Invizimals (PSP) Review

Full Disclosure: I did not partake in the online battling or online trading. 

Storyline: The story begins in Kenichi’s lab located in Tokyo, Japan.  He introduces and explains what invizimals are as well as how to capture them and sends you to other countries to do battle with the invizimals you have or will have captured in your quest. Another character named Dawson also provides additional insights on how to battle and explains the invizimals special powers.  I felt the storyline suited the game very well since it’s very adventurous.  The variety of the game allowed me to have endless fun in the aspects of traveling from world to world and experiencing the different invizimals.  Another factor was it brought on was realism since the storyline footage was not graphically rendered but filmed.  That made my experience of the game a whole lot more exciting because I felt that I was inside the game. The story also captivated me with the senses of mystery and urgency as I progressed further in the game.

Additionally, the game said it covers 100+ of invizimals.  I thought this was great at first, but came to realize that 100+ invizimals seems overwhelming.  I haven’t been able to encounter all the 100+ invizimals and not sure whether I would like too.  I have become attached to a select few in my party that capturing a newer one and going through the training process would be a bit much for me. 

Game play: I thoroughly enjoyed that the game was very interactive in the ways of how to capture the Invizimals by using the marker provided for the game by involving the gamer to touch, shout or use the PSP camera to entrap it.  For example, when I was catching a jungle type invizimal, I had to have my hand come into camera view and begin petting the invizimal to be captured.  I was absolutely amazed that I was able to do that within a game, it really helped me re-think the gaming world and how far it has come.  Battling was very simple and reminded me of the days of Pokemon.  The way they are similar is that two invizimals will battle each other.  If you win, you will obtain a reward and if you lose, just like in Pokemon, it restarts back to the battle arena with your invizimals fully healed.  The only thing different is there are no badge battles.  After awhile, I found the battles becoming old since there was nothing new to offer.  The basic attacks, such as bite, slash and the invizimals special attack was all there was to it and nothing more. I would often try to avoid as much battling as I could because of how second nature it became.

Audio: Musically, the various styles used suites the game and its intended age.  The battle music is upbeat and fast paced while the map screen is simple.  Nothing is too exaggerated or complex.  Simplicity is key in this game and the music does just that.  I found that it did become annoying quickly since the battle theme doesn’t change from battle to battle.  I wish there was a more distinct battle theme between regular invizimals and boss battles, almost in the way Pokemon had their battle music. 

Furthermore, the sound effects I felt were superb.  They were top notch and were precise to the different creatures.  For example, if an invizimal was using a bite attack, the crunch noise was loud and clear.  Even the roaring of the beasts were great.  All in all, great sound effects help make a great game. 

Graphics: The rendering of the game was actually very commendable.  I was thinking that with it being so interactive that not much attention was going to be put into the invizimal design.  I was wrong, they were pretty decent.  I did feel that some of the colors were too vibrant, but after awhile of playing, I got used to it.  Also, how the colors were placed on the different elemental invizimals, such as an ice type with a white or light blue coat, was very well done and interesting.  The menu design was crisp and clear and had a grid design that I found refreshing.  The only thing I would have to give negativity was the camera angles during battling.  Since it’s not a fixated camera, moving the PSP to much can almost make you feel motion sick and can make the graphics a bit fuzzy and that left a sour note in my mind.  It would have been nice to have set battle backgrounds so that wiggling the PSP to much would not interrupt the graphics and cause motion sickness.

I also found that during battles, attacks will cause invizimals to drop orbs that I can be collected and used to buy items at a store.  I had to move the PSP camera over the orbs and far too many times I ran into the trouble of my invizimals disappearing and the PSP asking me to go back to the marker to continue battle.  But the orbs would disperse so far a part; I could not help but move the camera to obtain them. They wanted me to collect the orbs, but I could not do that if it yelled at me to point the marker back to the battle.  It was very inconvenient at times.    

Replayability: There are so many invizimals to be caught and lots of training to be done, so I can see going back to this game a lot.  Since the invizimals can evolve, it would be interesting to catch the other types and see what they evolve into.  That is one aspect I always looked forward to when the invizimal evolved and into what they became.  This game is geared for a younger generation and often I felt awkward playing it since I am past that generation.  Yet, the game was still enjoyable and also left me reminiscing of my childhood days.

Pro’s:

• Very interactive in regards to the marker and how to capture invizimals
• Story is great, having it filmed instead of CG designed.  Adds a nice sense of realism
• Easy battle system

Con’s:

• Music can get repetitive
• Battling with the marker: hard to keep the psp steady and too much wiggling could cause motion sickness
• Obtaing orbs just seemed impossible at times due to the constant need that every inch of the marker needs to be seen on camera

Editor: Alyssa Bogie

8/10 - Great

Value: Full Price (39.99)