Homemademech - PSP Loco Roco reviews

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Loco Roco

What with all the recent craze over brain games like Brain Age (all of which is coming out on the Nintendo DS at this moment though the PSP also has a few to talk of) it looks like the puzzler has been feeling abit neglected as of late… until now.

You probably thought you’d never play another engaging puzzler on the PSP after you played Lumines, or to a lesser degree Exit or Mercury, didn’t you. But at long last a new puzzler has risen on the PSP to give you a new run for your virtual money… as long as you are willing to accept a few failings concerning this game.

Bright and colorful graphics, cheery and catchy tunes (even when you reach the heart of enemy territory and the music gets all “Halloweeny”)… which is a literal truth since the levels look like something out of a kid safe Halloween special and the first boss level even has a song that has a witch cackling and the words “Trick or Treat” repeated over and over… and an easy to grasp and totally simplistic control system highlight this little gem of a puzzler. Though this game is not bulletproof or criticproof, it is a solid game worthy of your attention even with it’s failings.

The Earth, it seems, should be in it’s happy place being a big smiling globe head and all that’s sleeping so peacefully… and yet it isn’t.
While taking that long nap it is caught offguard when it is smacked upside it’s globe by a piece of space debris carrying illwill in the form of darkness incarnate known as Hojas. Hojas, split into the mobile active entities (that search constantly for food) and the immobile trap creatures (that damage you if you fall upon them) immediately descend on the world and start their attack by eliminating the world’s happiness (in the form of the bright bouncy round creatures known as Loco Roco). One Loco Roco survive, and it’s up to you to use this (and the five other species of similar yet unique Loco Roco) in order to both repopulate the world with Loco Roco (and thus bring back happiness) and save the world by purging the Hojas and bringing life back to nature.

The only way to do this is to reach the dark “heart” of each Hojas invasion force (at the end of each world and it’s several levels of intricate puzzles filled with hidden areas to explore) where you’ll fight a major Hojas. In order to get to this fight you’ll have to pass each level, gathering fruits and flowers as you do. Flowers adds to your body, creating a new “Loco Roco” everytime you eat one. Alternatively when you are damaged by a Hojas, and either failing to reconnect to your lost part of having said part eaten by a Hojas, you lose a Roco.
As you grow bigger you’ll become larger, and thus it’ll become harder and harder to go through smaller areas. By tapping a button you’ll bring down a bolt of lightning and shatter yourself back into base component Rocos, capable of passing through small areas (but also capable of being eaten by Hojas if you lose track of them), only to bring them all back into the primary form by holding down the same button you used to shatter them.

Movement in this game is not so much moving the Roco as you move the world itself, using the L & R buttons to tilt the world left and right, like Mercury. Only unlike Mercury you do have a small bit of control over to Roco by holding down both the L & R button (which makes your Roco jump), which is good for reaching hard to reach hidden areas and high fruits/flowers (also certain Roco are better jumpers than others, while others still have a more varied ability to change shape when chewed by a certain friendly animal).
Another ability, but a universal one, is the Song of Awakening (personal nickname for it). Each of the six Loco Roco (of which only one is female voiced) has their own song, as well as their own voice which is different for each. At certain areas there are sleeping animals/living environments like clouds or pillars. If you have enough Rocos you’ll break into separate Loco Roco and begin singing (each again having a song unique to themselves) which wakes up the being, and either awards you a part for building your own personalized Loco Roco house (more on that in abit) or a hidden MuiMui (one of the little people of the world you are saving, which in turns unlocks mini games, alternate Loco Roco houses and other things as you find more of them). The larger the target the more Loco Roco you’ll need. Clouds or small pillars require about 5 or so, while the sun and moon require a full compliment of 15 to wake them (and that’s hard since the maximum Loco Roco you can gather per level is 20).

Besides the main game you have a few options, but not much. This is the main problem with the game, a lack of variety.
You can play up to three different mini games, unlocked as you locate MuiMui, but while the first one (automatically unlocked early on) is useful (a Crane Game) for adding new house parts and Loco Roco to your Loco Roco house the second game is not so much useful or fun and the third… I never managed to unlock the third game while I was playing, so I don’t know what that is.

The second thing you can do is build a Loco Roco house (size depending on what sizes you unlock from finding MuiMui, up to three sizes being available) and make a complex system of levels, wind lifts and so forth to move your Loco Roco about to reach new house pieces scattered on the levels… but this is a short time killer even if you can swap Loco Roco houses with other players.

Finally you have the ability to download this game to other PSPs… but that too is limited.

Great game, but with a lack of options you’ll find this game won’t occupy you for a long time. About maybe 20 hours to unravel all the levels and get the best scores possible for all the levels. Not long, not long at all, but if you can get over this and the lack of content flaw you have yourself a styling game.
The breakdown will prove it out.

Loco Brokeo
What’s Hot?
A cute, visually splendid, addictive little slice of weird I’ve ever seen. Way better than rolling unemotional lifeless mercury all over the place without a doubt, Loco Roco brings a bright ray of sunshine to the bland ordinary puzzler. A must have for the cute lovin’ puzzler.

What’s Not?
However with a lack of content, as well as a kind of short game you might not be totally hooked on this forever. That’s good, but I am sure you’ll keep coming back to this one again and again even if you beat it since it is that addictive. A nice timepasser when you need a little pick-up game on the grand road that is cute and yet involving at the same time.

Moments to Remember?
The tracks of music in this game has this spunky catchy beat to them, and I have a few personal favorites of my own… though I don’t know the names since even when you unlocked music in this game (which can be picked by the Loco Roco house area for listening) the game didn’t list songs by name… so I don’t know what to call my favorite tracks from the game… except one, the first boss level “Trick or Treat” song… and that’s all I remember in terms of names.

What to Ignore?
Thankfully Loco Roco don’t need to do something only seen in National Geographic shows to reproduce as there seems to only be one female type (and, sadly, she has been burdened with a bad sterotype of being the “Pink” Loco Roco… I mean how obvious can you be! Also, another sadness, the game is fully stereotyped with color matching personality… including a Green Loco Roco whose singing style reminded me on well known lover of all things green Mr. Sunshine himself John Denver… or maybe it’s just me who thinks that… it’s probably just me.

Overall?
Love the game for it’s uniqueness, forgive it for it’s shortness and lack of content… ness.
Enjoy otherwise, enjoy… and save the world from the evil Hojas. Boo-yah.

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