Hot Pixel (PSP)
- Publisher:
- Atari
- Developer:
- zSlide
- Release Date:
- 25.09.2007
- Number of players:
- n/a
- Type:
- Puzzle
- Combat Status:
- Non-Combat
- Age:
- Modern Times
We play Hot Pixel...
Those of you that have ever played any of the Wario Ware games in the past will feel distinctly familiar with Hot Pixel when switching it on for the first time. An introductory video hugely reminiscent to those in the Wario Ware series as well as a zany character to boot; Hot Pixel is a complete Wario Ware rip, and it knows it.
Hot Pixel is the latest game to come out of Atari’s doors, a collection of micro-games themed around today’s growing street culture requiring the player to think on their feet in order to complete the hundreds of rapid fire scenarios.
Playing through each of the ten series of mini-games you’ll encounter various different themes based around a particular time in whacky presenter Djon’s life, a French urban sports fan who’s quite the local celebrity. Some games require skill, some just blatant button mashing, but all are great fun to play. Whether it’s old school arcade knock-offs or stroking a woman’s back to the point of ecstasy, each of the two hundred games deliver and surprisingly enough not once did I come across a mini-game that I just didn’t enjoy playing.
Of course everyone will have their favourites and my personal fave has to be the peeping tom, binocular-lady-spying game. Its fun if a bit naughty and it’ll have you laughing your socks off when the unsuspecting ladies catch you in the act. And that’s precisely the aim of Hot Pixel, to make the player smile and actually have fun with the game. It’s refreshing to play something like it rather than the majority of serious story-driven games that flood market today, managing to be outrageously funny at times with off the rail humour poking fun at today’s youth culture.
To add to the longevity of the game Atari have also included a simple downloadable content solution. By logging onto HOTPXL.com gamers can transfer downloadable content from their PC to their PSP, giving gamers access to new mini-games. It’s a neat attempt to try and avoid the repetitive fate that each Wario Ware game has duly fallen into.
And that’s where the biggest problem with Hot Pixel lies, is there enough content to hold your attention? Whilst being entertaining for its non-stop manic gameplay, it’s not a game that you’ll want to sit and play for hours. It’s great fun for fifteen minutes at a time but much more than that and the mini-games start to feel repetitive, with the only thing keeping you playing being the anticipation of unlocking more mad-cap games. And once you’ve unlocked all two-hundred of them there’s not a lot else to do other than play them all through again.
You can of course attempt to beat your previous score within a series, with Hot Pixel offering bonus points for perfecting the series without losing a life as well as quick completion of each individual game, but that’s pretty much it. At the time of writing there’s no word on how much or how frequently content is going to be available on HOTPXL.com, and whilst it has potential it’s hard to praise it right now based on the lack of information.
But ultimately what Hot Pixel sets out to do it does incredibly well. It’s lavishly outrageous micro-game fun that isn’t afraid to challenge Wario Ware for obscurity. There’s nothing else quite like it on the PSP, with games of this genre usually limited to Nintendo consoles and it’s encouraging to see publishers making a risky move with the console rather than limiting themselves to tried and tested sequels and ports. Being frantic, entertaining and easy to pick up and play, Hot Pixel is designed exactly how a handheld game should be and whilst it won’t hold your attention for hours at a time it’s one of those you’ll come back to every now and then for a fun-filled half hour.
Top Game Moment: The binocular-lady-spying mini-game. PSP peeping Tom perfection!
Hot Pixel is the latest game to come out of Atari’s doors, a collection of micro-games themed around today’s growing street culture requiring the player to think on their feet in order to complete the hundreds of rapid fire scenarios.
Playing through each of the ten series of mini-games you’ll encounter various different themes based around a particular time in whacky presenter Djon’s life, a French urban sports fan who’s quite the local celebrity. Some games require skill, some just blatant button mashing, but all are great fun to play. Whether it’s old school arcade knock-offs or stroking a woman’s back to the point of ecstasy, each of the two hundred games deliver and surprisingly enough not once did I come across a mini-game that I just didn’t enjoy playing.
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| Hot Pixel has everything from classic arcade games... | ...to street culture madness |
Of course everyone will have their favourites and my personal fave has to be the peeping tom, binocular-lady-spying game. Its fun if a bit naughty and it’ll have you laughing your socks off when the unsuspecting ladies catch you in the act. And that’s precisely the aim of Hot Pixel, to make the player smile and actually have fun with the game. It’s refreshing to play something like it rather than the majority of serious story-driven games that flood market today, managing to be outrageously funny at times with off the rail humour poking fun at today’s youth culture.
To add to the longevity of the game Atari have also included a simple downloadable content solution. By logging onto HOTPXL.com gamers can transfer downloadable content from their PC to their PSP, giving gamers access to new mini-games. It’s a neat attempt to try and avoid the repetitive fate that each Wario Ware game has duly fallen into.
 |
 |
|
| From the basic pixilation’s... |
...to the intricate details |
And that’s where the biggest problem with Hot Pixel lies, is there enough content to hold your attention? Whilst being entertaining for its non-stop manic gameplay, it’s not a game that you’ll want to sit and play for hours. It’s great fun for fifteen minutes at a time but much more than that and the mini-games start to feel repetitive, with the only thing keeping you playing being the anticipation of unlocking more mad-cap games. And once you’ve unlocked all two-hundred of them there’s not a lot else to do other than play them all through again.
You can of course attempt to beat your previous score within a series, with Hot Pixel offering bonus points for perfecting the series without losing a life as well as quick completion of each individual game, but that’s pretty much it. At the time of writing there’s no word on how much or how frequently content is going to be available on HOTPXL.com, and whilst it has potential it’s hard to praise it right now based on the lack of information.
But ultimately what Hot Pixel sets out to do it does incredibly well. It’s lavishly outrageous micro-game fun that isn’t afraid to challenge Wario Ware for obscurity. There’s nothing else quite like it on the PSP, with games of this genre usually limited to Nintendo consoles and it’s encouraging to see publishers making a risky move with the console rather than limiting themselves to tried and tested sequels and ports. Being frantic, entertaining and easy to pick up and play, Hot Pixel is designed exactly how a handheld game should be and whilst it won’t hold your attention for hours at a time it’s one of those you’ll come back to every now and then for a fun-filled half hour.
Top Game Moment: The binocular-lady-spying mini-game. PSP peeping Tom perfection!
