Silicon Fusion >> Editorials >> PSP Launch Games Reviews: Part Two

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7th September 2005:
PSP Launch Games Reviews: Part Two
The second part in our round up of the PSP's launch titles available for Sony's new handheld.
Posted by Chris Barnett - - UK and Europe

Welcome to our second part of the PSP launch review roundup, where we will concentrate on the games from F to M in the alphabet. As with many previous console generations, it already seems that the letter 'M' seems to be the most abundant when naming a game.

F1 Grand Prix
As the first Formula 1 game for the PSP this has no real comparison, and due to its official FIA label it is difficult to see any game challenging it soon. As expected, all 18 circuits are accurately mapped out and all 10 teams are featured. With a blatant tilt towards the arcade-like control and physics, this is quite enjoyable for a game based on a sport that is often passed by due to its one toned nature. The quick race and multiplayer modes do add to the standard championship. The handling feels nothing like a Formula 1 game should as it is so focused on being accessible to all, and the fact that the handling is consistent allows this to be a positive. With a game sharing mode for multiplayer this could have been great.
Overall: A disappointment as an F1 game but a success as a racing game. Confused? It's just that it doesn't feel as if you are driving in an F1 at any time. Enjoyable in an 'Americanised movie rewriting of history' kind of way. 7 out of 10.

Fired Up
A basic story outlining you as a part of a rebel organisation sets up a vehicle combat game that adds guns and missiles to the usual driving game. In homage to the Twisted Metal games this offers various vehicles and weapons in diverse environments, but actually adds better area design and more varied objectives. As well as the standard blasting, collecting is also added and useful 'spotlight' graphics help navigation considerably. The multiplayer mode is also great but not through the net, just through peer to peer. With impressive explosions and easy pick-up dynamics, this is a short term winner.
Overall: A car combat game with little more than guns, driving and collecting. But that is all that's needed to make a great short term game. 8 out of 10.

Lumines
Q Entertainment only have two games, this and Meteos on the Nintendo DS, and both are potentially the best puzzle games of this generation. The simple dynamic here is to line up 'squares' of four or more blocks before a 'beat line' passes them and causes them to vanish. Only two colours of block are used at any one time and the difficulty increases gradually. The music and presentation are so special that they make the game. Each time a certain score is reached, the entire soundtrack and block style changes, giving the game a unique chameleon feel. The music also loops when no blocks are being deleted, so the soundtrack gets better as you play better. A game can last anything up to an hour if you take it easy, but the shorter modes allow a time-trial manner of score play. A multiplayer adds a little to an already perfect package, but this is a game to play on your own to get full enjoyment.
Overall: A real classic and as close to 10 out of 10 that you can get. Just remember to play this with the earphones at all times, you MUST hear to believe! 9 out of 10.

Medieval Resurrection
The franchise that boasts the label 'most successful PlayStation franchise not to be updated for the PlayStation 2' gets a release from day one of the PSP's life. This gives the impression that the developers had been waiting for a suitable platform for this update in the light of all the latest third person games. If this had been released on the PlayStation 2 it would surely have been cast aside as mediocre, but as a launch game for the PSP it is perfectly respectable. It does nothing special with the genre other than add a cartoon-gloom and sense of humour, aided by a Tom Baker narration, to the usual roaming and fighting. Some of the battles can turn into 'hack and slash and hope for the best', but on a portable console this is not so bad as it is only meant to be played in short bursts anyway. The graphics are better than its PlayStation counterpart, but not quite up to the standards of Wipeout Pure or Ridge Racer, which is a shame as the humour in the script is so quirky that it could have benefited from a few sight gags. A small collection of mini-games that can be played on wireless multiplayer add nothing to the game as many of them are variations on the old 'whack a mole' dynamic.
Overall: A welcome update of an old favourite. A little too clunky to be totally recommendable, but the humour and atmosphere play just close enough to Monty Python that this can be forgiven in short burst play. Not bad at all. 6 out of 10.

Archer Maclean's Mercury
A game that attempts to update an old fashioned 80s puzzle may not sound too impressive; especially when the main association with 80s puzzles is the Rubik's Cube. But this game adds much more to the idea; mixing colours, pursuits by 'bots' and moving platforms all make this a strange game. The game plays similarly to Super Monkey Ball in the sense that the stage is tilted rather than the mercury being controlled directly. This can give a feeling of displacement, but it quickly becomes second nature, just in time to grind to a halt as the game gets difficult. As the game starts out, it offers some easy 'introduction' stages that are quite simple. But quickly it becomes apparent that this is not an easy game. With precision required, it is not one to play on a bus, as a fat passenger stumbling into you will result in a certain slip of the PSP's slider. A truly original puzzle game is hard to come by, but this reworks Super Monkey Ball, Marble Madness and Pac Man to such good effect that it feels new.
Overall: A very good attempt at something new, and a game that will really separate the kids from the adults. The difficulty and frustration may be too much for some, but for puzzle fans this is what the PSP was made for. 8 out of 10.

Metal Gear Ac!d
A Metal Gear Solid game in the launch line-up to a new Sony console? Give the company the awards now. But hold on - this is not what we have come to expect from Hideo Kojima at all. This is a turn based card game with the graphics and story of a Metal Gear Solid game, and it really should not have been made. We are all for new additions to franchises to prevent them descending into the mediocrity associated with periodical updates, but this really is a poor idea. The basic gameplay sees a hand of cards being dealt or purchased before a mission and then used to compete against the moves of the bad guys. Each of the cards has a different property and the strategic combinations are impossibly exhaustive. But with all this in mind, it is still a card game and you cannot control characters directly at any time. When the whole point of the game is to experience the thrill of being Solid Snake and other stealthy professionals, this is a criminal decision that leaves this game so far out of its league that it is unreal. The story is also the worst yet seen in the franchise as it is not remotely believable or interesting.
Overall: A really deceiving game that many will buy on false expectations. If you like turn based card games and don't mind a plot that makes Ian Fleming's James Bond plots seem like Shakespeare, then there may be something here to enjoy. For the average gamer this is not even a game though. 4 out of 10.

Chris Barnett

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