Frogger: Helmet Chaos
When a developer takes a treasured title from the days of gaming yore, and reimagines or remakes it to introduce it to an entirely new audience, that's savvy. Ninja Gaiden, Strider, and Shinobi are fine examples of taking an old, beloved franchise and reshaping it into something relevant and interesting for modern gamers. Frogger: Helmet Chaos, on the other hand, has nothing but the most superficial trappings in common with its classic arcade grandpa. I don't want to seem cynical, but FHC seems like less of an actual attempt at innovation and more of a blatant pass at cashing in on the nostalgia of thirty-somethings who are longing to pass on the warm fuzzies of their youth to their own PSP-owning children.
Does the King know about this?
It's odd to think that a game sharing its name with a road-crossing sim would actually have something approaching a plot, but there is, in fact, a story to be told. The evil crocodile Dr. Wani has been slapping mind-control helmets on the residents of Firefly Swamp, leaving it up to Frogger and pals Lumpy and Berry to get all heroic and come to the rescue. Why is Dr. Wani so intent on making the local wildlife wear headgear that's eerily reminiscent to the Prince in Katamari Damacy? Better yet, how exactly do frogs wear helmets, since they don't exactly have chins to speak of?
As generic as the story is, the gameplay is even more derivative. Frogger jumps and swings his way through the swamp, collecting flies that up his health meter and coins that he can exchange for items. Good fruit adds to his hit points, bad fruit subtracts. Boooooring. Normally, it's at this point in the review that I'd be telling you that you've seen all this before, but sadly, that's just not true in this case. For example, I'm guessing you haven't seen control this agonizingly stupid before. Of all the things Helmet Chaos could've carried over from its famous Frogger lineage, the one it chooses is the block-by-block hopping mechanic. Frogger can only hop one square at a time, except for when he uses his big 2-square leap. The concept, I think, is to make the game sort of an extended puzzler, as you figure out just how to maneuver Frogger around to flip switches, push blocks, and evade enemies. It almost even works on that level, except for the counter-intuitive turning controls. To make Frogger face a new direction, you can either simply push up, down, left or right on the D-pad, (sending Frogger hopping off in that direction), or use the Left and Right shoulder buttons to make Frogger pivot in place.
Mechanically, it works fine, but it all too often leads to you accidentally hopping to your doom when all you were really trying to do was turn 90 degrees.
I have two words for you: water wings
I have just one question for the folks at Konami: what is up with having a frog that can't freakin' swim? Yeah, yeah, I know, that particular trait was laid down in the arcade game twenty years ago, but you've changed every other aspect of the gameplay, why not that one? Our platform heroes and heroines have been floundering in the water for years, and it's always defied a bit of logic, but in this case, it's just plain ridiculous. Frogger, living in a swamp the way he does, is positively surrounded by water and all of it is detrimental to his health. If the rest of the gameplay wasn't so boring, it might not be so aggravating to have an amphibian hurt by water, but in Helmet Chaos, it's enough to make you want to throw your PSP into the nearest pond.
For all its faults, Helmet Chaos does have a few things going for it. It's cute and colorful, with kid-friendly graphics and characters, and the complete lack of violence is refreshing. Finding secret cards in Helmet Chaos unlocks new material in Frogger: Ancient Shadow for the PS2, and vice versa. There are hidden areas to uncover in each level, but finding them is easy enough for younger players, giving them a real sense of victory. The original Frogger (albeit with new graphics) is included along with a handful of other mini-games, which can be played solo or with friends. Some of these are definitely more fun than others, but none of them are actually bad.
I'm too old for this
Anyone picking up Frogger: Helmet Chaos expecting the same addictive gameplay of the arcade classic is going to be sorely disappointed. Of course, anyone expecting a fresh take on the franchise is going to be sorely disappointed, too. When it comes right down to it, anyone expecting anything other than a disappointingly derivative action/puzzlefest with awkward control and embarrassing voice acting is going to be sorely disappointed. Since there are so few grade schooler-friendly titles for the PSP, parents may want to give this a go for their young'uns, but anyone looking for creativity or challenge should look elsewhere.
-Maj1013
