This old dog got Rhythm!
PaRappa the Rapper is not a new game. It did in fact appeared in 1996 on the good old PSone (or PlayStation as it was then called!). It was one of the first games to feature ?Rhythm? based game-play, sort of like Simon says with knobs on! The idea was simple, press the buttons on the controller that were shown on screen in time to the music. What made this game stand out was it’s unique graphical style and the downright infuriatingly catch music.
You find your self singing along to them for hours after you finish playing
The game follows the story of a rapping dog called PaRappa (see the link in the name, clever huh!). He is desperate to impress a girl called Sunny Funny (who is for some reason a flower!?). To do this he must complete certain tasks to make him self cool. First he must learn Kung Fu. Then he must learn how to drive. Once he can drive he needs to earn money to buy a car. Next he must bake a cake for Sunny, with instructions from a TV chef. His next task (the most bizarre) sees him rapping against his old masters to get into the toilet! Finally he must take Sunny on a date to a concert featuring rap master MC King Kong Mushi’s, whom he must rap against.
All of this is presented in a very unique style, even today it stands out! All of the main characters look like hand drawn, paper thin cut outs, all placed in a hand drawn 3D world. Because of this style the games look has not dated at all.
The music it’s self is really quite impressive. The raps are catchy and you find your self singing along to them for hours after you finish playing. The voice acting is over the top, but brilliantly funny through out.
Controls are easy, just press the face or shoulder button that corresponds with the on screen commands. The closer you get to being in time the better your score will be. Your score will range from Awful to Cool. If you get to low a score you will be doing the stage again! Get a Cool rating and you will be allowed to Free Rap.
That was over ten years ago. So what, if anything, has PaRappa the Rapper got to offer us now on the PSP. Well not much and loads is the answer. The gameplay is unchanged, which is a good thing. There is now a multi player mode. But more interestingly there are 5 new downloadable levels, just for the remake. The graphics have been tweaked to wide screen format, but look really smooth on the small screen.
All in all this a very fun and addictive game. If you played the original then this will be a nice retro blast for you, but will not keep you playing long. If you are new to the series, this is a great game for you, although there is not much replay value once you master it. It will have you tearing your hair out, but loving every minute of it!
The Bad: A little dated with very little replay value
Silver Y Award