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PSP | Action | Tokobot

Boxart for Tokobot
Tokobot 15 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 4.0
  • SOUND: 4.0
  • CONTROL: 4.5
  • FUN FACTOR 4.5
  • AVG USER SCORE 5.0
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 3.7
Winner of the GamePro Editor's Choice Award

Preview: Tokobot

Preview by JohnnyK | 10/03/2005 | 15:35:26 PM PST

These cute little robots invade your PSP this December.

You'd think that the mind that brought you Fatal Frame would have something scary in store for the PSP. But for his latest project, Tecmo's Keisuke Kikuchi has something a bit more family-friendly in store.

On a mysterious island lies buried a powerful and ancient treasure. While no one seems to know exactly what the treasure is, everyone wants to get their hands on it. Hearing of the treasure and its reputed power, young hero Bolt sets out to grab it for himself. It's just too bad that a rival group of treasure hunters have also caught wind of the treasure and that the island is teeming with robots called Protectors that have guarded the loot for centuries. Thankfully, Bolt discovers the Tokobots, cute and helpful little robots that seem to be as old as the treasure itself. Separate, they're not much use to Bolt, but once combined with other Tokobots, they become a formidable force.

The crux of Tokobots focuses on the unique relationship between Bolt and the cute little robots. The Tokobots will always be at Bolt's side and by hitting different buttons on the PSP you can change their relative formation around you. For example, one formation has the Tokobots line up directly behind Bolt. This isn't just for aesthetics, however, as the formation that the Tokobots are in allow Bolt to perform special actions. When lined up behind him, Bolt can swing the Tokobots out in front of him and latch onto special magnetic ledges. Once attached, the Tokobots serve as a sort of ladder allowing Bolt to climb up them. The mechanics of the formation system are incredibly simple, but the gameplay possibilities that result from them are really fun to play around with. Later on in the game you'll also gain the ability to transform your Tokobots into larger robots, such as a tank, that grant you special powers for a limited amount of time.

The Tokobot formation features are a blast, and thankfully the rest of the game seems to be shaping up just as well. The cute and lush visuals are a welcome change of pace for a handheld console in need of some character, and the game sports a stellar camera (not something that many PSP titles can boast about). While it is still a bit off in terms of release, Tokobot is looking to be one of the more promising portable games on the horizon.


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