LocoRoco 2 for the PSP is portable sunshine. Not in that “gives you skin cancer” kind of way, but in that “makes your day brighter and makes you feel happy to be alive” kind of way. If playing it doesn’t make you smile, you may want to consult a medical professional, because it’s quite possible that you’re dead.
As in its predecessor, your goal is to move your blobular LocoRoco through the twists, turns, mountains and valleys of a level, collecting your fellow LocoRocos as you go. You’ll need to find a certain number of LocoRocos to pass certain obstacles in each level; I needed five to persuade an angry hedgehog to blow apart some rocks.
The level I played was relatively simple, mostly just hills and tunnels, though I did have to unfurl a few plant fronds and get a boost from a happy pink something-or-other. I collected some fruit, hopped past flowers, and got myself good and lost. It was wonderful.
Pressing the left and right triggers tilts the world left and right, letting your blob roll back and forth. You can also hop, merge the members of your LocoRoco entourage into a single enormous blob – vital when weight is required – or break a large Loco into its component parts – essential for squeezing through tight passages. Not bad for a bunch of blogs with no hands or feet.
LocoRoco 2 is just as bright, cheerful, colorful, and whimsical as the original, but clearing a level with the full assortment of LocoRocos can be quite challenging – a fact that should please core gamers who found he first game to be a bit lacking in the gameplay department.
Doctors should start prescribing LocoRoco play sessions as therapy for stressed out or depressed patients. I only played one short level, but left far happier than I arrived.
