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Psychonauts
(Xbox) |
Tim Schafer has grown a
cult following throughout the video game industry. As the creator of
some of the greatest PC adventure games, Schafer’s legacy as a master
storyteller and brilliant humorist has become legendary. Day of the
Tentacle and Grim Fandango barely scratch the surface of Schafer’s
creative genius. Schafer and his crew have created a brand-new
adventure, but this time, it’s a platformer. Psychonauts is the latest
game from Tim Schafer. Does it live up to its pedigree?
Graphics 9/10
The graphics of Psychonauts aren’t like other platformers’. From the
start, the menu screen features a floating brain surrounded by an abyss
of thoughts and mindsets. Immediately you realize how graphically unique
Psychonauts is. After beginning the game, you quickly are introduced to
Psychonauts’ excellent crop of character designs. Each character is
designed and animated in hilarious ways. Coach Oleander’s short height
reflects his tremendous ability to talk and boss kids around. The
campers are unique in every possible way, garnering a distinct
personality from their appearances. Dogan is a short, timid boy. Bobby
is a tall bully. Each character is hilarious to watch. Raz, the main
character, doesn’t have as complex a design as the others, but his
appearance, with his goggles and jacket, make him an adventurous and
determined young camper. After meeting up with the characters, you are
flung into some of the most creative levels ever conceived. The big draw
is that each world is based on a character’s mind. Using a special
portal, Psychonauts can dive into other people’s minds and explore the
intricate worlds created by the character’s thoughts. You will explore
their dreams and fight their own personal demons. Enter the mind of an
actress and the whole world is a play. Enter a dancing queen’s mind
and you’ll find a party full of dancers. The worlds not only are
massive and creative, but they also give you a better understanding of
the characters themselves. The characters become part of the experience.
The different visual themes in each world are stellar, despite some bugs
and frame rate issues. But overall, Psychonauts is creative in every
way, bringing some new mechanics to graphics.
Audio 10/10
The audio in Psychonauts is absolutely incredible. Schafer and his crew
put a ton of effort into the voices of the characters and it shows.
Richard Horvitz is an excellent choice for the up-and-coming psychic Raz.
Raz is more serious than the other characters but is determined and
heroic. Every character in the game is voiced incredibly well, expanding
on the personality that the graphics begin. Not only is the voice acting
well done, but there’s a lot of it. You can practically walk up to a
character and have a conversation with them. Use different items and
there’ll be even more dialogue. The voice-acting is so well done that’ll
you keep playing just to see what crazy dialogue will appear next. The
writing in the game is stellar to say the least, bringing Schafer’s
classic brand of humor. The sound effects of the game are very good,
along with the background music. Catchy, but well-performed. Seeing how
much work the creators and actors put into Psychonauts shows how
incredibly funny the game is. The Schafer humor is here in great
amounts, and the sound design proves it. Psychonauts is a hilarious game
and the audio is a prime example.
Gameplay 9/10
Psychonauts starts off with Rasputin, or Raz, arriving at Camp
Whispering Rock. Camp Whispering Rock is a psychic summer camp where
aspiring psychic can train to become Psychonauts, mind-exploring psychic
soldiers. Raz has run away from his psychic-hating father to become a
Psychonaut. As Raz trains and gains new powers, he discovers a plot to
steal brains for a psychic death ray. It’s up to him to save the world
from being psyched out by the weapon and to save his campers’ brains.
The story is very surreal, but the presentation and hilarious writing
make the story a major part in exploring Psychonauts’ intricate
worlds.
Psychonauts doesn’t break the platformer mold. Very little of the
mechanics are new and the controls are actually pretty generic. A to
jump, X to attack, Y to use an item or the environment, L-Trigger to
center the camera. Black, White, and R-Trigger can be assigned different
powers. However, that’s where the similarities practically end.
Psychonauts puts a new spin on a classic genre by throwing in some
clever challenges and unique puzzles.
By entering different characters’ minds, Raz can learn new psychic
abilities. Apart from his basic psychic hand attack, Palm Bomb aerial
attack, and psychic double-jump, Raz can learn new, more advanced
techniques through training. Raz can quickly learn the heat-beam
Psyblast and high-jumping Levitation. Along the way, new powers can be
discovered, like Telekinesis and Invisibility. Each power can be
assigned to one of the three customizable buttons, although the Black
and White buttons are a bit too small for quick access. The powers are
key in completing the many puzzles and challenges Psychonauts provides.
Raz learns these powers by collecting Figments and finding Mental
Baggage. These collectibles are scattered across the minds of the
characters and after gaining enough, Raz can level up a rank. Reach a
high enough rank and he can get a new power.
The highlight of the game is the worlds. By entering a person’s mind,
you enter a detailed and crazy world to explore. From the start, Raz is
thrown into his coach’s mind, a large battlefield filled with raining
bombs and flying planes. Every single level is clever and unique, just
like the characters. You will be constantly surprised at the amount of
cleverness in each world. From a giant board game to a tiny city where
you are the giant monster, Psychonauts always finds a way to use the
character’s personality to its advantage, creating worlds that will
always surprise.
Psychonauts has a serious flaw, though: collecting. There is a lot to
collect in the minds of the characters. Figments, Mental Baggage, vaults
containing their cryptic memories, Mental Cobwebs, there’s so much to
collect. Too much in fact. Although you don’t have to collect them all
to progress through the game, you will require some figments to gain new
powers to progress. This is a minor complaint, because Psychonauts is so
creative and engaging that you will fight on just to see another
cutscene. Psychonauts’ gameplay isn’t groundbreaking, but the
phenomenal world design and clever puzzles will keep you interested for
a long time. Definitely platforming excellence.
Replay Value 8/10
The collectibles will keep you going after the final boss, despite the
bit of tedium they produce. The story is short, but is so funny and
entertaining that you’ll want to play again. The characters are so
well designed and voiced that the entire game is worth exploring.
Psychonauts is a game that will keep you coming back for years, despite
its small problems.
Final Verdict 9/10
Psychonauts is one of the most original and entertaining concepts
created in a long time. In a world full of overused concepts,
Psychonauts is something brand-new. With some of the most ingenious
levels ever, some hilarious writing, and an excellent presentation,
Psychonauts is a gem. Although its collection habit is annoying, you
will laugh at the story and continue playing through the clever worlds.
Psychonauts doesn’t revolutionize the platformer, but it does renovate
it with the classic Tim Schafer humor and style. Although the Xbox doesn’t
have many platformers, Psychonauts is one platformer worth picking up.
Original, entertaining, and well-designed, Psychonauts is worth any
gamer’s attention and is a great game to play.
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