Platform: PSP

Genre: Shooter

Number of Players: 1 (2 via AdHoc)

For the most part, the days of side-scrolling shooters are long gone. Games like R-Type and Gradius once were all the rage in local arcades and on home systems, but as video game technology has gotten better, many have forgotten the fun and excitement that a game with an objective of “destroy everything” could be. Today, most of the side scrolling shooters have been found in game collections released on many platforms, but some haven’t forgotten the charm of these games.

Platypus is a return to the glory days of the side scroller and no, contrary to the name, you actually are not taking on the role of a Platypus. This isn’t Parodius. There really isn’t much of a story behind the game, but when you start looking at the old side-scrolling shooters, there wasn’t much of a story in those either. Instead, you have a game that just goes back to basics, and that would be that if you see something moving, shoot it.

What could be simpler? How about the controls? The D-pad or analog stick will move your craft while X is used to shoot . . . . that’s it. While blowing up ships, you will run across power-ups to help you along your way. There are different colored starts that you can grab that will change your type of shots. Yellow for wide, blue for auto fire (the game does have auto-fire when you hold down X, but this power-up makes it even faster), light blue for lightning shots, green for sonic pulse, or red for rockets. There are also weapon pods (think of them as the Options from other shooters) that can be added onto your ship. There are also fruits that can be collected that will give you bonus points.

Power-ups however aren’t infinite, and once you’ve grabbed one, you will see a timer appear that quickly begins counting down. In order to keep your new weapons in play longer, you merely need to grab another star of the same color to add another 20 seconds onto the clock. Really, that’s about it for the game play, but what else do you need? Nothing, and in case you’d forgotten, it’s all about shooting enemy craft and blowing them up.

The story mode portion of the game will challenge you with 30 stages of action, but you don’t have to play alone either. You can set up an AdHoc multiplayer version of the game where two players can join in a cooperative mode. There is also a survival mode that you can play. Here, you will have one, and only one, chance to make it as far as you can in the game.

What sets Platypus apart from other side-scrolling shooters isn’t the fact that there are very few new ones made today, but it’s the look. The game is actual a claymation title where everything that you see was originally designed using clay. Some may remember the game Clay Fighter from year ago used the same thing, but this isn’t about battle lumps of clay, but instead clay shooting at one another. Watching enemy craft “explode” in a splatter of clay is quite entertaining, though it’s not so enjoyable when it happens to you. Platypus is also designed so that it has a pseudo three dimensional look to it, and while it’s not true 3D, it’s close enough.

The first two PSP titles from Mumbo Jumo, this and Luxor, both are games that are made up of very basic game play and ideas, but the fact is that these simple ideas really are what can make a classic game. Think about it for a minute. A sphere that runs around in a maze and eats dots and ghosts is still loved by gamers across the world. Aliens marching back and forth while you shoot up at them from beneath three shields turned the gaming public on its ear. Shooters really don’t need to much change or innovation, just a big fun factor, and Platypus offers some great entertainment value, a big nod to the classics of yesteryear, and is a game that might not have too much as far as complexity, but the enjoyment it brings will be appreciated by seasoned gamers and those how may not know that there was a day when our video games were just a stick and a single button.

-mike-