Eragon for PSP Reviews & Ratings by IGN

Flying a dragon needs to be unquestionably awesome. It's one of those things, just like using a lightsaber or flying a jet. Few game developers get it right, though. Such is the case with the PSP version of Eragon, which is based off the recent fantasy flick released by FOX. It succeeds in a few areas, but overall the thrill of flight action simply never appears. This is especially disconcerting considering the premise of the game, which swaps the swashbuckling action of the console versions for strictly air-centric missions.





Eragon stars not Eragon from the movie, but the dragon, named Saphira. Players take control of the winged creature in a collection of missions. These range from protecting the all-important rider, Eragon, from enemy attack and protecting villages and other noble locations. Players will also spend plenty of time blasting enemies out of the sky with fireballs and fire breath, as well as clearing obstacles from the environment using magic and makeshift bombs. It's not a bad selection of activities, though it could have used a little more variety. Mission objectives aside, the game has other problems that matter far more. The biggest issue is control.





Flying a dragon, or anything else in a videogame, should take priority if flight itself is the main attraction. Sadly, that's not the case in Eragon. Steering Saphira through narrow corridors and ancient vistas should offer a sense of empowerment, but it comes off as slightly aggravating instead. The game has one of those fake ceilings so whenever a player wants to ascend into the clouds they inevitably "crash" into the glass wall and bounce back a little. There's little more someone can do to ruin a game about flight than trap players in a tiny box. And while Eragon's box is long enough (players can soar straight for a good while) they will quickly run into the bottom, sides or top.





Along the same lines, the design of the levels tends to get in the way. Since players aren't given mastery over Saphira through intuitive controls, they'll bump into ridges, outcroppings and other obstructions. It's easy to see that developers tried to solve this somewhat. Players can have Saphira slam on the brakes, for example, letting her turn a little easier. They can also have her reverse course in a matter of seconds by double-tapping the "X" button. Finally, Saphira has a boost ability that comes in handy when needing to travel long distances. But even with all these abilities, the poor lil' dragon still has plenty of problems getting around. Slamming into things is a constant problem. In short, flying in Eragon is never graceful, which is the one thing it needed to be.





Still, the game has a few good ideas. It's possible to swoop in and snatch everything from goats and wolves, to enemy archers other unfortunate folk with Saphira's talons. She can then munch on them to regain health. She can also grab large objects, such as boulders, and go on bombing runs to destroy enemy strongholds and other targets. There's also a collection of magic spells, both offensive and defensive, that come into play in many of Eragon's missions. Also among the positives is the multiplayer mode. As expected, it has a number of dogfight-like match types where players ride their own dragons and blast each other out of the sky. It's possible to use magic during multiplayer too, and it's actually a good bit of fun.









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