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Crush (PSP)

Release Date: 25/05/2007

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Summary

Developer:: Kuju
Publisher:: Sega

Unique to its genre, Crush introduces a valuable new gaming experience that is wholly suited to the PSP system. Set within a complex, hypnotic 3D world, players will use the game's unique crush mechanic to "crush" the environment and transform it into a more simplified 2D platformer. Once flattened, players will utilize the 2D space to move to new areas to solve otherwise impossible challenges, and unlock secret items that were previously unobtainable in the 3D environment. Players will then "uncrush" the 2D environment and return to the 3D world.

Features:

Crush's unique gameplay allows you to move instantly between 2D and 3D perspective at the press of a button.
40 mind-stretching levels blending puzzle and platforming gameplay provide hours of entertainment for players of all levels.
A brilliantly realised surreal environment and an engaging storyline, along with a leading character the likes of which you've never met, provide a uniquely engaging and addictive gaming experience.
Exclusive to the PSP.

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GAME Reviews
Customer Reviews Customer Reviews

Crush Review; Author: Mark Scott ; Published: 14/06/2007

A crushing success for Sega on Sony’s smaller system...

As far as we remember, Crush was a muscle-bound wrestler of WWF (now WWE) early nineties fame who liked nothing more than, well, crushing opponent's heads.

Sega it seems is not so big on the whole nostalgic Sports Entertainment scene, because rather than have its new Kuju-developed title be all about crushing skulls and opening cans of whoop-ass, they've instead made Crush a rather head-spinning handheld title.

If PSP Crush has one thing in common with WWE Crush, it's that it will certainly make your head hurt. Crush is a puzzle platformer with the emphasis firmly on puzzles, and the way Crush goes about delivering this makes for one of the most taxing, but utterly unique gameplay experiences on PSP.

Crush’s forty fantastic levels of ingenious game design really do make for one of the most inventive, rewarding timesinks on PSP.

Crush starts you of controlling main character Danny in a 3D space that's meant to resemble his own mind. Here's the thing, though - pressing the L trigger suddenly crushes that 3D space into a 2D platformer where you can only move around in a 2D plane.

Got that? Good. Okay here's where it gets tricky...in 3D, Crush lets you rotate the camera around Danny using the D-Pad. Pressing left or right, for instance, will rotate the camera 90 degrees in that direction each time, while pressing up gives you a top-down view. So you'll either end up with a view akin to a side-scrolling platformer, or a top-down RPG.

What's the good of this, you ask? Well, by combining the camera viewpoints and Crushing mechanism, you'll be able to find differing routes through each of the surreal maze-like levels by rotating the level, crushing, walking on to an adjoining platform which wasn't within reach in 3D, and un-crushing.

A good example would be an early level where Danny finds the end-of level goal on a platform too high up for him to reach. By moving to an overhead view and then crushing, the platforms are suddenly next to each other, allowing Danny to merely walk across, un-crush, and find himself on the higher platform. Crush is entirely built on this premise.

Increasingly crazy

You won't be merely looking for the end of level goal though; you'll literally have to find Danny's marbles scattered through each level before the goal will appear. Moreover, the different coloured blocks that make up Crush's levels all have different properties - some you can stand in front of, crush, and they'll become a background on a 2D plane - while others will becomes obstacles, or things you can stand on. This too affects the way you steer Danny through Crush's increasingly crazy gameworld.

And in addition to THAT there's two other collectable types; jigsaw pieces which unlock images in an art gallery, and Trophy's, which unlock a super-hard version of the game with limited Crushes. Lastly, there's also various hazards and puzzle pieces thrown into the mix - from tentacles and giant cockroaches to cope with to balls and trash cans to roll around and use as platforms. In all, Crush's forty fantastic levels of ingenious game design really do make for one of the most inventive, rewarding timesinks on PSP.

Crush is also quite an entertaining little story too. It's a surreal tale that sees Danny fighting insomnia with the help of a crazy professor and his C.R.U.S.H. machine. It ends up encompassing Danny's entire past and, replete with stylish still-comic cutscenes, evocative narration and not a little light sarcastic humour, will mean you'll want to see Crush through to the end.

Crush won't be for everyone - it's complicated and can quickly get frustrating, and relies more on a steep difficulty curve towards the end of the game than it does on the number of levels. However, as an experience Crush is simply so idiosyncratic that anyone with a mind for crafty conundrums and a passion for platformers should definitely pick it up.