I have to rave about this teeny weeny game for the PSP.

I picked up a PSP about a year ago, one of the projects I am pushing right now involves an episodic title for the PSP, so I figured I should become intimately involved with the handheld.  After about a dozen games, I got ahold of a used copy of Patapon.  I’ve seen this artists work before, http://www.rolitoland.com/ I cannot find the first video of his I ran across on Atom FIlms (back before they were “all comedy all the time” but the stuff on his website is all pretty nice as well.

At any rate, Patapon is rhythm-based, which means you use the drumbeats to tell your little Patapon warriors what to do.  As a parent, this title is so cool on so many levels. 

1.  The gameplay itself is engaging, using the drumbeats gives the kids a clear idea of how to use the buttons and, more importantly, gives them a framework to work within.  For example in some of the “button masher” games, the faster you mash the buttons, supposedly, the faster the combo will execute.  Except if there is lag in your controller, or any number fo smaller issues that may cause a button press to drop if you go TOO fast.

2.  The visuals are engaging and easy to “read”.  Clearly defined color spaces, vector based graphics, all very cleanly done.  You never lose track of your Patapons, and because of the “scrolling” nature of the game, you don’t get your guys mixed up with the “bad” guys (which, to an adult seems silly, but when you are looking at the way that 4-5 yr olds view the world, this can be an issue with the more “real” looking titles).

3.  Feedback!  The visual feedback of the little Patapons dancing and leaping, as well as the musical changes that go along with continuing success at commanding the Patapons (by properly keeping the beat over a long time) are fabulous.  There is no question in your mind that you’ve done something (or everything) right and your little eyeball army is on it’s way to being invincible).

4.  Focus and concentration.  Okay, everyone bitches about videogames being the “wrong” kind of stimulation for a child’s brain, the brain gets all jumped up, the body stays in a state of rest, then when you unplug the game, the clash of the two is like jamming a stick-shift auto into gear after you’ve been revving it in neutral.  The kids body tries to catch up with the brain and you get all kinds of wierd (and noisy) stuff.  A game like Patapon, especially for smaller kids, seems to be easier to play standing up.  In order to really keep the rhythm they stamp their feet, wiggle their little butts, bounce up and down.  Keeping track of both the visuals *and* the complex audio *and* keeping the beat altogether seems to be a more “whole body” experience (you get this with the wii as well I note).  Granted, there can still be kicking and screaming if the game goes well, but I don’t see the spaz-out that can come after longer gameplay sessions.

5.  Keeping time.  You don’t think of rhythm as a trainable skill.  My oldest child had almost zero ability to keep time, even something like jump-rope was difficult for him.  He came to me after jump-class (our school has a jump-rope PE class once a week after school) and informed me he was now able to jump rope.  “It’s just like Patapon.”  He said.  Which, puzzled me for a moment (because ideally you are not throwing spears and fighting dragons in PE, at least at this grade level).  He meant that keeping the rhythm was the same process (Patapon is a 4-beat, jump-roping is a 2-beat or 3-beat depending on the step).