Metal Slug Anthology Review

By Simon Parkin Published 19 February, 2007

Graphic Violence.

Version tested: PSP

Forget Alan Wake, Metal Slug Anthology showcases the best graphics ever seen in a videogame.

One day soon, people will realise that there are only so many virtual suns reflecting on the surface of virtual lakes that one can go 'wow' at. Yes, sunsets are pretty to look at and yes, it's terribly impressive how life-like the metal on this AK-47 looks when viewed through that particle effect, but surely we play games to visit new worlds: not marvel at slightly more rubbish versions of the current one?

Excuse the antagonism but, for fans of 2D pixel art, the decade-old Metal Slug series has never really been bettered for intricacy, personality, character and colour. Indeed, it's thanks to this series that there are those of us for whom the prettiest face of videogames lies not in the future but in the past. Sure, the latest 2D Street Fighter or Guilty Gear may have sharper characters and backgrounds but this isn't a stationary beat-'em-up. Rather, SNK's side-scrolling, run-and-gun war parody takes in a hundred different locales, from the deepest jungle to the deepest sea, each bristling with an individuality and style that a Tom Clancy cast would kill for.

The gameplay couldn't be simpler: make your way from left to right shooting enemy soldiers and vehicles before they shoot you. There's no life bar: it's one shot one kill. Your basic pistol has unlimited shots. You have a fire button, a jump button and a bomb button and, should you find any vacant vehicles or willing animals along the way, feel free to appropriate them to the cause. And that, in sixty-nine words, is how the seven Metal Slug games, each brilliantly emulated here on the PSP, function.

'Metal Slug Anthology' Screenshot 1

The originals had eight difficulty settings, but this only has three - with everything above 'Easy' a big challenge.

That said, the devil is in the detail and Metal Slug's simple mechanics have sub-surface depths that allow for those near infinite high-score possibilities Japanese arcade developers are so good at providing. For example, try to shoot an enemy at close range and your character will knife them instead for a slightly higher point bonus. Likewise, throughout levels you'll find kidnapped allied soldiers who you must touch to rescue. Defeat the level boss without dying and you'll earn a satisfying bonus points (and the name and rank) for each hostage saved since your last restart. Random items and different weapons can be uncovered for bonus points and there are numerous hidden areas and hostages scattered throughout the exquisite levels.

If that all sounds a little orthodox then that's because, in text, it very much is. However, like with all good things, the genius is in the balancing and, as you might have gathered from the above introduction, the style and personality with which it's all presented. And these are things that you can't really express in words. Rather they must be experienced to be understood and appreciated.

If you're worried that misty eyes might be clouding Eurogamer's judgement here then rest assured: unlike many retro titles Metal Slug doesn't need nostalgia in order to milk your adrenal gland. Every level is a glorious orgy of micro-strategising and precision-timing. Even if you do go weak-kneed at the prospect of playing through these games as 1st Lieutenant Marco Rossi or 2nd Lieutenant Tarma Roving again, the value of any nostalgia is still comfortably surpassed by the value of the gameplay.

'Metal Slug Anthology' Screenshot 2

Metal Slug 3 was the last true SNK title. Most would argue that the SNK titles in the series (1, 2, X and 3) are the strongest.

And, of course, the value of these quirky, humorous and wonderful visuals, which might need a little explaining. Like SNK's other flagship series, King of Fighters, the Metal Slug games have attracted a fierce and enamoured underground following but have never managed anything approaching mass-market fame. The stabs at mainstream success with handheld conversions of the games to Neo Geo Pocket, GameBoy Advance and, more implausibly to mobile phone devices have done little justice to the series. In main, this is because, despite being retro games, the system that originally powered the series was vastly more powerful and competent at pushing 2D sprites than even the PlayStation 2.

The Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System, released in 1990 for a PS3-trumping US$ 650, was arcade developer SNK's home console super-power and it exists on a separate technological timeline to the SEGA Megadrives and Super Nintendos of our history. Its architecture was an exact replica of SNK's MVS arcade system and its games, which came on enormous clunky cartridges, cost upwards of 200 quid each. The console's vastly superior 2D power allowed for incredible levels of detail at virtually no slowdown cost - a double whammy of technological achievement that, until recently, virtually no console systems have been able to accurately emulate due to their bias towards handling 3D.

So, that the PSP does such a good job of replicating the original Neo Geo experiences (and, in the case of the recent Metal Slug 6, the Atomiswave experience) is good news. Each of the games in the anthology runs near arcade perfectly in either the original aspect ratio or stretched to widescreen. There's now a slight pause between each level for loading, but these are acceptably brief and generally comparable to the Xbox release of Metal Slug 3 and the PS2 versions of 4/5.

'Metal Slug Anthology' Screenshot 3

The anthology comes to Nintendo's Wii in March. Whether the controller is suitable or if the games can imperceptibly load like they do on the 17-year-old Neo Geo hardware remains to be seen...

Indeed, to get all of these games in one compilation is incredible. Viewed individually the games vary slightly in quality (although not really in function) and debate will rage on amongst aficionados as to which is the best in the set. Undeniably there was a slight dip in inventiveness and quality after the third game when SNK folded and development shifted to Playmore, but nonetheless, the later games are still expertly produced and, as they build on solid gameplay foundations and reuse timeless sprites, they are all good.

It's not all happy news, however. Ignition's porting of the games might be brilliant in that they run perfectly on the PSP, but the presentation of the package and the functionality of the menu screens by which you access the games is nothing short of a disaster. Perhaps there had to be some kind of trade-off: the games would only run as smoothly as they do if the menu system was abortively slow. Even if that was true, as an end user, that doesn't really concern me. What does concern me is how trying to select the next option in a menu list requires a five to ten second wait before the cursor to moves. Likewise, the functional loading text (which makes no attempt to co-ordinate with that in the games) and the basic and basically presented unlock extras (art, screensavers and a text (!) interview with SNK), do little to treat the series with the care, love and respect it so richly deserves.

All of which presents a problem. The games that are presented on Metal Slug Anthology are a marvel of art and design. There are, frequently, excruciatingly tough but all of their peaks are surmountable by the persistent and/or the talented. Indeed, as side-scrolling action games go these better almost every other title both retro and contemporary and, to have all seven games packaged together into one collection is overwhelmingly generous and commendable. However, their actual presentation - the tortuous loading screens, the ugly front end and the menus that need repeated input to activate - is inexcusable.

But while reviewing games is undeniably more than just critiquing gameplay, we're not going to mark Metal Slug Anthology down for its menu design and some shocking ugliness in the surrounding package. You should still buy this game, and not because it shows us how far we've come either - but rather because, in the case of 2D art and gameplay design, it shows us just how far we've since regressed.

9 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Simon.

About Simon Parkin

Simon Parkin is an author and journalist on video games. A regular contributor to Eurogamer since 2005, his work has also appeared in Edge, The Telegraph, Gamasutra and Boing Boing.

Read more articles from Simon by visiting the Simon Parkin archive page.

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Comments (76) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • #1 5 years ago

    Better than Halo? God bless the PSP, old games FTMFUW!

  • kangarootoo #2 5 years ago

    I just don't get it, I never have. But I realise some people love this series to bits. Horses for courses I guess. Cue accusations of me not being a "proper" gamer :)

  • dirigiblebill #3 5 years ago

    @ kangarootoo

    It's gamers like you that prevent the rest of us getting husbands/wives.

  • spongebob #4 5 years ago

    PSP has really gained some momentum recently, what with some nice games and the homebrew scene. Not a bad handheld choice at all anymore.

  • TexMurphy01 #5 5 years ago

    There's no school like it.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #6 5 years ago

    Have this preordered for the Wii. I know the first two by heart already, the 3rd was awkward and never really appealed to me, but the series is really great overall.

  • Steroyd #7 5 years ago

    2D games on the PSP FTUMFW \o/

  • Gurgeh #8 5 years ago

    "PSP has really gained some momentum recently, what with some nice games and the homebrew scene. Not a bad handheld choice at all anymore. "

    [link url=http://www.mcvuk.com/Retail-speaks-out-in-night mare-week-for-Sony
    ]http://ww w.mcvuk.com/Retail-speaks-out-i...[/link]

    "With only five weeks until PS3's launch, games retail has expressed concern at the shock exit of Sony’s commercial director Kevin Jowett – and highlighted major worries over PS3 margins and SCE UK’s in-store strategy...

    further grumbles are emerging over Sony’s ambitious plans for in-store PS3 retail ‘experiences’. Sony has asked retailers to install display areas featuring the console, PSP, HD-TV, surround sound systems and various items of Sony-branded furniture... “Even the smaller versions won’t work with most retailers. I wish Sony had worked more closely with us.”

  • HazyUK #9 5 years ago

    I'm loving Metal Slug Anthology it never leaves my psp unless I play Parodius Portable, another great game.

  • ecureuil #10 5 years ago

    Gurgeh - what has that got to do with what he said?

    PSP is getting some good games, and you reply with an article about Kevin Jowett leaving the company. I just don't get it.

  • tuff #11 5 years ago

    @ HazyUK

    Agreed. Parodius Portable is so much better implemented though.

  • HazyUK #12 5 years ago

    2D shumups are about the only thing keeping me interested in the psp.

  • SeesThroughAll #13 5 years ago

    Amazing how even when a good game shows up at the PSP section, the spinmeisters come to troll on the PSP (not even it's games) and try to turn everything into bad news.

    Gurgeh is just yet another Microsoft fanboy/astroturfer trying to convince people not to buy anything from Sony.

    I do hope he's getting paid for this, for his sake.

  • bunglebonce #14 5 years ago

    PSP in umpteenth EG 9 shocker.

  • HyperShadow #15 5 years ago

    You forgot to mention the best bit about the extras.

    All wallpapers and Music are downloadable onto your memory stick duo to use/listen to outside the game.

    The quality of the games is a given, but something as simple as this is actually kind of brilliant and something that other games should loook at implementing.

  • Hughes. #16 5 years ago

    I've been drooling over this, but didn't know if the gameplay would hold up to the lovely visuals. That score makes it a purchase necessity. With the Ultimate Ghosts and Goblins, the Mega Drive Collection and all my old PS1 games I spent the weekend ripping I'm in retro heaven right now, and for the forseeable future.

  • caligari #17 5 years ago

    If the PSP was cheaper I'd have picked one up.

    This, Mega Drive collection and Ghouls N Ghosts Extreme....it's really starting to catch up with the DS now. \o/

  • dirigiblebill #18 5 years ago

    psp needs one- but the one- truly stand-out RPG or adventure title to go with the myriad of merely decent ones and I'll pick it up faster than EA picks up a movie license. Old school shooters don't really cut it by themselves, alas.

  • SeesThroughAll #19 5 years ago

    If the PSP was cheaper I'd have picked one up.

    It would be a good idea to check second hand deals on that, because 1) It will be a tad cheaper 2) You're more likely to find a PSP with a firmware you can then convert to the highly recommended 3.10 OE.

    @ dirigiblebill:

    Rezel Cross sounds promising, might want to have a look at that later on.
    Edited by 2 at 19/02/07 @ 14:53

  • romanista #20 5 years ago

    stu campbell's great overview of the series
    [link url=htt p://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.com/ms5.htm
    ]http://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.co...[/link]

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #21 5 years ago

    This is a great-value compilation, but as the review says the front end is an atrocity, and neither of the PSP's control mechanisms do it any favours. The d-pad is worthless as usual (you don't need diagonals often, but you do need them), and the analogue is no good for the quick reactions demanded by Slug games. The control comes perilously close to destroying the whole thing. Even though it's only got one game, I'm really looking forward to the imminent GBA release of the first Metal Slug.

  • Daikon #22 5 years ago

    Considering the fact that Metal Slug 4 and 5 on PS2 got a 4/10 and a 5/10 a score of 9/10 was the last thing I was expecting for Anthology...

  • kangarootoo #23 5 years ago

    @dirigiblebill

    "It's gamers like you that prevent the rest of us getting husbands/wives"

    Lol. Man, I'm not even sure if that is a compliment or an insult. I'm going to assume its a compliment until informed otherwise.


    @romanista

    On the basis that Stu Campbell doesn't like the series, I must now embrace it and clutch it close to my heart.

  • lost_soul #24 5 years ago

    Metal Slugs 4 and 5 were the weakest in the series.

    This compilation is easily worth the money just for MS1,2 and 3. Getting 6 thrown in is a nice bonus, too.

    And the controls aren't great, but I've managed to get by with the anaologue nub. Not great, but it's no deal breaker either.

  • Ignatius_Cheese #25 5 years ago

    As much as I would no doubt enjoy replaying Metal Slug games on the PSP, something for me would be lost not playing on the "big screen", such is the way with a lot of arcade ports.

    Any sign of when the PS2 compilation is due out? That version should improve on the PSP's d-pad issues whilst also giving shorter loading times/pauses.

  • nickthegun #26 5 years ago

    Another crap game for the PSP.......lol.....oh....wait.......

    The retro collections are really kicking a lot of arse at the moment. The megadrive one is brilliant, the Gradius one is pretty good and this looks like its going to be a purchase.

    One of the most frustrating ones ive got recently has been the Capcom Puzzle Collection. On the one hand, youve got block block (a reasonably crap breakout game), 3 versions of Pang (or Buster Brothers) and Super Puzzle Fighter, so its not a generous package. On the other hand there are 3 different play modes for SPF and Pang is still ace. Oh, and you can take PSP sized screenshots for your XMB background.

    So, yeah, retro seems to be where its at at the moment, especially with all the PSP stuff.

  • spongebob #27 5 years ago

    @ dirigiblebill

    Compared to DS PSP is a treasure trove of RPG games. Admittedly most of them are old school fares with by the numbers gameplay and story. There's hope in the horizon because DisGaea Portable is heading to Europe. Now, if they would only bring Jeanne D'Arc here... Maybe Riviera, too.

  • BrokenSymmetry #28 5 years ago

    The review states: "we're not going to mark Metal Slug Anthology down for its menu design".

    You really should. Too many games get away with really bad menus (*cough* PGR3 *cough*), and if game designers don't get signalled that bad or slow-loading menus can ruin an otherwise perfect game, things will not improve...
    Edited by 1 at 19/02/07 @ 16:37

  • samk #29 5 years ago

    Indeed the PSP library is filling out very nicely these days.

    I've bought this on PSP and played through all seven of them at least once. I'd agree that 1-3 are the best in the series.

    The menu system is most certainly dire. Also the means of unlocking extras brings up the save menu upon EVERY unlocked item. ie, unlock wallpaper 1, it'll ask you to save, unlock wallpaper 2, it'll ask you to save, etc. Argh. Just ask me when I exit the unlock menu for Christ's sake and save it all in one go.

    Occasionally the entire game would virtually grind to a halt. Proper slideshow territory. Didn't happen very often but worth a mention considering it usually cost you a life; Metal Slug games are hard enough anyway of course without having to deal with the framerate going south every so often. I suspect it was the UMD struggling to keep up with loading new assets so may well just be my clapped out old PSP. Or anyone else have this problem?

    EDIT: but don't let the above put anyone off - it's an awesome collection no doubt about it.
    Edited by 1 at 19/02/07 @ 16:54

  • itamae #30 5 years ago

    There's hope in the horizon because DisGaea Portable is heading to Europe.

    Wowowow! Hold it right there! It is? That would be the best news I've heard all day. Not that I don't trust you, but... got a link to back up this story?

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #31 5 years ago

    "Stu Campbell doesn't like the series"

    What are you, some sort of illiterate fucking spastic?

  • nickthegun #32 5 years ago

    That sentence is funnier if you read 'Fucking' as a verb.

  • Metalfish #33 5 years ago

    @ "Stu"

    What are you, someone who takes themselves far too seriously on the internets?

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #34 5 years ago

    Nope, I just enjoy swearing at thick twats.

  • dirigiblebill #35 5 years ago

    @ kangarootoo

    "I'm going to assume its a compliment"

    Damn straight. I wouldn't want me to breed either ;)

    @ SeesThroughAll

    Indeed, looks interesting (and pretty). Thanks for the heads up.

    @ spongebob

    DS may not have as many RPGs as its competitor (assuming you exclude the GBA back catalogue) but it has arguably the best of the lot in that super mario rpg. I think in the long run the psp will offer a better selection though. Disgaea, FF Tactics and Crisis Core should clinch it.
    Edited by 1 at 19/02/07 @ 19:12

  • toy_brain #36 5 years ago

    "Occasionally the entire game would virtually grind to a halt. Proper slideshow territory. Didn't happen very often but worth a mention considering it usually cost you a life;"

    Mostly in Metal Slug 2, right?
    That game slows down like crazy on the Neo Geo as well, and none of the games are completely free of slowdown even on the original hardware. The manual does explain that Metal Slug X was created to address the 'technical problems' with MS2 as well as remixing the gameplay a little.
    Oh, and there do seem to be a few times when the game just locks up for a second or so to allow the loading to catch up. Happens if you are blasting through the level a little too quickly.

  • earl_roberts #37 5 years ago

    Well I'll get this for the Wii anyway, can't put up with PSP controls anymore. Oh yeah, with this (also on Wii) the Megadrive collection (also on PS2) & Ghouls and Ghosts (which was rubbish) I wouldn't say the PSP is catching up with the DS by a looong shot

  • toy_brain #38 5 years ago

    "I wouldn't say the PSP is catching up with the DS by a looong shot"

    True, but its at least become/becoming a decent machine in its own right.
    There's the new Ratchet & Clank game, Gurumin, Every Extend Extra, Chilli Con Carnage and Exit 2 all either out now, out in America or out soon.
    And that's just the PSP exclusive* stuff thats already gotten good reviews.

    DS is still king of the handhealds, but if you have the cash, the PSP is well worth owning.

    *Yes, I know Gurumin was a PC game first, but I think it was Japan-only and hard to get hold of, so this is the first time westerners will be able to play it.
    Edited by 1 at 19/02/07 @ 20:23

  • SeesThroughAll #39 5 years ago

    @ toy_brain:

    You forgot to mention a bunch of other good games like MGS:pO and KillZone Liberation, as well as the hopefully good upcoming Virtua Tennis 3, Afterburner and Crush from SEGA.

    Good times, that's all I can say :).

  • Chtulie #40 5 years ago

    Colour? Metal Slug was one of the first game to pioneer the brown on grey look.
    And what's with the Tom Calncy reference? What does a gun-porn writer got to do with this game?

  • Chtulie #41 5 years ago

    "PSP has really gained some momentum recently, what with some nice games and the homebrew scene. Not a bad handheld choice at all anymore. "

    As long as you don't mind not playing any actual, you now, new games on it. The only good on the platform are these official ports of old games
    (this metal slug thing, the sega compilation, powerstone compilation, valkyre profile, the upcoming final fantasy ports of 1 and tactics, etc).

    When it comes to platform specific games, games that aren't ported or modded onto it via emulator, it's still a rarity to find one that's really good and worthwhile.

  • JHuxley #42 5 years ago

    "Considering the fact that Metal Slug 4 and 5 on PS2 got a 4/10 and a 5/10 a score of 9/10 was the last thing I was expecting for Anthology..."

    I'd say it finally got the score it deserves. Well done Simon Parkin!

    Metal Slug is one of the great side-scrolling shooters, up there with Gunstar Heroes and Contra. And even more so than those titles, it's equally beautiful and hugely enjoyable as it was on release.

    To have all six games in one neat package...why shouldn't it get a 9? Remember also that 1, 2/X and 3 are probably the best in the series, 4 and 5 are really pale imitations so the 4/5 out of 10 reflects that.

  • Ryze #43 5 years ago

    Agreed on the 2D graphics .

    I've been looking at the original Green Hill Zone in Sonic, and it's just one of the best looking games I can think of. Silky smooth also, and only 64 colours on screen.

    Excellent.

    I've not played the Metal Slugs, mostly because I won't be competing with the rabid fans for a copy of any of the games on eBay. I've loved shooters from R-Type and Xenon I/II through Thunderforce (IV) onwards, so I'll probably grab this one for the PSP.

    Curse the devs for not presenting the game decently though. No need for not giving the menus some spit 'n' polish. Lazy shortcutting, jus to release the game and get our money.

    Seems unmissable though!

  • SeesThroughAll #44 5 years ago

    As long as you don't mind not playing any actual, you now, new games on it. The only good on the platform are these official ports of old games
    (this metal slug thing, the sega compilation, powerstone compilation, valkyre profile, the upcoming final fantasy ports of 1 and tactics, etc).

    You think so? My, my, my... the FUD never ends...
    Lumines 1&2 (the franchise actually was born on the PSP), Exit 1&2, GripShift (ported FROM the PSP to the PSN), LocoRoco, Syphon Filter Dark Mirror, KillZone Liberation, etc. ... the list goes on.

    And don't even think about referring to this SF:DM and K:L as ports, they are no more of ports than Phoenix Wright (that was originally a GBA game), "new" Super Mario Brothers, or Mario Kart DS. In fact, come to think of it, the DS has at least as many ports and rehashes as the PSP, doesn't it?

    A lot of PSP haters like to claim that porting (original) PSP games to consoles is a bad thing, but as far as I'm concerned, it only testifies to those games quality.
    Edited by 1 at 19/02/07 @ 21:22

  • Ryze #45 5 years ago

    The problem with the PSP since lanunch has been Sony's stream of blunders.

    They raise hopes and expectations through PR shit talk, then we buy the powerful hardware at a premium price (vs. the competition) and expect them to deliver.

    Then we wait, and wait... until Konami, Rockstar, Namco, Sega (Sumo - as Sega have been fuckups in recent years too), SNK etc. deliver the goods and bail Sony out.

    Sony pissed me off with the PSP, but I love it due to 3rd party devs and homebrew. Sony made the sexy and powerful hardware as usual, then left us with incomplete and in some cases intentionally broken features (video playback, no TV out for UMD, no downloadable video, music or games, broken web browser, no online service - nobody to play against and no way to invite them, plus hardly any games supporting online, yawn... annoying FUCKING SONY!!!!! WHERE'S GRAN TURISMO YOU FUCKING LIARS!).

    So they're continuing their trend into the P$£ era, but most of us gamers have already been burned, so fuck 'em!

    PSPDSWii60 will do me fine until 2009.

    Sony's new trojan can fuck off.

    No fanboyism, no trolling involved.

  • dirigiblebill #46 5 years ago

    From my outsider's perspective, the attractive thing about the whole DS vs. PSP saga is that the platforms are pretty well differentiated. DS gives you a bizarre but effective dual-screen touchy-feely set-up; PSP gives you the power of a ps2 in your pocket. There's a real sense of choice, and quality gaming on either side of the line.

  • SeesThroughAll #47 5 years ago

    From my outsider's perspective, the attractive thing about the whole DS vs. PSP saga is that the platforms are pretty well differentiated. DS gives you a bizarre but effective dual-screen touchy-feely set-up; PSP gives you the power of a ps2 in your pocket. There's a real sense of choice, and quality gaming on either side of the line.

    +2

    Exactly.

  • spongebob #48 5 years ago

    Good new games, the homebrew scene (the emulators are insane), excellent video playback (beats iPod's video versions easily), decent mp3 playback.. PSP is a nice all around portable machine and for a reasonable price to boot. Still, it's not everyone's cup of tea.

  • Ryze #49 5 years ago

    Still needs a redesign to fix the controls.

  • smelly #50 5 years ago

    Good job metal slug came out on the wii.. or i'd have a reason to buy a psp again.

  • JHuxley #51 5 years ago

    @disc

    Maybe not from a technical standpoint, but then it's hardly fair to compare since they were designed for hardware released 14 years apart. The Neo Geo wasn't a particularly powerful machine but it did allow for some very elaborate sprite animation, and Metal Slug plays to this strength. It has a unique cartoon style that wasn't exactly like anything at the time (or since), and it's the quality of the animation that really brings it to life.

    Even if it isn't your cup of tea it's hard to deny the artistry and skill that's gone in to Metal Slug - it's a beautifully crafted game with a great attention to detail. Especially the first three games, which all have a very clear and well thought-out vision from start to finish.

  • Chtulie #52 5 years ago

    "Lumines 1&2 (the franchise actually was born on the PSP), Exit 1&2, GripShift (ported FROM the PSP to the PSN), LocoRoco, Syphon Filter Dark Mirror, KillZone Liberation, etc. ... the list goes on."

    It only goes on if you're willing to include upcoming games of untested quality or b-list games. Or both as someone mentioned Chilli Con Carnage earlier.

    And how long did it take the PSP to get to such an staggeringly short list of worthwhile, sort of exclusive, content?

    The PSP is a very viable platform, but not really for new games. It's a nice multimedia device to play classic games on. And it's at it's most enjoyable when properly hacked so you don't have to deal with Sony's battle against the user.

  • SeesThroughAll #53 5 years ago

    And how long did it take the PSP to get to such an staggeringly short list of worthwhile, sort of exclusive, content?

    The list is not short at all and you seem to be looking for reasons to criticise the PSP library... If you take the effort of checking Metacritic or GameRankings, you will find MORE PSP games rated at 80% or higher than DS ones.

    And if I was to buy a handheld now, I wouldn't care about "how fast" or "how long" the games were released, I would only care to know that the games are available now, and that there are more coming.

    "staggeringly short" my arse.

  • yegon #54 5 years ago

    "Well I'll get this for the Wii anyway, can't put up with PSP controls anymore. "
    ------

    Err, good look adjusting to the Wii controls then! Wii MSA has loads of different control combos, all of them flawed sadly;

    -Wavebird control is confined to the left stick (the d-pad only works in menu's)

    -the Wiimote can be used horizontally but, and its a BIG but, to chuck a grenade you have to shake the wiimote - beyond stupid in a precision 2d game

    -loads of crappy Wiimote-nunchuck combos that feel totally unnatural

    ...and I'll save the best (worst) till last....

    IT DOESN'T SUPPORT THE CLASSIC CONTROLLER!! AAAAAAAAARGH!!!! If ever a game was made for the CC, this was it. Playmore's excuse is they weren't issued with the CC early enough in the titles development. You could cling to the hope this'll be rectified for the PAL release but I wouldn't hold your breath.

    Thankfully, although not ideal, the PSP version plays fine with the d-pad. It's noticably better on my newer white psp than my launch black one though, mainly because the d-pad is a lot more flush on my old black one.

  • Feanor #55 5 years ago

    "staggeringly short" my arse.

    And mine. Wipeout Pure, MGS:pO, Daxter, and Ratchet & Clank are four other titles worth listing.

  • Hughes. #56 5 years ago

    @Chtulie

    How did you get so full of shit? Did you use some kind of pump?

    Answers on postcard plz

    I think I actually prefer bad reviews for PSP games. Not only does it save me money by keeping me from buying them, but the ignorant shit-wits who are incapable of letting a day of their empty bitter lives pass by without slagging the system off will usually content themselves with a simple "another shit PSP game then" and piss off precisely one post too late.

    In the good reviews they have to pretend it's the first one there's ever been and that this one game won't make them buy a PSP (because we all know gaming systems only ever have one game), or go into lengthy detail about how even though it has a good game now (how generous a concession!), the hardware is fundamentally flawed.

    I suppose if I were some freak with nothing better to do with my life than define myself by the things I hate, I might hang out in the bad DS reviews, there are a lot more of them after all. But that would require me to hate the DS, which I don't, as it has a great many strengths all of its own.

    I don't even hate the desperate prannocks who think an obligation of being a DS owner is to make a pain in the arse of yourself whenever anything good is being said about its competitor. I'm staggeringly fucking bored of them though. Maybe the DS reviews are full of PSP owners acting in as cretinous a fashion? I can't say I've seen it if they are.

  • smelly #57 5 years ago

    "What are you, some sort of illiterate fucking spastic? "

    And people wonder why i think this guy is a dick?

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #58 5 years ago

    "Lumines 1&2 (the franchise actually was born on the PSP), Exit 1&2, GripShift (ported FROM the PSP to the PSN), LocoRoco, Syphon Filter Dark Mirror, KillZone Liberation, etc. ... the list goes on."

    What list is that? The Big List Of Mediocre, Widely-Overrated Games For Dullards? Gripshift is pretty cool, but Lumines is fun for about a week, Exit is a slow, boring, madly overcomplicated puzzle game that people like solely because it has really nice quirky graphics, and I fell asleep halfway through the *name* of Syphon Filter Dark Mirror, never mind when I actually tried to play it. And LocoRoco is cute and has fantastic music, but the gameplay is spongy and shallow. And these are your killer apps? Oh dear.

    And no, I'm no PSP hater or rabid DS fanboy. Most people seemed to find this a fair and balanced account:
    [link url=http://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.com/handh eld/headtohead.htm
    ]http://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.co...[/link]

    With custom firmware installed, the PSP is a brilliant console. But if you're going to spend nearly £200 on one just for exclusive PSP games - and especially the crap you mentioned above - you're out of your tiny mind.
    Edited by 1 at 20/02/07 @ 08:19

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #59 5 years ago

    Are you? I couldn't say.

  • SeesThroughAll #60 5 years ago

    I read your article, and have to disagree with the following:

    1- You're blowing the square button and and the analog nub issues out of proportion. The D-Pad I agree, it sucks for diagonals. But calling this a complete disaster is a bit of an exaggeration. The touch-pad, while working fine most of the time, is not perfect either, and it doesn't suit a few games.
    Couple of examples: I tried to play Starfox DS and found it an imprecise mess to control, whereas Ace Combat always responded well to the "disastrous" analogue nub on the PSP. While FPS are a PITA on the PSP, they're not that much better on the DS: Metroid makes people wish they had three hands.

    2- I already tried playing with both a DS phat and a DS lite, and I have to say: the DS Lite feels VERY cheaply produced in comparison to the PSP. In fact, the DS phat actually felt more robust than the redesigned DS does. My PSP already fell to the ground twice, and survived undamaged. I doubt a DS Lite would have.

    For the most part, it's really a matter of taste. I just prefer the PSP's varied games library over Nintendo's offering any time.

    PS: "tiny mind"? Refrain from insulting people you don't know.

  • dirigiblebill #61 5 years ago

    "I just prefer the PSP's varied games library over Nintendo's offering any time."

    This was my position for ps1 and ps2 vs. other consoles- psp seems to be following suit.

    I'm also just not very hip to this 'touch generation' thing. I am not a 'casual gamer'. I don't want brilliantly simplistic and commute-friendly puzzle games with deceptively childish graphics. I want evil bastard meatgrinder games with little respect for office deadlines, bodily hygiene or one's neglected sex life. I want STATS, dammit. I want grim anti-heroes spouting pages of densely written monologue, and labyrinthine control schemes that make me cry at night.

    Now the DS does have some games that fit the bill, but it doesn't have MGS (Acid and PO), Valkyrie Profile or Syphon Filter. It also doesn't have Wipeout, which pretty much seals the deal for me :)

  • kangarootoo #62 5 years ago

    @Rev. Stuart Campbell

    "What are you, some sort of illiterate fucking spastic?"

    Oh man, you have made my day. Everytime someone who is supposedly a professional, with a degree of tolerance and maturity reveals themselves to actually be a petulant child, I gain an extra year of life.

    With you on board, I'm good till 2086.

    Seriously though, you are way to old to be reacting like that. Pretty pathetic stuff I'm sure we can all agree. Keep it up though, you make me smile :)

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #63 5 years ago

    "For the most part, it's really a matter of taste. I just prefer the PSP's varied games library over Nintendo's offering any time."

    Pretty much what I said in the feature, before giving the PSP a narrow victory in the "native games" category for the very breadth of catalogue that you cite above. I also agree that Starfox Command is a bit of a mess to control, but that's down to the game design, not the hardware. And how you can call a d-pad that only works in four directions anything less than a disaster, I don't know. I'm just glad I'm not a big Street Fighter fan.

    You must have been very unlucky with your Lite, though - I've dropped mine half a dozen times and it's come to no harm. My PSP, on the other hand, was broken (useless d-pad, dead pixels) straight out of the box...

  • kangarootoo #64 5 years ago

    @Rev. Stuart Campbell

    Man, I've just read through some of your other comments to other people on here. You really don't get enough love do you.

    Go on, hit me with a playground insult, just for fun (I recommend calling me stupid, but saying my trainers aren't cool or my hair looks shit would be EQUALLY effective).

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #65 5 years ago

    Why bother? You don't seem to be able to read, so you wouldn't understand it anyway.

  • dirigiblebill #66 5 years ago

    @ kanga, Rev Stu

    Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!

    (Watch out, teacher's coming)

  • kangarootoo #67 5 years ago

    "Why bother? You don't seem to be able to read, so you wouldn't understand it anyway."

    Smackdown of the week right there. My eyes are scorched.

    I control the horizontal and the vertical. You are like my little remote control car. When I press a button, you jump. I just wind you up and watch you go. Think on it.


    @dirigiblebill

    Obnoxious people bring out the best in me :)

  • dirigiblebill #68 5 years ago

    I'm considering writing a study of the way people bitch at one another on comments threads. The levels of vitriol on here are up there with bleedin' Juvenal and William Hazlitt.

    /looks smug at literary reference

  • Chtulie #69 5 years ago

    "How did you get so full of shit? Did you use some kind of pump?"

    You're not frustratrated that a grand effort as the PSP is getting so badly executed? The biggest chance for there finally to be some strong competition in the handheld market and it get's bunged up like that?

  • captain_cupcake #70 5 years ago

    Kanga: Outer Limits > Sandie Shaw

  • toy_brain #71 5 years ago

    "From my outsider's perspective, the attractive thing about the whole DS vs. PSP saga is that the platforms are pretty well differentiated. DS gives you a bizarre but effective dual-screen touchy-feely set-up; PSP gives you the power of a ps2 in your pocket. There's a real sense of choice, and quality gaming on either side of the line."

    Like SeesThroughAll, I agree completely with this statement.

    +3

  • Hughes. #72 5 years ago

    Chtulie, if you don't think the PSP is well served, that's a shame, personally I've got more excellent games on it than I have time to play, although I give it a good go, and I honestly have no issues with the control set-up other than the stupid no diagonals D-Pad Sony continue to inflict on us. I'm not saying it couldn't be better, but it's no deal breaker.

    I withdraw any previous remarks of an insulting nature, as it appears cut-price celebrity prick Stuart Campbell is active in this thread, and while I've hit ignore every time his name has appeared for around the last 7 years, I know enough about his personal charm to know he'll be giving proceedings more than enough obnoxious bile to spare for everyone.
    Edited by 1 at 20/02/07 @ 16:45

  • smelly #73 5 years ago

    Mr Campbell was the reason I stopped buying edge.

    I hate soup.

  • McBradders #74 5 years ago

    Campbell makes me want to give up gaming altogether, self important twit.
    Edited by 2 at 22/02/07 @ 14:50

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #75 5 years ago

    I'm about as important as a fly on an elephant, son. Any importance you attribute to me is entirely in your own mind. So thanks!

  • McBradders #76 5 years ago

    I refer you to your previous comment about being an "illiterate fucking spastic" aimed at another poster.
    Edited by 1 at 22/02/07 @ 15:57

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #77 5 years ago

    What does someone being an illiterate fucking spastic have to do with me being important?