Behold as many of Playstation’s well-known characters have come together in a single game for both the Playstation 3 and Vita. No, they’re not having a tea party with each other, but rather they’re engaging in a battle of epic proportions. So it’s time to enter the arena as Playstation All-Star Battle Royale has commenced!
If you’re already familiar with Super Smash Bros from Nintendo’s creation, you’ll know what’s exactly going on here. You have up to four characters going at each other at various environments in an effort to make as many kills as possible while minimizing the number of deaths.
The roster is pretty extensive since you two decades of the Playstation’s influence is apparent here. There’s characters like Sackboy from Little Big Planet, Sweet Tooth from Twisted Metal, Kratos from God of war, Raiden from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and PaRappa the Rapper from…well PaRappa the Rapper . So as you can see already, there is a diversity of characters from friendly to more serious ones and from the old classics to the upcoming titles. There’s even Toro Inoue who happens to be from a Asian-based game called Together Everywhere!
The amount of action packed in Playstation All-Star Battle Royale is everlasting with craziness. And what better way to take part in this madness than with straight forward controls? You’ve got various attacks assigned to three of the face buttons while the remaining button allows you to jump. Also, you can pick up items with the trigger button and execute throws with the right analog stick. Finally, you have the left and right shoulder buttons to execute blocks/dodges and super special moves respectively.
While there’s no health meter at all, characters are subject to being knocked out of the arena whenever one performs a special move on them. By filling up this special meter via making attacks onto others or collecting specific power-ups, you can perform up to three levels of finishing moves. The higher the level, the more effective and extensive the result. One thing to note is that the third level provides a nice little animation that really stands out. And since each and every character has their own set of moves, their third level finisher are not only unique but also very entertaining to watch.
Therefore, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that your goal is to perform enough attacks to raise your special meter so that you can land a special finishing move as soon as possible. As a result, this becomes a button-mashing affair. While this can be simple and fun, it can grow to become repetitive. And if you consider playing through a single-player campaign, you’ll find that you can complete this in approximately 20 minutes. So it really doesn’t really take that long to get through to the end.
Nonetheless, the multiplayer sessions are where you’re going to get the most entertainment from. While you can play locally with three other friends, the best part is the ability to play online and take on strangers. Online play in this case actually runs smoothly. Another pleasant feature to Playstation All-Star Battle Royale is the cross-play between the Vita and Playstation 3.
If you take a look at the stages in this game, you can see where the hard work and focus was made. There’s always something happening in the background. And this is more than just eye candy, which I must say is very impressive already. As a matter of fact, you can have monsters in the background that throw projectiles or pounce at you during the battles. Hence, the stages are constantly dynamic while at the same time showcases different games all throughout. For example, in one level, you’ll play in an environment that references Uncharted, but later on, the whole scene transitions to that in BioShock. There’s also quite a bit of creativity incorporated in the stages. In the Buzz stage, players can actually get injured whenever they stand on the wrong answer.
So in terms of the presentation, the game looks absolutely marvelous while the sound effects help to keep the gameplay lively and interesting. In addition, the frame rate manages to run without any slow down. The menus themselves could use a bit of sprucing up. But overall, Playstation All-Star Battle Royale still an absolute delight that heightens your senses.
Looking at the Vita version of this game, it is as intriguing and entertaining as its home console counterpart. The characters still look well-designed while the levels are just as dynamic and exciting. Since the Vita doesn’t have the trigger buttons, you’ll need to pick up items by tapping on it on your touch screen. This can be problematic if you’re in the midst of a battle. Do you really want to get your finger to obstruct your view? Even if it’s temporary, that split second can go a long way. It can mean a difference between victory and defeat.
PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale is Sony’s answer to Playstation 3 and Vita owners who are longing for a game like Super Smash Bros. There’s plenty of crazy content and exciting action to hold you over. Be it on the home or portable console, you’ll get almost the same high quality of gameplay. While it may be repetitive, those who enjoy getting into some wicked battles with their favorite Playstation characters should definitely pick this one up from the store. In fact, it’s a perfect opportunity to step into the arena and show what you’re made of.
