Patapon: Remastered review for PS4

The past two years we?ve seen a return of the rhythm genre, whether we were asking for it or not. So, Sony decided to not only remaster their original rhythm entry; PaRappa the Rapper (to mixed results), but now we?re seeing the remastered release of the PSP classic; Patapon (pound that drum). Originally released in 2008 for the PSP, Patapon became a pretty big hit for Sony?s handheld and even spawned two sequels. Funny that in 2017 Sony has decided to begin to remaster some PSP titles, first LocoRoco and now Patapon; two very niche market games, but I applaud them for doing it. As I mentioned in my review for LocoRoco, I hope they comb the PSP library a bit more and remaster some more titles that haven’t seen any release beyond the handheld, but I?m sure that will rely heavily on the sale of these remasters.

Just like LocoRoco, I owned Patapon back in the heyday of the PSP (and still own it), so I was eager to see if it held up as well as LocoRoco did. I should preface this review by saying that I enjoyed Patapon back during its original release, but I wasn?t as crazy about it as some of its fanboys were and possibly still are (Greg Miller). Patapon looks great on the PS4, similar in cartoon style to LocoRoco, remastering it worked well. What didn?t hold up, however, is any of the rendered cut scenes, as they didn’t change them at all and they look pretty awful.

I should also speak on the biggest controversy with this release; input lag. Some reviews are reporting they experienced input lag to a degree that made the game unplayable. Fortunately, I didn?t encounter any major lag in my time with Patapon. It did take me some time to get back in the groove with the beat, and there were some points that I felt were off, but nothing major enough to say it destroyed my experience. I?m not sure if this is an issue due to combination of hardware type, TV and/or surround sound, but regardless I can say my gameplay didn?t feel influenced by any major lag.

If you enjoyed Patapon back for the PSP, it?s a safe bet to say you’ll still enjoy it in this glorious HD remaster. The remaster is completely barebones and features no new special features, which is kind of disappointing. I also wonder why they didn?t just remaster all three Patapon titles and release a pack, similarly to what they did with the Crash N-Sane Trilogy. The Patapon titles got better with each new sequel and going back to the original can seem like a bit of a step back, but I still recommend Patapon overall. Patapon is a great looking, affordable digital remaster for rhythm fans, and of course it plays and holds up much better than PaRappa the Rapper.