The much-maligned platform fighter Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is one step closer to having the same basic features of its contemporaries after it dropped an update yesterday that finally added voice acting and items to the game.

Our next major FREE update is here – and it's a big one! We're super excited to announce that voice acting and items are available TODAY on PC, Xbox</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/PlayStation?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">Playstation. @Nintendo Switch coming soon! #NickBrawl pic.twitter.com/nTLK5T6zEG

— Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl (@NickBrawlGame) June 6, 2022

The fall 2021 release of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl was notoriously rushed at release, resulting in a platform fighter that basically only had the mechanics down, while its cast of recognizable characters didn't speak and fought in silent, lifeless arenas. Some players and critics wrote the game off then and there, but a small fanbase believed in the game and developers haven't given up, adding DLC and patching in new features in the months since its tepid release.

Yesterday's update is arguably its most important yet, as developers Ludosity Interactive and Fair Play Labs nabbed many of the original voice actors for the NASB cast, including Tom Kenny as SpongeBob and Dog from CatDog, Jim Cummings as Shredder from TMNT and Cat from CatDog, and Bill Fagerbakke as Patrick. Sadly, Tim Curry doesn't appear as Nigel Thornberry, but Jim Meskimen does a decent job in his stead.

OMG THEY DID IT!!! THEY MADE NIGEL THORNBERRY'S DOWN B "SMASHING!!" I LOVE IT!!! 💜💜💜💜#NickBrawl #NickelodeonAllStarbrawl pic.twitter.com/IexsvACvO2

— PrValkyrie (@PrValkyrie) June 6, 2022

Items were also added to the game, and characters get unique lines when interacting with them. For example, when Patrick downs a Krabby Patty, he says "Oh boy, 3 AM!," a reference to one of early SpongeBob's most iconic gags.

The developers, ever-game to sprinkle memes into the game, also had the voice actors say some "memeified" lines as their characters. For example, fans were excited that Michelangelo says “dude, I could be gaming” upon entering a fight, a niche meme that took off in the TMNT fandom.

HE SAYS THE LINE https://t.co/hbW8BWxzjV pic.twitter.com/AfcpdauZYn

— torn but hyped (apoc) (@Marcanthony737) June 6, 2022

It seems we're far from the days that NASB had zero viewers on Twitch just two months after release, and with voice acting and items, the game may be on its way to establishing itself in what is quickly becoming a crowded genre.