5-MANA KHEMIA: STUDENT ALLIANCE
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Mana Khemia is yet another great RPG for the PSP. With vibrant 2D visuals the game has a lot of charm. However it's obvious that some sacrifices needed to be made in order for the game to run on the smaller sized UMD, some environment textures look blurry and ugly but like I said in the beggining, the fun factor is what matters to me the most and Mana Khemia: Student Alliance has lots to spare. If looking for a more traditional JRPG this game is a excelent choice with fast paced turn-based battles and hours upon hours of fun.
4- METAL GEAR SOLID: PEACE WALKER
Peace Walker is amazing, the game is every bit as ambicious as the games that came before it. With no shortage of surprises and things to do you can get glued to the screen for a very long time, the learning curve may be steep for newcomers and PW rarely allows room for error, so every step, every enemy taken down and every decision has to be carefully planned as mission can be very long and the game doesn't save your progress in middle of them. The PSP has many games but few have pushed the limit of the system as PW does and in the end it comes around as one of the most rewarding and impressive experiences on the system.
3-TEKKEN: DARK RESURRECTION
What can I say? It's Tekken, and it's portable but, of all the Tekken games I played (Tekken 1,2,3,tag tournament and 6) so far this is the best and most compelling outing. Sporting more than 40 fighters and several game modes, character rebalance and great customization options, plus unlockable minigames (like a Tekken bowling one), Dark Resurrection hits hard and straight!
2-DISSIDIA 012: DUODECIM FINAL FANTASY
The all-star Final Fantasy cast duke it out on Dissidia. The first game was already amazing and addiciting, Duodecim takes all that and adds new modes, 8 new characters and a ridiculous amount of unlockables! I say that because I've played it for over 90 hours and haven't unlocked even half of it yet. Putting the famous cast aside you would still have a unique and strategic fighting system. In short, if you're looking for a reason to own a PSP, this may very well be it, you will get much more than your money's worth here, well that and our first place!
1-CRISIS CORE: FINAL FANTASY VII
A big adventure with characters and moments you will never forget! Zack Fair is the main hero here, but he's not the cliche type of hero you see in so many games, he has so much charisma that you will share his burden, you will care about his fate and of those around him. Midgard of FF VII never looked this good either, it's clearly that the developers didn't pull any punches in pushing the boundaries of the portable, structures have a high level of detail and characters are rendered to perfection, this only contributes to the real-time battle system which is deep, fast-paced and addicting!
The story is needless to say, brilliant. Now I will say it in all honesty, having played FF VII I already knew the outcome of Crisis Core and yet the final moments of the game are so well done and so powerful that it has to be one of the best end-sequences I saw in any game, EVER!
With dozens uppon dozens of side-quests to do, endless Materia (things that grant you special abilities like Fire, Ice and so on) to, gorgeous graphics, a lenghty and unforgetable story mode and a New Game + Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is the best experience I had on the PSP, in fact it puts a lot of console big AAA titles that I know to shame.
Anyone, fan or not alike should definitely experience Crisis Core!
The DS
15-SCRIBBLENAUTS
What happens when you give a monkey a shotgun? Or what happens when you put a jetpack on an elephant? Imagination is the limit in Scribblenauts! You play as Maxwell, a boy who has a notebook that can create pretty much anything you imagine by writing the words, for you that notebooks is your DS, just think of something and put it there that the game will give life to it (but no swearing or bad words eh!!). For me to explain better would be silly you just have to try for yourself at what is the most creative and 4th wall breaker game available on the DS, period!
14-SUPER MARIO 64 DS
Mario, ah yes the mustachoed plumber's first DS outing is also a port of the incredible Super Mario 64.
A port of a great game is still a great game, while the lack of an analog stick does make the controls a little cumbersome at times the simple joy of playing what I consider the best Mario adventure yet overshadows any awkwardness the controls may cause. With 120 stars to find and big and fun to explore Worlds, Super Mario 64 DS deserves a place on your DS!
13-TONY HAWK'S AMERICAN SK8LAND
Tony Hawk's back on the DS with American Skateland, it's a faithful recreation of the classic gameplay with some modern touches which makes it an absolute blast to play. It can kinda be considered a mini-open World game of sorts where when you unlock the next area you can come and go as you please in a seamless trasition. Fans will know what to expect with the great and addicitng gameplay while I think newcomers can enjoy it too as it's very acessible. From Proving Ground DS and American Sk8land, the latter takes the cake as being the better one for your portable.
12- THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: SPIRIT TRACKS
Link's second DS adventure is a very entertaining one, this time switching from the ship of phantom hourglass to a locomotive train. In terms of gameplay it's very similar to PH, the controls are exactly the same, just the aforementioned train controls are what have changes over the ship's. Neverthless ST adresses many things that plagued it's predecessor like too much backtracking, that isn't to say that there isn't any backtrack but this time they are most of the time optional and since the train tracks are more streamlined it makes easier to bear with them.
11- PHOENIX WRIGHT: ACE ATTORNEY
OBJECTION! If you ever heard that meme but haven't the slightest idea of where it came from, Phoenix Wright is to blame.
Playing as the titular Phoenix Wright you see that an attorney life is never easy, you must first research, listen to witnesses and find evidences of the crimes and them you're taken to court to bring justice for all. Blending all theses mechanics in a creative and fun way, this game is a joy to play and when you finally get the case right you feel a immense sense of accomplishment. A true gem like no other on the DS.
10- POKEMON PLATINUM VERSION
Pokemon Platinum expands upon Diamond/Pearl introducing significant changes with new locations, re-location of where some pokemon appears adding more of them to catch in the game than the previous two. At its core it remains addicting as ever, catch,train, defeat random opponents, visit towns and other delightful locales and challenge the gym leaders to win badges. Platinum nails all that brilliantly.
9- CASTLEVANIA: ORDER OF ECCLESIA
Playing as Shanoa your mission is to eradicate Dracula yet again but this time you're not confined to a castle, as you play trough it you will be visiting many different locations and the're all gorgeous. What makes it so special perhaps is the awesome level design that was crafted extremely well. In this installment you no longer buy weapons but instead you absorb them as ''gliphs'' that when absorbed you can switch to a particular weapon on the fly. Nothing should stop you from playing what I consider to be one of the best Castlevania game in years!
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