Patapon 2...They're baaaaaaaaaccccccckkkkk!!

The reason I'm writing this post is to vent some frustration about the bosses in this game. I'm nowhere near beating this game. I think I might be almost a third of the way through. I'm to the second round with the woolly mammoth boss. The one where you get the ponchaka song. See, you need this song in the very next stage against the gate boss Bababan. My complaint with the mammoth boss is that you could be like 5 minutes into the battle and he'll cheepshot you and kill all your guys in one move. This happened to me the last round I played against him. I had him almost beat, and he cought me right after I did the rain juju and stomped on all my guys. Thus ending the round. I had been at him for almost 10 minutes. I thought that the idea of the bosses in this game was to figure out their pattern of attack. Once you figure out this pattern you would think you would be rewarded with a victory. Alas, it is not so. guess I'll just have to keep grinding away till I get past these two bosses. Pata Pata Pata On!!


Update: I finally got past the Woolly Mammoth boss and Bababan the demon gate. Pata Pata Pata Pon!

Resist This!!

So I have recently gotten my hands on Resistance Retribution. Finally PSP has gotten a shooter that isn't "halfed" by some creator that is forced to make a game for the PSP. Insomniac is one of the top 2 devs for PSP. We all know Naught Dog are the gods, but insomniac isn't far behind. Okay so onto the game... So at first the shooting mechanic is a bit tricky. After going through the options and adjusting the controls the game was much more enjoyable. I played the demo, and must say that the full release is much different from the demo, and for the good. The story is much more engaging, and you see how much the weapons very. The use of the shooting mechanic is much more fleshed out as well. You also run into one of the nastiest enemies in the full release the Boilers. These buggers are relentless unless you shoot them in the head. The enemy AI can be weak and cheap at times, but for the most part I found it a good challenge.

Now, I haven't finished the game yet (kind of avoiding it cause I like this game so much), but one of my favorite things about this game is the "puzzle" element to it. Whether it's figuring out the best point of attack or the best weapon the puzzle element keeps you on your toes. This is the kind of game we've been begging for on the PSP since it came out. Go pick up this game and let Sony know what we really want on our PSP's.

Ziggy's Supper Stardust Portable...

From the first clips of this game I was ready to get my hands on it and play. So after downloading SSP it was time to immerse myself in the sound and visuals of this masterpiece. The way you are going to attack this game takes a bit of time to figure out. But, once you do you might as well say goodbye to hours of your life. I believe it was 1UpYours' John Davidson that said this game was like crack. I miss the feel of arcade games. There is just an X-factor in them that brings out this nostalgic feel. The game play balance that makes it just hard enough that it makes you want to throw something, but forgiving enough that you can't help but come back for more. Housemarque could have just tried to do a straight port of this game. Instead they took the time and care to take the nature of the handheld into the equation. The controls are easy to pick up. The rounds can be quick bite size chunks, perfect for pick up and play. The graphics and music are audio visual ecstasy.



Now, I'm not all sunshine and rainbows about this game. The one big nag I have against SSP is the shooting mechanic. My hand quickly cramped up when using the Gold Melter. Maybe I just need to get more aquainted with the other weapons? The Ice Crusher is fast becoming one of my favorite weapons with trial and error.


This might be the best game created for PSP to date. The only other game that might be on this level is God of War. and the replay ability is through the roof. Sony is finally understanding how important online player rankings are. If they want to bring the arcade feel to people this is KEY. Beating your best friends high score is the best excuse for replay. And short of slapping down your quarter on a machine to play next, nothing is more at the heart of being in an arcade. With the online leader board for this game the arcade is finally in your pocket.

A new year begins...

And there is much on the gaming horizon to play. I have gotten my hands on some gems already. I have played through LocoRoco2 already. Fantastic sequel, and way more difficult. I'll take a look at that in future posts. One of my ongoing addictions is Super Stardust Portable. A brilliant port to a great PSN title. That will be talked about later as well. I am currently playing Patapon 2 Don Chacka and the Resistance Retribution Demo. Patapon is as addictive as ever. I'm in the grinding phase though, so just taking my time with it. I have mixed feelings about Resistance. Not so sure I'm a fan of the controls. It's such a hard play mechanic to port to a single stick handheld. I will expound on both these games as well. All I know is that 2009 has shaped up to be an amazing year for the psp so far.