Power Stone Collection muscles onto PSP
Everybody let's get stoned as Capcom's lost classic resurfaces
Sometimes the eternal habit video games companies have of raiding their lofts and store cupboards for old titles turns up a masterpiece worthy of a 'Golly! Really?' on The Antiques Roadshow. And such is the case with Capcom's Power Stone Collection for the PSP.
A brawl-'em-up where multiple fighters roam about a 3D environment duffing up their opponents with anything they can get their hands on, Power Stone was originally released on Sega's late, great and ill-fated Dreamcast console.
That means plenty of you will be enjoying Power Stone's particular delights for the first time if you get the PSP version. Hurrah for repeats!
Power Stone is all about being the last man standing. You punch and kick each other, sure, but also crack barrels over each other's heads, throw furniture about the place, and most importantly look out for the power stones scattered about the environments.
It's these gems that upgrade proceedings from the equivalent of a scrap in a dodgy East End pub to an epic struggle between noble warriors, since collecting three of them beefs up your character into a super fighter. But even if you're a few gems down, you're not out, thanks to the myriad clever ways you can use the game environments to strike back.
Wrapping together Power Stone 1 and 2, the upcoming PSP collection supports up to four-way multiplayer fighting over a local adhoc wi-fi network; a game-sharing mode enables all four of you to play off one UMD disc.
There are also some 15 characters to play as, an Adventure mode where you can find gold and spend it on new weapons in a shop, and a Challenge mode with tag team and one-versus-three options.
Completing the package is an all-new Bomber Battle mini-game, which not even your Dreamcast-recalling granddad will have played. This sees you trying to defeat your opponents in levels strewn with giant bombs.
Capcom says the game camera system has been totally reworked for the PSP's wider screen, and the handheld certainly seems an ideal host for Power Stone's wide open arenas.
We'll know for sure when it's released this Christmas. Click 'Track It!' above to be alerted of our review.