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| | Title:
Psychonauts
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System:
Playstation 2
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Genre:
Action/Platforming
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Publisher:
Majesco Games
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Developer:
Double Fine Productions
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Release:
6/1/2005
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Online:
No
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ESRB:
Teen
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Psychotic Introduction
You can tell a game is going to be something special when squishing noises can be heard as you traverse a human brain to find the “start new game” button. Psychonauts is an instant success in design and implementation. It mimics great platformers in gameplay, yet it provides something all together different with presentation, style and ability. The first thing I thought was that Tim Burton got a hold of a Tak game and had almost full reign on the style as his own irrational psychic thoughts manifested themselves onto the canvas of the game Double Fine Products molded into a damn fine platforming adventure.
What’s On Your Mind?
“The human mind: 1500 grams of complex neuro-matter; a 3-pound pile of dreams. But I’ll tell you what it really is! It’s the ultimate battlefield. It’s the ultimate weapon! Those that learn to use it well will become Psychonauts! The rest of you…will die! Well, if you don’t become a Psychonaut, you’re better off dead!” About this time a child in training at the PSI Cadet Camp cries in fear as Coach Oleander describes the trials one must go through to be a Psychonaut. The camp is full of kids in training. One kid sneaks his way in, even able to defend his young mind from three trained Psychonauts as they try to probe his mind during his intrusion to the camp. “Raz” (Razputen) is the newest cadet to the camp and is allowed to stay merely for the immense power of his mind. A circus runaway, he must now go through trials of the mind by entering those of the trainers to earn badges and ranking to eventually become a Psychonaut.
Further into camp days and training, trouble brews as psychic disturbances eventually take the minds of the rest of the campers, leaving them as soulless bodies. It’s up to the kid prodigy, Raz, to unfold the mystery behind the psyche.
I Can Hear You Thinking!
Entering the mind of anyone who’d tell a group of kids they are going to die has to be an incredible journey and an instant telltale sign that the entire game will consist of a clairvoyantly fun and quirky story. The first level is possibly what you’d expect to find in the mind of a war veteran bent on getting kids through his “mental boot camp” to earn their first badge in “Basic Braining”. Levels like the innards of the security guard Boyd Cooper’s mind looks like a suburb from a 50’s show, twisted with eccentricity and the imposing doom of “The Milkman”! And to the other extreme, Raz even enters his own mind which is a dark and foreboding atmosphere…with a little white bunny, too. It’s almost hard to describe what you’ll see in each type of level, so I’ll tell you that the design is quite original while maintaining fairly standard platforming schemes. However, no two levels are the same nor do they often share the same gameplay traits or design. Levels are multi-tiered with plenty of obstacles, enemies, collection of too many types of power-ups, money (Arrowheads) and collectables to list, all portrayed in incredible depth and a luscious color palette. As Raz traverses these strange worlds in the mind of dozens of different counselors and campers as well as those stemmed from the camp’s main grounds, he gains items that not only gain him new rank, but also gain him new psychic abilities.
Think Before...Or to Act
The psychic phenomenon is what really propels the game from just basic platforming fare. Since no two levels are the same, it assists in keeping you from even remembering that often you’re doing standard platforming things like double-jumping, swinging, tight-rope walking and bashing enemies or obstacles. I guess seeing reflections and voices of the person’s mind you are in can have that effect, especially if, at will, they can launch obstacles or hurtful blasts in your direction. Fortunately, the power of Raz’s mind is strong and he attains rank quickly, gaining new powers as he goes such as Pyrokinesis (fire starting), Telekinesis (move objects with his mind), Shield (project a shielding around him) and Invisibility (self-explanatory). Oh, and they don’t stop there! Raz’s abilities can even power up, attaining even cooler moves like the Chain Blast, where his PSI Blast powers bounce from one enemy to the next, in a chain.
PSI Powers wouldn’t be much use if the talented developers didn’t provide consistent and intuitive control. Fortunately, that type of thing goes without saying in this game…or does it? I just said something about it. The camera is controlled from the right analog though it’s not usually necessary to utilize due to the dynamic camera angles usually not being a bother. If you need to get lined up just right for a long jump, tap your [L] trigger to center. The rest is also standard stuff like 360 degree movement with the left analog stick and buttons providing actions and use of items.
Keeping with the tradition they set forth in this game, Double Fine Products mixes things up even more because throughout the levels, each has different objectives and goals to get through them. In between, the game is almost non-linear as you can move about to each area and explore. While the game is not very difficult overall, there is some puzzle solving, scavenger hunting, tree climbing and plenty of time for good old fashion character development as you interact with the campers and counselors and get a pretty good laugh in between due to the humorous nature of the game.
Did You Hear That?
Just as other-worldly as the game design, is the music. The scores that were fit into this title really bring out the mood of the game: quirky fun with a lighthearted hop. Of course, that’s for the more relaxed levels and main areas. Move to (or inside!) a foreboding or intense area and the music will surely fit the tempo. Or, there may be none at all, leaving you feeling vulnerable and looking behind you often. It works very well and can be highly augmented with a good surround system.
Looks Good. I’ll Have That.
“Bizarre” is a word that you could use lightly to describe the design of this game and mix it lovingly with "quirky", "fun", "colorful" and "unique". The characters are completely lacking of symmetrical appendages and maybe even recognizable parts, for that matter. Though this sounds odd, it’s actually refreshing and draws you into the surrealistic atmosphere already set by the very premise of the game. The color and depth in this game of psychic abilities is as phenomenal as the paranormal abilities of the psychic warrior, Raz. Lush with atmosphere and style, Psychonauts propels you to want to play further to see what else the creators could have possibly thought of and rendered into full 3D, polygonal and interactive settings. Even the foliage and wildlife will show signs of Raz’s passing.
Psychic Prediction?
I don’t think you need to be psychic like Raz to know the outcome of this review. Of the available platformers out there, this one is right up there with most of them, sitting barely behind Mario himself. Seriously. The off-beat quirkiness yet familiar control scheme really makes this game a gem to play, not to even mention the fun-factor of a comical storyline and exquisitely bizarre character and level design. Though it's not the most epic flight of fancy, you should still want to pick this game up, love it, hug it and name it George.
| The Core Score |
Overall
9 |
| Fun |
|
9 |
| Gameplay |
|
9 |
| Graphics |
|
8.5 |
| Audio |
|
9.2 |
| Replay |
|
9 |
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