Puppeteer: PS3 Review

Puppeteer: PS3 Review

Platform; PS3
Released by Sony Computer Entertainment

Side-scrolling platforms with relatively cute characters are always likely to get my attention.

I'm a huge fan of the Sackboy series, and while Puppeteer has elements of that which look the same, it certainly deserves to be viewed on its own merits.

In this latest, you play a boy called Kutaro, who's been turned into a puppet after the Moonbear King has smashed the moon stone and scattered throughout the kingdom ( I know, bear with me). But along with a kind of cat that dangles from a web like a spider called Ying Yang, and a pair of magical scissors, Kutaro can negotiate his way through the worlds and perils that face him.

But, when Kutaro finds extra heads around the world (as he's had his original head torn off when he became a puppet), he unlocks different kinds of abilities. Coupled with the ability to fly in the skies thanks to the snipping magical scissors, it's suddenly not as difficult as it seems.

Side scrolling through a theatrical set up, Puppeteer is a dark, macabre yet somehow family friendly title which is going to appeal to all. Scenes change back and forth in this dark castle world in the kind of way you'd expect to see in a pantomime. The scissors serve to help solve puzzles in one game and then must be used against cloth baddies in the next; it's a brilliant touch which is cartoonish yet deeply troubling in other moments.

The whole thing manages to work as it seems to be set inside a puppet theatre (like you'd get with the old style Romeo and Juliet boothes) complete with audience "oohs" and "aahs" throughout, meaning that the whole game has a lighter touch than some of its darker material may hint at (ripped off heads, cutting out baddies etc etc).

There's a creative uniqueness to Puppeteer, which won't take you very long to adapt to or to play, but it can be picked up with ease and settled into without any difficulty at all. Wonderful visuals and a deftness of touch give it a playable and easily addictive edge.

Imagination is the only limit on games these days on the PlayStation and it appears that Puppeteer has it in spades - and it doesn't disappoint at all.

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