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Patapon

By Chris Morell
December 13, 2007 16:29 PM PST
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The creators of LocoRoco prepare one of the best PSP games yet, and what could be a new genre of gaming.

So I got a little treat in the mail yesterday. An early build of a new PSP game called Patapon.

There's been a nice little buzz going around the gaming industry about it, so I was very eager to see what all the fuss was about. It didn't take long--about 5 minutes--and I was hooked.

From the studio behind last year's creatively cute LocoRoco, I knew this would probably be something good. But you really have to play the game to see how special it really is.

Patapon is like a role-playing and strategy game wrapped inside a rhythm game. The basic idea is that you control the cute-yet-ferociously deadly Patapon army by tapping specific button combinations in time with the Patapon's addictive songs.

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The Patapon sing and you tap to the rhythm. There's a command to march, one to attack, another to defend and more. The game is presented in a unique 2D art style. There are loads of stages, and the ultimate goal is to move the Patapon army from left to right, defeat the enemies, pick up weapons, items and Ka-ching (currency) to spend on birthing more soldiers, and eventually bring the Patapons to glory. You see, you're their god, and your rhythm guides them through.

There is a ton of strategy that goes into advancing the Patapon army, and while it may seem like a simple concept, there is a lot to do and customize. You can outfit your troops with new weapons, create new soldiers with the right combo of items, learn new "miracles" to do things like summon rain and fire, and much more.

And like LocoRoco, it's all done so wonderfully creative and cute. The songs the Patapon sing are catchy and clever. The art style is unlike anything on the PSP. It's a mix of genres that is interesting enough to deserve it's own.

If you have a PSP (or if it's on your holiday list), keep following this game until it's release early next year. Check out the video above for a short glimpse at what an early level looks like. But there's so much more to the game than shown here. We'll be back soon with more details.