5 Reasons to love the PSP

Jesus, with everyone rainin' the hate down on the PSP recently, I figured it was about time for someone to stand up for it. Okay, the long and short of it is that Sony has kind of dropped the ball and the system is simply not going to be as amazing as it could've, perhaps should've, been. Clearly it has its flaws. But overall, it's a good system, and I quite thoroughly enjoy mine. Here's five reasons you should, too:

Reason # 1 : Mega Man Powered Up!
This is the best game on the system, not doubt in my mind. I'd go so far as to say it's actually one of the best 2D platformer games ever made. Are the haters aware that it exists? Are they?

And why is it so good? It's fucking packed to its bursting point with gameplay, that's why. There's a decently-sized story mode with three difficulty settings that also holds several unlockable boss characters to play through as. There are 100 challenges that use said boss characters, and good Lord are they ever challenging. The biggest batches of awesome nectar come by way of the customization, though: there is a robust, easy-to-use, and downright amazing level editor. Finally, gamers can make their own Mega Man stages, and that is a glorious thing. Especially when you can share these levels with the rest of the world via the downloads section, which gives players the ability to get user-made maps from America, Europe, and Japan.

In a word, the gameplay is limitless. It's also incredibly fine-tuned and awesome.

Reason # 2 : Lumines
I cannot in good conscience say that I am as completely enamored with this game as the rest of the world. Puzzle games aren't really my cup, I suppose. I like Mr. Driller well enough, but I sort of fall apart when it gets more complex than that. I learned early on that I was never any good at Tetris, and from then on I tended to steer clear of puzzle titles (except for PuzzPack on the TI-83/TI-84; that game can have my babies).

Lumines, though, is something special, even I can tell that. But don't take it from me: my good man Tripp Page lost his virginity to its UMD disc, and Sal got the highest score allowed by the game. If those aren't the marks of something fantastic, I don't know what are. Even I enjoy this game quite a little bit. I may struggle with it at times (though truthfully I can hold my own so long as I'm not playing against Sal, sweet Jesus he's like some sort of Lumines god or something), but something keeps me coming back for more. It could be the amazing soundtrack and graphics (for a puzzle game). It could be the simple yet complex (!) and addictive gameplay. It's probably both.

Reason # 3 : Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
"BUT WAIT, DAMON," you may be saying, "IS VALKYRIE PROFILE REALLY A REASON TO LOVE THE PSP WHEN IT IS JUST A PORT?"

WELL, MR. YELLS-A-LOT, YES IT IS. I suppose you could take the "it's just a port stance," but it's a port of a PSX title that is so rare that it routinely fetches over $100 on eBay just for used copies. So, I dunno, I'd say if anything's going to be ported, I'm glad it was this, and I think so few people played it to begin with that it's fair enough to call Lenneth a "reason to love the PSP" as well as a mostly original game anyway.


I love this game. Love it! The plot is original, but the storytelling is also pretty flawed in my opinion, so I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a great game because of it's plotline. No, my friends, the beauty of this game lies mostly in its gameplay (not to say that the story is bad), which is vast, deep, and a fuckton of orgasm. The battle system is basically the love child of the "Tales" (see Tales of Eternia on PSP) battle system and the ATB system from Final Fantasy. The result is a system that's pretty much better than both, being action-packed but also involved and with some depth. The gameplay outside of that is extremely open-ended and awesome, as well. RPG fans should be ashamed if they don't have this game in some form or another. ASHAMED.

Reason # 4 : Metal Gear!?
I'm sort of cheating here.

First, we have the Ac!d series, which is not a part of Metal Gear proper but is an enjoyable strategy RPG game with quirky Metal Gear (and collectible card game) flair. These titles are, in my opinion, rather underrated, and I quite enjoyed the first one, though I should really go back and play it a bit more. The second is supposed to be even better, and based upon what I've seen of it and read, I'd say it's a fair enough conjecture.

More recently, we have Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, which I don't have yet because I am the poors. By the looks of it, MGS:PO is the PSP's real killer-app, the first breakthrough title that uses the system to its full capabilities and rocks shit hardcore style. Online versus play? A good, MGS-related story? Uh, yes please. :O~


Reason # 5 : The Hardware Itself
The PSP is a sleek mamma jamma. It's sexier than the Nintendo DS and would probably perform quite well in the bedroom, though it would respond best to a delicate touch. It looks nice, for one, which certainly serves to suggest "Yes, look at me, I spent over $200 on a sexy piece of electronics." OH GOD AND THE SCREEN. So good. It's like a little HD television.

But what else about the hardware? For one, the interface is just as nice as the exterior aesthetics. Easy access to everything, pretty graphics, nice sounds, yeah, Sony did a pretty good job here. There's also the ability to surf the internet, which is awesome despite being a bit cumbersome, and to watch video files (which makes the PSP quite a lusty mistress in the bathroom, mrowr) and play music. Hot stuff indeed.

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So there. Give the PSP some credit, dudes.