Review: LocoRoco (2006, Sony. PSP)

Bold, colourful, original. LocoRoco is all of these and more, a quirky, simplistic and fiendishly addictive, not to mention moreish game to play. Playing as a malleable ball-shaped globule your task is to navigate through colourful landscapes avoiding marauding mojas whilst eating flowers to grow larger. The idea is to locate and devour all 20 flowers on each level to unlock bonus parts for your largely pointless locoroco house. Finding funny little blue men called mui-muis also award you with more parts for your 'roco house. Acquiring these parts doesn't really make much sense until you unlock the third of three mini-games; the level editor. Here you can build your own custom (albeit very basic) mazes to trade with mates. LocoRoco's striking 2D cartoon visuals disguise it's ability to ensnare you in it's primary coloured talons, refusing to let go. It'll relentlessly eat up your time sucking you into it's crazy world of singing, coloured balls. Ah, the singing. There are six different coloured locorocos, each with their own unique singing style and theme, all funny, all worth playing through the game to hear. Rolling your locoroco through each level only requires the use of the PSP's shoulder buttons to tilt the entire landscape, pressing both simultaneously enables your 'roco to jump and O splits your blob into it's separate parts (each with its own singing voice). Since your locoroco is made up of smaller blobs, depending on the number of flowers munched, it's imperative that you try to stay in one piece. Certain narrow gaps require the separation of the big 'roco into smaller blobs, making them vulnerable to attacks from swooping mojas who are out to eat as many of your component parts as possible. Losing a small, defenceless globule to an evil moja is a genuinely traumatic experience, especially if you've managed to successfully collect a substantial number of flowers. Especially tragic is grabbing all 20 flowers, growing to full size only to have a piece nibbled away right at the exit. Gaaaargh! Bet your ass that you'll be back later to retry the same level to try and gobble up that elusive perfect 20, because LocoRoco is that kind of game. Infinitely replayable as well as consisently fun and more enjoyable than a chocolate bath. Get this and Me and my Katamari for your PSP and fulfil all your ball-shaped puzzling needs.
Verdict: 9/10