LocoRoco: Review

(PSP; $39.99; Rated E; locoroco.com)

(four stars)

First there were Cabbage Patch Kids.

Then it was Tickle Me Elmo.

For a brief moment there were the Furbys.

Now, in the cute-as-a-button category, we have LocoRocos.

Thank goodness someone at Sony finally figured out that, while 3-D games on the sleek PlayStation Portable looked great, they didn’t always play great. With the Nintendo DS kicking the PSP’s butt in sales and software, Sony desperately needed to crack the Mario Code- what game can we put out to appeal to young and old AND that’s easy to control?

“LocoRoco,” I don’t know what the heck you’re supposed to be, but you came to the rescue, and proves that Nintendo-styled fun can be had on the PSP using only two main buttons.

That’s right, the top L and R buttons on the PSP are the only buttons that control movement of the LocoRoco on the screen. Now, I have no idea what the story behind “LocoRoco” is, as much as I know that the LocoRoco is a little blob that, when eating fruits found in their colorful environments, make it grow into a bigger blob, and a bigger blob than that, and so on, and so on. Being a big fat LocoRoco makes it possible to unlock areas in each level to lead to more fruit and hidden items, however sometimes there’s a pathway that’s too narrow for our rotund ‘Roco, or where there’s a need for two ‘Rocos to accomplish a task- that’s where the LocoRoco’s ability to split into many ‘Rocos comes in handy.

No, it doesn’t make much sense, and it’s not too difficult- any child can pick up and play “LocoRoco” and have fun, but the beauty of this game comes from its simplicity. The hymns the LocoRoco sing while proceeding through a level are soothing and slightly hypnotic, the psychedelic color schemes and artistic pathways add to the trance, and the adorable smiles on the little ‘Roco’s faces all add up to one heck of a cute acid trip- and really, isn’t that where the best children’s programming comes from anyways?

“LocoRoco” is one of those games in the same vein as “Katamari Damacy,” so quirky and so out in left field that it causes the game industry to re-evaluate itself: Are bigger guns, higher framerates, and more intense particle effects really where the future lies? Or is it in the Nintendo-philosophy of the future, where simple gameplay backed by inviting visuals reach out to kids, moms, and seniors, expanding the audience who call themselves “gamers?”