For this review, I am actually going to cover six titles that are part of the new PSP Mini collection for the PSP and PSP Go.  These games are small on size but big on fun which is very much the same as mobile phone games.  The real question however is how well games such as these which are essentially budget priced titles can compete against more established and higher priced titles that are already on the PSP and other mobile gaming platforms.

Game 1 – Alien Havoc

In this game the idea is very simple.  You play as an alien who has to capture the cows on a farm and take them back to your spaceship whilst avoiding the farmers.  This game actually reminded me of an old PC game called Sheep.  The graphics are cute as you would expect from such a title and the game itself is strangely compelling.  Once you get around the control scheme you will find that this is one game that can easily help you while away moments on the bus.  However this is not the strongest title out of all the ones I reviewed but it is a solid title that will appeal to casual gamers as well as gamers on a budget.

5 Ninja Heads out of out of 10

Game 2 – Bloons

The idea behind this game is such a simple one that you wonder why no-one else has not thought of it already.  This game takes elements of Bust a Move and combines it with such an original idea that once you start playing it really is hard to put this game down.  The idea is simple, you aim an arrow at a set of balloons and each level requires you to pop a certain number of balloons before the allocated number of darts is used up.

Graphically the game is very reminiscent of Bust a Move and so is the game mechanic of firing into the balloons and having to take into account the angle and trajectory of your shot.  Popping all the balloons in one shot is really satisfying and this is definitely a game that everyone should take a look at because once you pop you really cannot stop.

7 Ninja Heads Out of 10

Game 3 – Fortix

The idea of Fortix is quite strange.  You have a set gaming area and you control a character who you can use to cut off the game area and the idea is that you cut off the gaming area in the allocated time.  Basically the gaming area is one large shape and you as the main character perform a duty similar to an Etch-a-Sketch.  The shapes that you create from walking to one side of the gaming area to another breaks up the overall game area and the idea is to break up the gaming area before the time runs out.

This can be a very difficult and taxing game because you really have to think in order to break up the level as effectively as possible.  I actually thought games such as Bloons were much more appealing but I am sure Fortix will appeal to portable strategists everywhere.  This is one game to play if you really are looking for something to kill a lot of time and are a gamer on a budget.

It certainly is not without its charm though and once you pick up how the game works there is a decent puzzle game there but I was just not impressed.

5 Ninja Heads Out of 10

Game 4 – Funky Punch

For me this was the game that I really did not like.  It is a simple one-on-one fighting game that reminded me of the Dragonball fighting titles.  You simply pick a character and fight against the CPU.  The characters and special moves are quite bizarre and this is definitely no rival to the Tekken or Soul Calibur series but if you liked the Dragonball titles then you might like this.  Personally I thought this was the weakest of all the games reviewed and I quickly played something else instead.

4 Ninja Heads Out of 10

Game 5 – Mahjong Artifacts – Chapter 2

No portable gaming handheld would be complete without a version of Mahjong and the PSP is no different.  If you are a fan of the game then you know what to expect although Mahjong is available on most systems and even with a few additions to the gameplay this is definitely a game that most people will avoid simply because for the price you can get better mobile games both for the PSP and for mobile phones.

I found that this really failed to grab my attention although that is probably because I am not really a Mahjong fan.  I can see why this would be the kind of game that would be ideal for a portable platform because it really is quite deep in terms of strategy and some of the levels can take some time to complete but I just felt that I had seen it all before.

4 Ninja Heads Out of 10

Game 6 – Yummy Yummy Cooking Jam

I thought that this was just another clone of Cooking Mama which is also available on mobile gaming platforms but I was wrong.  The idea of the game is that you are working in a restaurant and you have to serve customers.  You start off by giving them the menu, you then cook what they want and serve it to them and then they pay you.

The control system which is simply dragging and dropping different things is a little too sensitive and takes some getting used to but the game idea itself is well thought out and solid.  On the later levels you learn how to cook different food such as pizza and hamburgers and it can be quite hectic when you have four customers who all want different orders.  I found myself playing this game the most out of all the ones I have reviewed simply because it is fun to play and easy to pick up.  But make no mistake it really is quite addictive and so can be quite hard to put down again.

7 Ninja Heads Out of 10

Overall this is quite a mixed collection of budget titles.  As you would expect some of the games give you what you pay for (very little in some cases or old ideas) but games such as Bloons and Yummy Yummy Cooking Jam really surprised me because these were titles that could easily rival the big names on other mobile platforms.  These games are all good for gamers on a budget and will definitely give you hours of fun but some of the games are just as not as innovative or original as others.

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