megaderived.co.uk » PSP

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Martin — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 19:36:15 +0000

Hideo Kojima spent years polishing his vision of the Metal Gear series for the PlayStation 3, so it still comes as a bit of a surprise to see the spec-gobbling developer opt for the PSP with his cherished series’ next iteration. It’s very serious business: Peace Walker has often been touted as the spiritual Metal Gear Solid 5. Unless it doesn’t sell very well, that is, and in that case Konami will do its best to forget it ever happened.

Kojima can’t seem to let go of the series despite his frequent proclamations otherwise – make no mistake, he’ll be producing Metal Gear games long past the point people stop caring. Our latest jaunt, pressed up against the walls and shrubbery of Costa Rica, is because the venerated director, alongside the whole of Japan, has gone a little crazy for Monster Hunter. Which means 4-player co-op is in (for some of the game) and there’s plenty of references to Capcom’s gaming giant during the lengthy cutscenes. The game doesn’t strut around with the po-faced priggishness of MGS4, either, so if you grind enough hours into the game (how many I’m not certain – let’s just say lots) you can even play some Monster Hunter themed levels.

It’s still a convoluted medley of world politics between America and Russia, with Kojima’s preachy message about advocating nuclear disarmament occasionally blurred by his desire to express how chuffing awesome it would be to have a fleet of bipedal robots that could shoot nukes. Later into the game, for instance, Snake and his apolitical mercenary band acquire a Metal Gear for themselves with the belief that the only way to deter countries from meddling with their affairs is to acquire their own cache of nuclear missiles.

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Dead or Alive: Paradise

Martin — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:32:38 +0000

Dead or Alive: Paradise has you assuming the role of one of DOA’s lovely ladies and hanging out with the others. They giggle, they bend over, they have breasts that bounce independently, often in different directions, and they assume the player – you – is one of them as they interact during their vacation on the sun-kissed Zack Island.

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Undead Knights

Martin — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:21:05 +0000

You know this is definitely a Tecmo property when you see the Queen of the game’s kingdom or, more specifically, her giant breasts and revealing dress. Years of unsatisfactory back support have made her insufferably cranky, so she suggests the King order the execution of the game’s three main characters and their entire clan for speaking out against her. Some hocus pocus causes them to be reborn as undead ass-kickers, which is very useful because otherwise Undead Knights would be little more than watching your murdered triumvirate slowly decompose.

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F1 2009

Martin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:59:00 +0000

Is there anybody left who remembers what racing games used to be like before the arrival of the racing line? Hard, that’s what. Case in point: old F1 games. The speed of the simulated cars is so intense that it used to be all too easy to fly straight off a corner and into an unpleasant pause-restart cycle, which was usually enough to put you off those games completely. Needless to say, I was incredibly relieved to see a helpful guiding line in Sumo Digital’s F1 2009. Phew.

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PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe

Martin — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:15:00 +0000

It’s been possible to play PixelJunk Monsters on your PSP for a while, as the cheap and cheerful PSN title supports the console’s rarely used Remote Play feature. But this, they say, is the definitive version of PixelJunk Monsters – that’s what the Deluxe stands for – and includes the content of the PSN original, its expansion and a whole new island to boot.

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Gran Turismo PSP

Martin — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:59:00 +0000

The PSP’s rocky relationship with Gran Turismo has been turbulent, to say the least. Announced as Gran Turismo 4 Mobile back with the PSP itself in 2004, the game has been subject to half a decade of delays and continual scepticism from detractors. Five years later and we’ve finally come full circle: Gran Turismo gets announced at E3 ’09 to be released in October with the new PSP Go. Much has changed since 2004 though, and a handheld version of Gran Turismo 4 is not quite the technical marvel it once was.

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Monster Hunter Freedom Unite

Martin — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:13:35 +0000

It can only be something in the water. In Japan, Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G sold over two million copies in its first couple of months. Capcom’s venerable series has never quite enjoyed that same level of success in Europe, mind you, but that hasn’t stopped them trying to, once again, replicate their success with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite – the repackaged, translated, and rebranded version of 2nd G. It’s basically Monster Hunter Freedom 2 with oodles of bells and whistles.

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Phantasy Star Portable

Martin — Fri, 08 May 2009 18:05:33 +0000

How do you justify the continuation of a franchise almost exclusively famous for its online gameplay when it doesn’t feature any online modes? SEGA haven’t thought about it much, so the oft-maligned Phantasy Star Universe has been taken, squished down and regurgitated on Sony’s handheld opus as Phantasy Star Portable. Although whether you’ll ever want to play it on the move is another question entirely.