Patapon

Patapon poses a serious challenge over its 15 hours (some arcane objectives and explanations don't help); it's not very portable (no pausing, headphones required), and some players won't enjoy the backtracking necessary to buff up their army or the unforgiving economy of the collectibles (you'll often find yourself with far too many items and not enough ka-ching). But it atones for its faults with understated strategic depth, an astounding sense of reward (both literal and whimsical), and an inspired difficulty curve that sticks with you to the end. Along with a beat you'll take to your grave...

"Patapon is a very original, immersive and charming game. It has its flaws, like the lack of depth in gear and a too big need to replay levels, but that's easily compensated by the fantastic feeling when you go into Fever-mode and your troops are going into battle against enormous and cute monsters while singing. A cutie, so to speak, and one you'll forgive anything..."

"Patapon delivers what you would expect from a rhythm-based RPG title. With vibrant music and artwork, it is impossible to put down at times. However, I feel this title is unfortunately limited to a small demographic of gamers. If you don�t have the time to continually keep up with your patapons and continue through the missions of the Metropolis, then you may not get the full game experience."

"Patapon is a great game - one of the best on the PSP. It's an odd fusion of the rhythm and strategy genres, but it all comes together so well that players can't help but to be drawn in and strike the drums over and over...and over."

Patapon's ingenious combination of light real-time strategy and rhythm makes it a one-of-a-kind game that's easy to recommend.