Tokobot is Tecmo's first game for the PSP, a quirky game set thousands of years ago, in the land of Moritari. Just like many ancient civilizations really have, a prehistoric race created extraordinary technology that revolutionized life, so now in the current time lost technology is being excavated from the ruins of the ancients by private laboratories. The rediscovery of mini robotic helpers, the titular “Tokobots”, has attracted the interest of treasure hunters who want to use the robots' amazing powers to take over the world. You play as Bolt, a 16-year-old agent whose only mission is to track down the bad guys in order to scupper their evil plan. Bolt works for Dr. Canewood of Canewood Labs, investigating the ruins of the ancient civilization and the secrets that they hold. One of these secrets, the Tokobots, are discovered by Bolt one day, and they immediately start following him around wherever he goes.
Stripped down to its bare bones this is a puzzler with simple combat elements, the Tokobots are at your side every step of the way. They’re vital to your success in the game and although you start out with only four this number will both increase and decrease during the games many levels. The Tokobots have various uses including 'joint actions' - fusing together with Bolt to create bridges, ladders, swings and even a glider, or may be used in combat - you can select to 'spin' or 'throw' them at the numerous enemies that inhabit the various worlds.
When required they can also occasionally unify in “Karakuri Combinations” (you also need to collect components, which provide the blueprint for the transformation). When you call one of these into action your Tokobots merge and become a larger, much more powerful or more useful mech - such as a train, a sword wielding samurai or block lifting crane!
Visually, as with so many PSP games Tokobot is pleasing to the eye but never outstanding. The scenery is imaginative but repetitive; the draw distance is good but never really put to the test due to the level designs. Camera angles can also be annoyingly unhelpful and whilst they can be moved, like so many other 3D puzzle titles they never appear to behave when you most need them to…
Tokobot also features a Time Attack mode (once you’ve completed the story mode fully), as well as a selection of mini games. It’s a good solid package of entertainment, one that you can play for minutes or hours.
Tokobot’s strength is in its puzzles, because although it may look samey the tasks vary hugely and they always manage to be challenging but fun – not an easy balancing act. One of the PSP’s finest action/platformers this is also arguably one of the best (and best-suited to a handheld) PSP games to date, but has also created one of the best games on the system. The rare rough patches (wonky translation, some overly tricky jumping puzzles) aren't enough to keep it from greatness, and are more than made up for by the game's charm and style. Add in a post-game time trial mode to keep things going after the main story is complete and Tokobot is a little slice of platform puzzle heaven. Buy. It. Now.
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