PSP Fanboy hands-on: Jackass
This may come as a shock: Jackass: The Game is good.
What is Jackass? The game is based off of the popular MTV franchise, and it captures the spirit of the show's crazy antics through a series of minigames. Yes, it sounds like it belongs on the Wii, but for now it's set for release on PSP and PS2. In a rather unusual move, it appears that the PSP version is the "lead" version of the title, as it features a number of improvements over its console brethren.
Each game is relatively simple, with controls that rarely use more than the analog stick and a single button. In the first few episodes we played, you control a Jackass in a tumultuous drop down a San Francisco street, dance in your undies, catapult yourself across a suburban town, shoot paintballs, and race in a golf car. While some of the games have some irksome controls, each level is enhanced the solid graphics, detailed motion captured animations, voice acting, and irresistible irresponsible charm. There are various goals to achieve in each level, which certainly adds a lot more replay value.
The PSP version that we've been playing has a lot more options than the PS2. Of particular note is its video editor, which allows you to save the replays that you capture in the game. You can add your own camera angles through an easy, intuitive interface. Best of all, you can then upload your creations via Infrastructure and share them with friends. One limitation that we see is the export functionality of the feature: instead of exporting to a PSP-compatible video file (MP4, MJPEG), it exports your replay as a sequence of BMP files. The replays that you can create in Jackass are hilarious ... we hope the team at Red Mile Entertainment tweaks this feature before its guaranteed September release date.
We're really excited about Jackass, and can't wait to play more of the preview build that we have. It's clear that fans of the Jackass series will love the game. However, PSP gamers that are unfamiliar with the show will also want to take note: with easy, accessible gameplay, and exciting Infrastructure functionality, Jackass may just surprise you.
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