I find myself having a hard time writing a review for ?Patapon,? not because it?s a difficult game to assess, but because I?d rather be playing it right now than reviewing it. Released in North American markets late February, ?Patapon? is a PSP-exclusive, genre-blending game of epic absurdity. Mixing elements of rhythm games, side-scrollers, strategy-RPG and God games (games in which you are the God ? nothing to do with Christianity), the concept is as refreshingly original as it is addicting.
Where to start? You assume the role of Kami, the god of the Patapon people, who aren?t so much people, as a tribe of little black-and-white eyeballs with appendages. Well, it?s up to you to restore their former glory by defeating their rival tribe the Zigatons and deliver them to the holy land of Earthend to gaze upon IT, a sacred icon shrouded in mystery that nevertheless will bring them ?eternal contentment!? And you?ll do all this by ?drumming? on your PSP to invigorate the Patapons with battle chants to advance them through skirmishes.
The main gameplay is marching your customizable army of Patapons through various side-scrolling stages. However, the movement is not controlled by the d-pad, but rather contingent upon the proper drumming of their God, the player. The square, triangle, circle and x buttons become different drums that must be tapped in rhythm with the background beat to get the Patapons to act. Each button-drum has a corresponding sound, so its ?march song? is square-square-square-circle, or pata-pata-pata-pon. Similar inputs exist for attacking, defending, etc. The key to victory, however, is in the timing, as a chain of multiple combos will send the Patapon army into a frenzied Fever mode in which their attacks are stronger and faster. The general concept of the game, although innovative and fun, is pretty basic: side-scroll to a beat. The depth of the game, however, emerges in the other genre elements with the abilities to customize your army and equipment.
Simply put, ?Patapon? is pleasantly ridiculous. The brightly colored, ultra-flat 2D stylization and bizarre tribal music is evocative of a weird blend of Worms and the cartoon Samurai Jack, but matches rather well with the absurd, battle-crazed Patapons as they sing their chants and declare in word bubbles things like, ?Take no prisoners!? and, ?Get ?em!? In beat with the wonderful art design, the creative gameplay is both fun and challenging, especially to the musically inept, as it?s rather easy to break the combo-chain and lose Fever mode. The music will no doubt get your foot tapping, and, while the chanting will invariably annoy the hell out of anyone else in the room, it becomes rather enthralling while actually playing even if the shrill chants of the Patapons linger in your head hours afterward.
At only $20, this game is a trip into the absurd not to be missed. It?s a relatively short game, commanding somewhere around 10 to 20 hours. However, depending on how deep an experience you desire, ?Patapon? ventures to a new realm of gaming ? a whimsical, ridiculous, hilarious and ultimately entertaining one, as it marches to the beat of a very different drum.
4 1/2 stars out of 5
