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While many of the ads depict the Playstation Vita as being a portable Playstation 3, that
it not the best part. With sega releasing games for the system, it is becoming a portable
Dreamcast which to me sounds far more compelling. Although I know we will never have have a
true portable Dreamcast, we can now at least play Dreamcast classics on the go, and if
any game deserve that title it is Jet Set Radio.
Jet Set Radio proves a couple things about video games. One that gameplay is most important
and two that creative art directions can keep a game looking good for years. You play as
a member of a Tokyo street gang, but not the kind that are normally shown in video games.
Instead of being armed with guns, these gangs are carrying spray paint and skates. The gangs
battle for turf by tagging it with their paint, leaving markers saying which area belongs
to which gang.
But this is a high paced world and before you know it, someone has tagged over yours.
So you move around on skates, allowing you to move quickly around the city. But with
skates, come tricks. But don’t think that makes this a sports game. No, this is a tagging
game where you use tricks to move move quickly. You can grind and jump and make it to different
areas and then reach new tags. When you reach a tag, a little quick time event pops up,
which you can now use the Vita’s touchscreen to accomplish. Little things like this make
the best use of the Vita. The controls are old, and can take some getting use to but
are not a major hinderance.
And while you are skating there is Jet Set Radio playing in the background which is lead
by the eccentric DJ Professor K. The music adds another level to the game, giving it
more drive and motion. I really couldn’t imagine this game being as memorable as it
is without the music being this good.
One thing that needs to be said is just how great the game looks. Sure it is from a previous
console generation, but it still looks as amazing as ever. Stylized, artistic graphics
will always have a longer appeal than realistic graphics. The style goes right in line with
the rest of the game, with sparks coming off skates during grinds and colors that jump
right off the Vita’s screen. Make this be a lesson for game developers, creative is
a far more lasting approach.
And that statement can be made for the entire game. Jet Set Radio is still just as fun to
play on the Vita as it was on the Dreamcast. The graphics and gameplay have stood the test
of time, because they were solid from the beginning.