Patapon
Encyclopedia
is a video game published for the PlayStation Portable
handheld game console
combining gameplay features of a rhythm game
and a god game
. The game is presented in a cartoonish, silhouette
d two-dimension
al environment, and features the player acting as a deity
who commands an army of caricatured miniature tribal creatures by beating traditional talking drums. The game was developed by Pyramid and produced by Japan Studios.
. The player is put in in direct control of a tribe
of Patapon warriors; to command the warriors, the player inputs specific sequences using the face buttons on the PSP, each representing a "talking drum", in time to a drum rhythm. These sequences order the tribe to move forward on the linear battlefield, attack, defend, and other actions. If the player inputs an unknown sequence or enters them off the main rhythm, the tribe will become confused and stop whatever they are doing. However, repeatedly entering a proper sequence in sync with the rhythm will lead the tribe into a "fever" increasing their attack and defensive bonuses. The tribe will stop doing anything after performing the last entered command if the player does not enter any more commands. For example, some commands are square, square, square, circle (Pata, Pata, Pata, Pon.), which has them march forward and circle, circle, square, circle (Pon, Pon, Pata, Pon.), which makes them attack
The game is divided into several missions. Prior to each mission, the player can recruit new troops and assemble formations, equip troops with weapons and armor gained from the spoils of war
or crafted from certain minigames. The player can return to an earlier mission to acquire additional resources and equipment to build up their troops before a larger battle.
was announced. The game was released on UMD on November 27, 2008 in Japan and on February 13, 2009 in Europe. The North American version was released May 5, 2009 as a digital format download from the Playstation Store
. People who reserved a copy of the game at a retail store were given a voucher to download it off the Playstation Store. The game features new bosses and new units, a multiplayer mode and the appearance of a new tribe.
During E3 2010, Sony announced another sequel titled Patapon 3
.
rated the game 9.2/10, and considers Patapon, "not only one of the best rhythm games ever released, it's also one of the best titles for the PSP." GameSpot
gave Patapon a 9.0/10 citing its excellent art design and innovative gameplay. 1UP.com
gave the game an A, noting its understated strategic depth despite the game's faults. Metacritic has an aggregate score of 87/100. The game has sold 229,000 copies in North America by January 2009.
GameSpot
nominated this game in "Best of 2008" awards. It was nominated in "Best Graphic, Artistic", "Best original music", "Best original game mechanic", "Most innovative game", "Best original IP", "Best Rhythm/Music game", "Best PSP game" and won 2 of these awards.
's "Best of 2008":
IGN
's "Best of 2008 Awards":
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
handheld game console
Handheld game console
A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic device with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are run on machines of small size allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place...
combining gameplay features of a rhythm game
Rhythm game
Rhythm game or rhythm action is a genre of music-themed action video game that challenges a player's sense of rhythm. Games in the genre typically focus on dance or the simulated performance of musical instruments, and require players to press buttons in a sequence dictated on the screen...
and a god game
God game
A god game is an artificial life game that casts the player in the position of controlling the game on a large scale, as an entity with divine/supernatural powers, as a great leader, or with no specified character , and places them in charge of a game setting containing autonomous characters to...
. The game is presented in a cartoonish, silhouette
Silhouette
A silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...
d two-dimension
Dimension
In physics and mathematics, the dimension of a space or object is informally defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it. Thus a line has a dimension of one because only one coordinate is needed to specify a point on it...
al environment, and features the player acting as a deity
Deity
A deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....
who commands an army of caricatured miniature tribal creatures by beating traditional talking drums. The game was developed by Pyramid and produced by Japan Studios.
Gameplay
Patapon is a video game that the player controls in a manner similar to rhythm gamesMusic video game
A music video game, also commonly known as a music game, is a video game where the gameplay is meaningfully and often almost entirely oriented around the player's interactions with a musical score or individual songs...
. The player is put in in direct control of a tribe
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
of Patapon warriors; to command the warriors, the player inputs specific sequences using the face buttons on the PSP, each representing a "talking drum", in time to a drum rhythm. These sequences order the tribe to move forward on the linear battlefield, attack, defend, and other actions. If the player inputs an unknown sequence or enters them off the main rhythm, the tribe will become confused and stop whatever they are doing. However, repeatedly entering a proper sequence in sync with the rhythm will lead the tribe into a "fever" increasing their attack and defensive bonuses. The tribe will stop doing anything after performing the last entered command if the player does not enter any more commands. For example, some commands are square, square, square, circle (Pata, Pata, Pata, Pon.), which has them march forward and circle, circle, square, circle (Pon, Pon, Pata, Pon.), which makes them attack
The game is divided into several missions. Prior to each mission, the player can recruit new troops and assemble formations, equip troops with weapons and armor gained from the spoils of war
Spoils of War
Botín de guerra is a 2000 Argentine documentary film directed and written by David Blaustein with Luis Alberto Asurey. The film premiered on 11 April 2000 in Buenos Aires...
or crafted from certain minigames. The player can return to an earlier mission to acquire additional resources and equipment to build up their troops before a larger battle.
Story
The Patapon were a flourishing people until they were defeated by the Zigoton Empire. The player takes the role of their god and uses sacred war drums to direct the Patapon tribe to take back their land. As the story progresses, the Patapon also embark on a journey to Earthend to look upon "IT," a sacred object whose appearance and purpose is unknown to the tribe. The enemy of the Patapon tribe is the evil Zigoton Empire, a powerful tribe of slightly squarish creatures with red-and-black eyes (as opposed to the white-and-black-eyed Patapon) that have oppressed the Patapon since their fall from power. It becomes apparent later in the game that the Zigoton's have their own prophecy which is that when the Patapons attempt to see "IT" the world will fall into chaos. Towards the end of the game many of the main Zigoton warriors sell their souls to the dark forces in an attempt to gain more power. Eventually Queen Kharma, ruler of the Zigotons sells her soul in a final attempt to destroy the Patapons. When she is defeated the Patapons have to kill Gorl, a creature that once threatened the world. Once defeated the Patapon come to the coast, which they assume to be Earthend, and see the rising sun, which they assume to be "IT". However, unfulfilled by the anticlimactic end of their journey, they come to the conclusion that "IT" is, in fact, not the sun and to realize their destiny, they must cross the ocean to the real Earthend and continue their quest. At the end of the game there is a scene in which the Patapons and the Zigotons are working together to build a boat to cross the sea.Playable demo
On January 25, . a playable demo was announced by the Patapon's associate producer Chris Hinojosa-Miranda via the official PlayStation blog. He revealed that the demo would be available for those who pre-ordered a copy of Patapon through GameStop. It has since been released as a downloadable demo for those in Europe and North America through the PlayStation Store. Progress made in the demo version of Patapon (including the acquiring of a special demo-only weapon, The Spear of Protection) is transferable to the full retail release so players can resume progress from where they left off in the demo.Sequels
On July 9, 2008, a sequelPatapon 2
is a video game by Sony Computer Entertainment. It is a sequel to Patapon.The game was released in Japan, Europe, and Australia before North America, and in North America it was first available only as a digital download via the PlayStation Store, as a "test case" to gauge the success of digital...
was announced. The game was released on UMD on November 27, 2008 in Japan and on February 13, 2009 in Europe. The North American version was released May 5, 2009 as a digital format download from the Playstation Store
PlayStation Store
The PlayStation Store is an online virtual market available to users of Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable game consoles via the PlayStation Network. The Store offers a range of downloadable content both for purchase and available free of charge. Available content includes full games,...
. People who reserved a copy of the game at a retail store were given a voucher to download it off the Playstation Store. The game features new bosses and new units, a multiplayer mode and the appearance of a new tribe.
During E3 2010, Sony announced another sequel titled Patapon 3
Patapon 3
is a rhythm game for the PlayStation Portable and sequel to Patapon 2. It was developed by Pyramid and Japan Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment...
.
Reception
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated the game 9.2/10, and considers Patapon, "not only one of the best rhythm games ever released, it's also one of the best titles for the PSP." GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave Patapon a 9.0/10 citing its excellent art design and innovative gameplay. 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
gave the game an A, noting its understated strategic depth despite the game's faults. Metacritic has an aggregate score of 87/100. The game has sold 229,000 copies in North America by January 2009.
GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
nominated this game in "Best of 2008" awards. It was nominated in "Best Graphic, Artistic", "Best original music", "Best original game mechanic", "Most innovative game", "Best original IP", "Best Rhythm/Music game", "Best PSP game" and won 2 of these awards.
Awards
GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
's "Best of 2008":
- Best original music
- Most innovative game
IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's "Best of 2008 Awards":
- Best Music/Rhythm Game
- Best Artistic Design
- Best Original Score
- Best New IP
- PSP Game of the Year
See also
- Bust a GrooveBust a GrooveBust a Groove is a hybrid music/fighting game for the Sony PlayStation released in 1998. The game was published by the Japanese video game developer Enix in Japan and brought to the U.S...
, 1998 music/fighting gameFighting gameFighting game is a video game genre where the player controls an on-screen character and engages in close combat with an opponent. These characters tend to be of equal power and fight matches consisting of several rounds, which take place in an arena. Players must master techniques such as...
with similar gameplay. - Kuchi shōgaKuchi shogaKuchi shōga , also known as 'kuchi showa' and 'kuchi shoka', is a Japanese phonetic system for 'pronouncing' the sounds of drums, especially Japanese drums ....
, a Japanese phonetic system for pronouncing the sounds of drums. - Patapon 2Patapon 2is a video game by Sony Computer Entertainment. It is a sequel to Patapon.The game was released in Japan, Europe, and Australia before North America, and in North America it was first available only as a digital download via the PlayStation Store, as a "test case" to gauge the success of digital...
- Patapon 3Patapon 3is a rhythm game for the PlayStation Portable and sequel to Patapon 2. It was developed by Pyramid and Japan Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment...