Released in the UK in 1997, PaRappa The Rapper became an instant PSone classic. With its quirky graphics and characters, heartwarming plot and of course the excellent songs, PaRappa also had the advantage of being one of the first rhythm action games on any console and gamers lapped up the little dog’s rap battle adventure.

Old-ish readers will remember playing PaRappa The Rapper with student friends, and even older readers may remember the electronic game Simon. Younger readers, however, may like to read the next bit since it explains what’s going on. The rest of you can skip a few paragraphs to find out what’s new in the PSP version of PaRappa.

Hi kids! Bet you’re wondering what all the grown-ups are talking about. Well we’re talking about a delightfully charming game about a rapping dog trying to win the heart of his friend who is a flower. To get her to realise his carnal intentions, PaRappa finds that he must become a better person by learning karate, learning to drive, cook, support himself financially, get a mortgage, that kind of thing. In order to achieve these things, he must seek out a mentor and battle-rap them.

Each level sees PaRappa’s mentor for that stage teaching him a new life-skill through the medium of song and all you have to do is follow along. At the top of the screen there is a bar and when your mentor is rapping, their face will pass over symbols relating to the buttons on the PSP. After the mentor has done their bit, you have to repeat the same line and hit the buttons at the right time as PaRappa’s face goes over them. Do it right and you’ll be rapping Good; mess it up, however, and after rapping on Bad for a few lines the stage will end and PaRappa won’t have learned anything. To get to the next stage you have to keep rapping Good until the end of the song, but if you really want to impress you’ve got to freestyle by adding in extra raps and not just repeat what’s been sung before.

This PSP version is just as fun as the original, and the four-player battles and downloadable remixes of the songs are a laugh. Plus they give a reason for the older gamer to pick up PaRappa again. Believe us, you’ve gotta.

Tim Empey