Coded Arms

Lefties VS. Righties: Wresting Control

The first thing I wondered was about the control setup and would it work. The answer is yes and no. If you use the default settings in Coded Arms, then you’re looking with the buttons and moving with the analog stick. Some of you might remember this kind of setup from most Dreamcast FPS. This is the design I used because I was familiar with it. There are 3 other settings you can choose from, but they’re more suited for left-handed players. I couldn’t get used to them because I’m right-handed and only 1% ambidextrous (I can LOOK left with no problem). But with the hopefulness of a working control scheme, the targeting got extremely shaky due to the action and trying to control your character. Luckily, the crosshair will ‘lock-on’ to a close enemy so you’re not over-compensating the target.

A Bedtime Story

You won’t be doing much; I’ll be forthcoming right now. In the game, you’re a computer hacker sent into cyberspace to kill mechanical men and bugs. (I get it, Coded Arms: computers, cyberspace. Bugs are viruses, but they appear as actual bugs…). You seek out the boss, or gatekeeper on each level in order to clear that level and escape. You move from one bland room or hallway to the next, shooting and killing the same things over and over. The enemies are easy, the rooms cause claustrophobia, and your health never seems to deplete.

With Friends

It was easy to get multiplayer going and a couple of my friends were playing deathmatch. We tried the Last Man Standing mode and a game that is like Tag, where you chase down and kill the man with the ball. But the irritants of the multiplayer maps were similar to the ones in single-person mode and we quit after 10 minutes and went to Barnes and Noble.

Looking Cool at 4.3”

I was pleasantly pleased with the graphics and run-time of Coded Arms. The menu presents the game with a Matrix-like feel and most of the game graphics were better than most of the current PSP games out there. Everything ran smoothly and quickly and I saw no slow-down, even when a swarm of robot men and bugs (remember, they’re viruses) attacked me.

Who Should Actually Buy the Game

Despite all the bad things in this game, I’m actually going to look forward to the next FPS on the PSP. Coded Arms has controls you can get used to and they pushed the PSP technology far. Unfortunately, they didn’t entertain visually, promote functioning A.I. or provide challenging levels. So at least rent Coded Arms to get a taste of what’s on the horizon with FPS. Buy the game if you’re a hardcore FPS-player and you need to have one with you at all times or if you are a game collector and want to own the game because it is the first in the genre for the PSP. Otherwise, don’t hold your breath for Coded Arms 2.