" upon which to recommend the game. Byron Wilkinson of Cube claimed that readers would "have more fun buying a bucket of Lego and building a toilet" than they would playing Bionicle and called it a "sad" indictment of the video game industry's treatment of licensed properties. Frank O'Connor of Official Xbox Magazine unfavorably compared Bionicle to a PlayStation title, citing the "blocky textures", "primitive camera angles", and "garish color palette". He also criticized the auto-target ability and felt the game would be only appropriate for only "serious Bionicle fans", as it "follows the bizarrely melodramatic plot to a tee". Macworld pointed to lack of challenge for experienced players, short length, "absolutely wretched" camera controls, and higher price point than the console version as reasons why the OS X version is "one to avoid" except for "a Bionicle fan... who hasn't already played this on a console," instead recommending Rayman 3. Some critics viewed Bionicle more favorably. Adam Biessener of Game Informer called it "quite solid" and said it lacked any "glaring problems". However, he felt it was too generic to be a "competitive effort" and would be safe to skip for anyone other than "kids with an affection for Legos that borders on obsession". Xbox Nation reviewer Paul Theobald felt the game had "plenty of promise" and praised the game energy absorption mechanic as a "welcome element of complexity", but criticized its "extremely short length" and generic level design. While GameZone reviewer The Whiz was critical of the short length and camera, he praised Bionicle for its mission variety, boss battles, and environments as well as its difficulty and felt it would appeal to "both beginners and veterans to the platformer series". Reviewing the GameCube version, Nintendo Power called the difficulty too high for novices but recommended the game for "experienced platformer fans" who would "enjoy the challenge." MacAddict called the OS X version "impressive" and "enjoyable—if not engrossing—from beginning to end", praising the game's graphics, sound, map design, and game modes, as well as criticizing the storyline as "enjoyable" but cliché, the camera as "adequate but not intuitive", and the default control setup as "awkward". Commercial Bionicle (along with Argonaut's other Christmas titles SWAT: Global Strike Team and I-Ninja) reportedly sold poorly and failed to generate any licensing royalties for the studio. The company was placed into administration in October 2004,