With the RAMpocalypse and rising costs of components and handhelds coursing through our community right now, I wanted to take a chance to revisit and remind people of the extremely cost-effective Mangmi Air X, a device that can be had for roughly $100. A great, crisp 1080p screen, solid controls, and lightweight make for an excellent handheld at an affordable cost.
I previously did an article on five of my favorite PSP games on the Mangmi Air X, and some astute readers pointed out that the article was a bit tactics-heavy (guilty, it’s one of my favorite genres). Well, I’m back with some more PSP games, and this time we’ve got some more variety.
PangYa: Fantasy Golf
Yeah, we’re starting out with a deep cut. PangYa: Fantasy Golf is an anime-styled golf simulation game based on a Korean MMO of the same name, where players control characters transported from Earth to the magical PangYa island for a tournament that occurs every 100 years. The gameplay consists of three-click timing, a style of golf-gaming you’ve likely seen everywhere, across a variety of fantasy settings. There are trick shots, customizable outfits, and tons of unlockable gear and items.
If you’ve played Hot Shots Golf or Everybody’s Golf, you’ll have an idea of what this one is like, with this being a more casual golf simulation game than something like PGA Tour. It doesn’t take much to get in and start swinging, but the game can be deceptively difficult once you reach the halfway mark. Yes, this is a PLOT-heavy game, but if you can look beyond the pretty girls and jiggle physics, you’ll find an excellent golfing game with a decent story and some surprising depth.
Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure
Gurumin is an action-RPG that revolves around Parin, a young girl who moves to a mining town to live with her grandfather and discovers a hidden village of friendly monsters that only children can see. After another group of monsters, known as Phantoms, begins attacking Monster Village, Parin decides to fight back with the use of her newly found legendary drill. You’ll traverse a variety of locales, all connected via an overworld map, while using your drill to fight phantoms and interact with puzzles and environments. You’ll also wear a lot of hats, as they can provide bonuses and unlock level access.
Gurumin just oozes charm; likeable characters with voice acting, adorable monsters, a cutesy art style, and great music. The combat uses a pseudo-rhythm style mechanic, involving a bar with stars at the top of the screen, with better attacks coming with better timing. Boss battles require a lot more of this timing than normal battles, so getting the rhythm down is important, which is easy to do when the music goes this hard. Some of the platforming sections can be a bit frustrating, especially because the camera can be a hindrance when targeting enemies, but with destructible environments, you’re usually having a great time.
Tokobot
Tokobot is an action-platformer where the main character, Bolt, a budding researcher, uses little robots called Tokobots to fight enemies, explore ruins, and solve puzzles. The Tokobots can take one of three formations, and Bolt can use “joint actions” with the Tokobots, wherein they join together based on their formation to assume certain shapes. This makes for some interesting ways to explore the world outside of your typical look-and-jump, as you need to identify some (rather obvious) points where the Tokobots can use their metallic bodies to attach themselves to form bridges, grab ledges, bash enemies, and perform various other helpful tasks.
Tokobot is kinda like Pikmin, but where Pikmin is about using the different elemental and characteristic differences of your little creatures to combat enemies and collect items, Tokobot is about using different formations and “joint actions” to combine the Tokobots to traverse environments and solve puzzles. The need for precise angles can be a bit annoying, but the use of Tokobots feels fresh and fun. There’s also a sequel for the PlayStation 2.
Split/Second: Velocity
Split/Second: Velocity is an arcade-style racer focusing on cinematics and explosions; think Burnout, but instead of trying to mangle opposing vehicles with your own, you are instead focusing on strategic environmental destruction (known as “Power Plays”) to wreck or impede other racers. You can alter course tracks, swing giant cranes into opposing racers, or destroy entire chemical plants to blow up nearby cars. It’s as bombastic as it is fun!
What’s unique about Split/Second is that the core mechanic of the game is using the environment to your advantage, and this can change how you tackle each lap. This brings strategy into a game that, on its surface, looks like it’s just about destroying cars.
The first lap is about scouting; you’re taking stock of your environment, the track layout, noting any signs or indications of environments that can be exploited, and building your meter for Power Plays. The second lap is about destruction; initiating Power Plays to take out opponents and dodging debris or hazards that might have occurred from other Power Plays, as well as potentially taking new routes that have opened up due to this destruction. The third lap is about survival; you’re avoiding opposing Power Plays, opponents who rubber-band like crazy, and environmental destruction to race to the finish.
Z.H.P. Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman
You didn’t think I would completely leave out tactics, did you? Zettai Hero Project: Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman is a turn-based, roguelike RPG where Absolute Victory Unlosing Ranger must battle Demon General: Darkdeath Evilman to save the Super Baby. The only problem is that the hero is run over by a car at the beginning of the game, and entrusts his Morphing Belt to a random bystander to take his place. This goes about as well as you would imagine, and after defeat, our new hero finds himself on Bizzaro Earth, where he’s enrolled in a training program to build up his abilities to defeat Darkdeath Evilman.
Hey, look, a roguelike from the year 2010! Yes, the title is certainly weird, but ZHP is a silly game with a lot of heart. NIS has its fingerprints all over this one, with many of the characters sharing similar design aesthetics and the same style of humor found in the Disgaea series. You will navigate Bizzaro Earth dungeon-crawler style, with an isometric viewpoint similar to the Disgaea series. We have randomly-generated dungeons, roguelike elements, customizable loadouts, unique boss battles, and a tidy hub world that ties it all together. It’s a weird romp, but one worth taking!
