Psychonauts Game discussion
 

I'm a little surprised there isn't a thread on this already (thought I remembered seeing one but search brings up nothing). Anyhoo, who else is playing this. I'm getting the exact same great vibe from this as I did from Voodoo Vince (did they have the same score composers -- similar feel though obviously not as jazzy), although the gameplay here is considerably deeper and will hopefully take me longer to beat.

I haven't yet gone back through a level for a second time -- waiting to save up for the cobweb sweeper -- so I'm not sure how well it'll play on iterations like that -- more linear than say Mario 64 (though the teleporter creature should probably help there).

Right now, I'm a little stuck trying to figure out how to operate the canoe. It seems that it should use telekinesis since there's no paddle, but frankly I'm stumped and haven't seen any faqs on this yet.

Definitely a great game, the voice acting is excellent, great variety, humor (very twisted), good control scheme, camera is MUCH better than most games like this.

My recommendation at the moment -- save up and get the dowser ASAP. Builds cash 10x as fast.

played the demo --- cant wait to pick up (when i get thbe cash, i mean)

I haven't played it, but have seen good reviews for it; but part of me just feels this isn't going to be a very successful game. I'll think about picking it up when it hits $20.

I rented the game last week and enjoyed it. I wish there were more brains to fight in than what the game had. Each brain seemed a little too long for me and I would of preferred a few more and that the rest were shortened.

I got frustrated in the Meat Circus level and ended up returning the game before I beat it. It was good but not a very long game unless you are looking to collect every single item.

Good gravy, that Godzilla/Kaiju spoof level was hilarious.

MasterofDVD -- if you haven't already, I'd highly recommend trying Voodoo Vince. It has quite a few levels with some nice variety (though an irritatingly tough final boss that I never beat) -- probably down to $20 or less now. Sounds exactly like your description -- more levels, not quite as long.

Voodoo Vince is one game I've always think about renting and then when I get to Blockbuster something else catches my eye. I played the demo for the game WAYYYY back when and thought it was great but I never seem to rent it. I guess I will try harder next time. :)

I've been playing this for the last week (going thru my second time now) and can't recommend it enough.

For the canoe, just use the jump button to go forward and the cancel button to go back, and the use button to use it while on the docks, you will automatically get out when you go into a docking point. You only have to use it twice, to get from the dock out to Milla's class and back. Actually, once you finish her class you can probably make it back to the shore without the canoe. If none of that makes any sense then make sure you are at the part where you can actually use it. You can only use the one near the boathouse after you get a permit. There is another one out on the lake that you can jump onto, but you can't use it.

Regarding the game length. If your just looking to finish it the game can be completed in about 8-10 hours the first time thru. I explored quite a bit my first time and finished in about 16 hours. I then loaded a saved game from near the end and got 100% before finishing which brought my game clock up to about 24 hours. With that type of game time it would make a good rental.

While I enjoy the gameplay, and there are some truly excellent level designs, the best part is the humor and general atmosphere. There is an instant transport system to move you around the campgrounds, even though it speeds things up, I wouldn't use it exclusively until it turns to night about half way thru the game. There are a lot of interesting conversations and scenes to have when exploring during the day. You won't miss out on any gameplay, items, ect, just storyline stuff. The game is pretty linear, so if you miss out on an event or conversation that storyline still continues, you just might not fully appreciate later parts.

This is definitely one of my favorite platformers of all-time. It definitely has that Tim Schaefer feel to the story and dialog. While at first I was feeling like this is the best game ever, after playing through the game I've decided that because of some of the poor platforming elements that it's really not. The dialog and voice acting is top notch, though. I didn't really get too frustrated until the last stage, Meat Circus. There is one part at the very end of that stage that is so unintuitive to the controls provided that I really did almost give up. All of the boss fights were really fun though and some of the level designs were pure genious.

There is a ton of optional stuff to collect and while I did collect what I saw for the most part, I didn't go back to any level and collect everything.

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fab

Funny. I rented it at Gamefly and returned it ASAP. It was bugging the shit out of me. Even the training level. I thought it wasn't clear where you were supposed to go next and I was very frustrated that it was so dark, with no way to adjust the in-game brightness. (To be fair, this problem was made worse for me by the striping problem I'm having with all my xbox games, though). Half the time I couldn't see where to jump next or if there was a ledge above or below. I thought the 1st person view was useless for that as well. As far as I'm concerned the platformer of today should never leave the player confused about where to go next and have them wandering around aimlessly looking for an exit.
The characters and music were very well done and the game looked tio have highset production values (unlike Voodoo Vince, which seemed sorta half-assed to me). Still, after playing the best platformers of this generation (Ratchet, Sly, Jak, Prince of Persia), this one was unnecessarily frustrating and I just sent it back. Maybe when it hits $20, I'll give it another chance.

I can understand your frustration with that level. While it is pretty strait forward for the most part there are several moments where you just don't know what you are suppose to do. For instance there is a part where you have to punch down a wall and your only clue is some cracks in it, but the entire level is filled with crumbling concrete, so the cracks aren't exactly out of place. But much of the game is about exploration and trial and error play, so it's probably not the game for you.

@fab, I'm curious what spot in particular you disliked in Meat Circus? You can use the spoiler tags if it's too specific. For me there was one part that I must have tried over 100 times before I got past.



Meat Circus is definitely my least favorite level, mostly because the difficulty gets ratcheted up significantly over the rest of the game.

My favorite level is Milkman Conspiracy. It has great level design and the atmosphere and humor are top notch. Lungfisopolis and Waterloo were also very fun.

Yes, that is exactly the spot. I too tried what felt like 100 times before I made it. I kept trying to do the ball glide/float move and it turned out that wasn't helping at all.

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fab

i got this off of ebay brand new for 34.00. I played it probably an hour and a half last night. I am really digging it so far. Very funny game. It is kinda difficult to tell what you are supposed to do, but it doesn't have me frustrated yet. I look forward to playing it some more tonight.


wlj

I'm working on my review for this game now. What a fun game. I haven't enjoyed myself this much in a very long time. MS may have made a mistake not keeping this exclusive, but at least now more people get to enjoy it!

what is the best way to collect 800 arrowheads for the dam cobweb,.

i m stuck on the big fish, any tips on defending the darn fish, it's eating me alive.

thanks. is the milkman located in the main campground?

The milkman is the first level after lungfishopolis.

You need to save up for the arrowhead detector at the store. Each one you find with that is generally worth 50+ regular arrowheads.

Do you need the cobweb remover for the milkman level?

I don't know off hand, as I had it by then...but I do know you'll need it soon after that, and in Milkman to sort emotional baggage.

IIRC, you don't NEED it for any level unless you're going for 100%, but I still haven't finished the game.

thanks, but I'm still stuck in the Milkman level. I've found the stopsign, and hedge trimmers, but I think I still need either a duster or vac.

sounds like you need the ...and then you'll need to get the

still can't seem to find the any clues?

cool. I was headed in the right direction, because I already got the