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Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice Review for the PlayStation Portable (PSP)

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice Review for the PlayStation Portable (PSP)

And Justice for All!

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice is ready to take your PSP by storm. This driving shooter is loads of fun and full of content. The gameplay is straightforward yet challenging. Moreover, the goofy story, clean presentation, and intuitive controls really bring this game to life. Several modes of play, tons of unlockables, and varied modes of online multiplayer should keep you busy for many hours. This is an off-the-radar title that is bound to be a sleeper classic.

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice screenshot

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice is a high-speed romp that follows the exploits of an elite, futuristic, law enforcement agency. You’ll chase all sorts of criminals through city streets in 5.0 cruisers, beefy SUVs, motorcycles, Semis, light armor, and helicopters to name just a few. Your goal, as the name implies, is to enforce justice no matter how extreme you need to get. You’ll jump from vehicle to vehicle with guns blazing, throw the unlucky criminals from their speeding ride, and step on the accelerator to take out the next set of dummies.

The waves of similar foes can get monotonous, but that’s why Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice is so good; gameplay is constantly shaken up. Taking out foes from inside your vehicle, on foot or from a mounted canon within a police chopper is all easily executed and is a testament to the varied gameplay that is sure to please. You simply won’t be stuck doing the same thing over and over. Plus, you’ll take on five different criminal organizations including three new ones called the Raiders, the Vipers, and the Syndicate.

Another couple of big reasons why the game stays fresh is the way in which levels are divided and the branching level progression. The checkpoint system employed by the game portions out the action quite well. If you do find the game to be a struggle, you’ll be happy to know that checkpoints are abundant. Developers everywhere should take a cue from bigBIG Studios. I never had to repeat anything I had already beaten, and that kept the levels interesting and fresh. Additionally, if you do find yourself stuck you’ll have a few other mission options from which to choose from the HQ screen. This really helps to alleviate the frustration factor.

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice screenshot

Also, the load times are initially lengthy, but they are kept to a minimum. Once you’re actually inside each level, restarting after your death or from the beginning of the checkpoint through the menu is instantaneous. I have to give the developers huge props on this convenience. It just makes the game so much more fun when you are actually playing it rather than waiting for it to load.

Levels are characterized by missions and objectives that flow from one to the next without a break in the action. These sequences then culminate in a unique boss battle. Levels are quick, varied, and fun. As you progress through a level by taking out your foes, you will fill up the Justice gauge. Be careful, though, because if you run into civilians, your gauge will be sapped. This meter holds power in reserve that you can access by holding down the triangle or north button of the D-pad. Accessing this power will restore your health and repair your vehicles. However, if you can hold off and allow it to accumulate to its maximum, then you will get a serious power boost to your weapons. That means you’ll have to sacrifice full health for full power and vice versa. This makes for an interesting balancing act between fixing your vehicles before they explode and taking out the vast numbers of enemies quickly.

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice screenshot

There are a lot of other modes of play besides the Story that are worth your while. Bounty Mode allows you to repeat levels from the Story that you’ve already passed in order to win stars. These stars can then be used in the Shop to open up artwork, characters, movies, and cheats. You can accumulate these stars quickly by selecting the level of difficulty, and then completing the level quickly and stylishly. There is also a Challenges mode that helps to hone your skills. You will have to meet all of the requirements of the challenge in order to pass. Challenge sets are unlocked as you progress through the story.

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice screenshot

Disappointingly, the online mode was unavailable for me to play. However, I was able to access the menu, and the modes of play are extensive and sound intriguing. There are four multiplayer modes from which to choose. Ram Jam has the cops chasing the criminals in an attempt to ram their vehicles into submission. Survivor has players work together in the Off-Roader in order to survive enemy pursuit. Cops ‘n’ Robbers is basically the opposite of Survivor. This time it’s the criminals that are on the run and the cops need to stop them before they can reach their goal. The final multiplayer mode is Rampage which takes players out of the vehicles and puts them on foot for multiplayer gun battles. Up to four players are supported.

The controls are very smooth, but tend to cramp your hand. Fortunately, you can configure the controls to your playing style, but I found it uncomfortable after long periods of play no matter what I did. On a brighter note, driving at high speeds is arcade easy. This allows you to concentrate on the beat down you need to give to the hordes of armed adversaries that are intent on your destruction. Hopping from car to car at triple digit speeds is as easy as pressing the circle button. When you need to riddle a thug with high caliber ammunition, merely hold down the R shoulder button; aiming is not necessary. You can also dodge bullets quite easily. If you hold down the square button, you’ll be safe from enemy fire by hiding on the other side of the car or tank, etc. Then it’s just a matter of popping up again and unloading while they change clips or magazines. Everything is very simple, intuitive, and quite fun.

The graphics are as good as they need to be, but they are nothing special. I liked the ability to focus in on targets with heavy weapons and thought the transition was very smooth. The sense of speed is represented very well, and the overall setting and environments do a fine job of bringing you into the game. As far as the sounds are concerned, they are crisp and professional. The soundtrack is standard arcade fare, but it captures the feel of the title very well. The voiceover work is also very professional. There are a ton of characters both good and bad that have a lot of lines. Consequently, there are a lot of actors doing a nice job with the cheesy yet funny writing. I especially liked the silly one-liners from both the commissioner and the level bosses. If you do find yourself repeating a specific section multiple times the one-liners can become a nuisance. Nevertheless, I found the in-game sounds, music, voiceover work, and effects to be enjoyable.

I don’t expect this game to be a smash hit because it is a simple cops and robbers chase arcade that’s off the commercial radar. However, the game is a lot of mindless fun. I think anyone who likes to have a varied gaming library will want to pick up this title. The amount of content combined with solid gameplay and an extensive multiplayer online component makes this game worth the price of admission. If you’ve got limited dollars to spend on games, you may want to hold off. However, if you are waiting for it to go to the bargain bin, think again! I’ve got a feeling this will be a sleeper title that will become increasingly rare.

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 3.5 Graphics
The graphics are smooth, but don’t expect miracles. 3.5 Control
The controls are easy and intuitive, but they will cause cramping. 3.5 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
A noble effort was made with a lot of voice actors. The one-liners may annoy you. 4.0 Play Value
The simple arcade gameplay is enhanced by many modes of play including extensive online multiplayer. 3.7 Overall Rating – Good
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • New vehicles, weapons, and stunts make for one of the most action-heavy games to come to the PSP.
  • New Multiplayer mode makes pick-up and play even more fun.
  • Featuring epic boss missions with more action and outrageous boss vehicles than ever seen before.
  • Launches with more than 20 hours of diverse gameplay, with the availability of downloadable content packs for players to continue to extend their enjoyment of the game.
  • 12 vehicle types available throughout the game including classics that have been enhanced like helicopters, cars, jet skis, trucks, buses, bike and sidecar, and speed boats as well as new vehicles including hovercrafts.
  • More than 30 types of weapons at the player’s disposal including handguns, shotguns, machine guns, and some heavy artillery.
  • Five notorious gangs to bring to justice, each in their own distinct section of Capital City. New gangs include: the Raiders – A focused and professional group of modern pirates focused on incoming cargo, The Vipers – Rogue police led by a corrupt commander, and the Syndicate – Armed bank robbers from the UK and Europe.

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