Gitaroo-Man Lives! Import Hands-On

Japan is already bouncing to the beat of Gitaroo-Man Lives! on the PSP, and since we don't like to wait, we grabbed an import copy of the game to see how it plays. We already brought you the full details about the US version of Gitaroo-Man in our exclusive E3 2006 report, so if you're looking for an in-depth explanation of exactly how the game plays, be sure to check that out. But if you simply can't wait for the US release and want to know how import-friendly Gitaroo-Man Lives! is, then keep reading. And if you want to see for yourself how the game has adapted to the portable format, be sure to check out our newly posted gameplay videos.

If you don't read or speak Japanese, you'll be somewhat in the dark playing Gitaroo-Man Lives! However, if you've played the US version of the PlayStation 2 classic, then you have nothing to worry about, because this is the exact same game. If you're familiar with the original Gitaroo-Man game, then you'll be able to jump right into the import without any difficulty. The menus are all in English, and the only parts of the game that require you to know Japanese are some of the onscreen text and the spoken dialogue in the cutscenes. But even then, the story here isn't so complex that you won't be able to put two and two together, whether you've played the original game or not.

For those new to the world of talking dogs and guitar-toting superheroes, there's a full tutorial that you have to play through when you begin a single-player game. There's a lot of text and spoken dialogue here, but all you need to do is look at the animated icons to know what to do. You simply have to move the analog stick and press the face buttons in time with the icons on screen, which are the same in the Japanese and the US versions of the game.

If you're looking for a fun and challenging rhythm game to play on your PSP, then you should definitely consider importing Gitaroo-Man Lives! If you've played the original Gitaroo-Man, you already know the story anyway, and in fact, the Japanese version is probably the better choice for purists, simply because the voices seem to better fit the characters. We'll bring you more information about the US version of Gitaroo-Man Lives!--which is due out in the fourth quarter--as it happens.