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PSPkahoots

Intro
Take ‘Lemmings,’ add a touch of  ‘LittleBigPlanet,’ and shrink it down into a PSP Mini title and control scheme. The result is ‘Kahoots,’ a new PSP Mini endeavor by British developer HoneySlug.

Game
To review ‘Kahoots’ appropriately, it’s important to note the very purpose of PSP Mini’s are as inexpensive, quick time killers. ‘Kahoots’ certainly fits the bill, a watered down version of ‘Lemmings’ adapted to a PSP control scheme.

Akin to ‘Lemmings,’ ‘Kahoots’ 2-D stages are progressively difficult, where players are expected to manipulate environments to prevent the little buggers from blindly meeting their demise. ‘Kahoots’ resemble rush hour traffic denizens, hell-bent to get from point A to point B with little disregard for whatever spiky or plummeting disaster awaits them.

To elaborate, ‘Kahoots’ aren’t actually controlled, with the only possible intervention that of their block-based environment. As long as they are physically connected to one another, different blocks – all possessing different properties – can be shifted with one another via PSP D-Pad.

Akin to ‘LittleBigPlanet,’ everything in ‘Kahoots,’ has a claymation-type feel, including its protagonist. I’m not sure what the heck this cross between a Koala and Aardvark is, but it’s no Sackboy.

Perhaps something got lost in translation from its British humor origins, but ‘Kahoot’s’ intended charm simply didn’t resonate. The levels are boring, kahoot un-engaging, and environments stale. A third into the game, and any desire to replay it was sucked dry. Adding new blocks/features didn’t spark additional interest. Simply put, I’d rather buy ‘Lemmings’ for the PSP than play a lesser version.

Last and before writing ‘Kahoots’ off, it’s worth checking out playable flash levels of the title at its web site: http://www.savethekahoots.com

Keep in mind the graphics – due to resolution constraints on the PSP – are sharper in flash than Mini-based. The same holds true for a more accessible point and click versus D-pad control mechanism.

Lowdown
‘Kahoots,’ a PSP Mini title, attempts to follow the ‘Lemmings’ legacy but stumbles a bit along the way. Stale environments and characters limit replayability of this budget effort. A solid flash demo should determine final verdict, however.

Final Score: 5.0

Reviewed by Paul Stuart | 12.02.09

+
  • Clever British feel
  • Decent take on the ‘Lemmings’ genre
  • Budget priced
  • Stale environments
  • Redundant gameplay
  • Awkward controls

Kahoots

Developer
Honeyslug

Genre
Puzzle

US Release
November '09

ESRB
"E"

Platform
PSP

Details
Player 1