Taito Legends Power-Up Hands-On

As one of the most influential arcade manufacturers of the '70s and '80s, Taito has been encountered by most people at one point or another. The company may be less influential now, having been purchased by Square Enix in 2005, but this Power-Up collection hearkens back to Taito's glory days, with 25 classic games squeezed onto a UMD. Of these 25 titles, 21 can be shared wirelessly with other console owners thanks to the PSP's game-sharing mode.

The current benchmark for PSP retro collections is Namco Museum Battle Collection, which pulls together 16 arcade titles as well as four modern updates of classic games. Judged on numbers, Taito Legends usurps Namco's effort by offering 21 classic games as well as four updated titles.

The games in the Power-Up package span a total of 11 years, from 1978 to 1989, starting off with Space Invaders and ending with a lesser-known game called Cameltry. The latter game has been updated along with Crazy Balloon, Balloon Bomb, and The Legend of Kage, with 2005 remixes to offer sparkly new graphics. These four updates have also been adapted to the PSP's widescreen format, but apart from a few improved textures and animations they still don't really push the hardware.

Every game in the Taito package has been emulated with élan on Sony's portable hardware, and they are all arcade-perfect. By default, each game is presented in the same 4:3 ratio as the original, but this takes up only around a third of the PSP's screen. There's also a choice of two other image sizes, one which is slightly bigger than the default and another which fills the entire screen. Both of these modes result in some visual flaws, and watching the stretched version is like watching an old 4:3 TV show pulled across a 16:9 widescreen TV. Some games, such as Space Invaders, are flipped 90 degrees and stretched vertically, meaning that you have to turn the console in your hands to adapt.

The arcade controls have been well adapted to the PSP, and you can use both the digital pad and the analog nub for movement. The four face buttons are set out for actions by default, but everything can be changed before you start each game. The left shoulder button tops up an unlimited amount of credits in each game, while the right shoulder button is used to start the game or continue if you die. And if you're new to any of the games, the main menu displays a handy guide as well as the top score to beat.

While the selection of games in Taito Legends covers most of the classics, some of the games that were included in other Taito compilations are sorely lacking here. There's no Bubble Bobble, which was one of the games that made the company so successful in the arcade. Nor is there Rainbow Islands, which was considered by many to be one of the greatest Amiga games of all time. It's also unfortunate that none of the games in Taito Legends can be played in two-player mode, possibly because this would require some complicated emulation trickery to work.

Of the selection of games, Space Invaders, New Zealand Story, and Phoenix stand out as highlights. At the same time, it's sobering to find that some of Taito's several forgettable titles have made it onto this compilation. It's also a shame to see that little effort has been made to expand Taito Legends beyond including emulated versions of classic games. Many people buying this game will no doubt be doing so out of nostalgia, and it would be great to see some sort of unlockable artwork or a history of the company and its games.

At the final build stage, Taito Legends looks to be one of the better retro titles on the handheld market, and with 25 games to play through, there's plenty to keep nostalgia fans happy. It's good to see that the PlayStation Portable's features have been used to allow wireless game sharing, but aside from the games themselves, there's little to keep you going for a long time. We'll put the full game to the test soon to see if it's worth the budget price.