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The Sony PSP has had a hit and miss affair with role-playing games, so when an obscure adventure that could easily be passed off as simply another Zelda clone comes along, most gamers are likely to overlook it. In the case of Mastiff Games’ Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure, that would be a real shame.

Monstrously Cute

The enchanting story of a bored little girl and her, erm, drill, Gurumin has most of the gameplay elements of Nintendo’s elf escapades, but adds a considerably deeper layer of humor and weirdness. Although not original, and definitely falling into the Zelda-esque category, this is a surprisingly engaging and entertaining adventure for all ages.

Gurumin opens with Perin, our young protagonist, showing up at her grandfather’s door to live in a small mining town. Discovering much to her horror that the town is completely devoid of other children, she tries to make friends with the local cookie maker, but instead rescues a mysterious young girl who turns out to be a monster.

Monster is a relative term in Gurumin, as it turns out there is a whole town of friendly, quirky, and awfully cute monsters. The real villains of the story are the phantoms who cause a cloud of darkness to form over the land and kidnap Perin’s monster friends. So, of course, it’s up to her to rescue them and drive the phantoms out. With the help of her legendary drill, obviously.

Drill Power!

Some of the cinematic sequences go on much too long, and the dialogue is often painfully goofy, but once you get past the beginning of the game and move on to the exploration of the many dungeons, the game proves to be shockingly fun. Perin is a likeable heroine, and the drill-based combat system is surprisingly good. Instead of focusing on increasing Perin’s stats, the drill advances in destructive power. Just through usage, it goes up in level, although combat damage can bring it down a notch. You can also add new parts to upgrade it.

Most of the helpful items Perin acquires can be upgraded as well, enabling you to reach new parts of dungeons, add more protection, and gain new abilities. Although the enemies aren’t particularly intelligent, you’ll have to adopt specific tactics for different types of bad guys, and boss battles are consistently entertaining.

The graphics are colorful and cartoonish, if not stunning, and there’s plenty of variety in the types of locations you’ll explore. The audio is surprisingly good as well. Although the music is lackluster, the game’s use of voice actors for almost all the cinematic sequences is commendable.

Gurumin to the Last Drop

Gurumin is one of the first real surprises of the year. Fun and childish, yet bizarrely addictive, the mix of solid and interesting gameplay, crazy characters, and some great dungeons make this a great adventure for gamers of all ages.

Article by: Jason D’Aprile
Video produced by: Eric Acasio