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Best of PlayStation Network Vol. 1
PlayStation 3
Sony, I Don’t Think You Know What That Word Means.
1/5 stars
“Best of PlayStation Network Vol. 1” (“BPSN1”) is an oxymoronically-named (or perhaps just moronically) compilation of disparate Indie-style titles that appear exclusively on Sony’s abominable PlayStation Network that someone (probably a committee of suits and bean counters) decided were the ‘best’ that digital platform had to offer. What is actually contained on the “BPSN1” disc are three absolutely terrible PSN exclusives and one surprisingly good, but paralyzingly short (and miscategorized by almost everyone) PSN exclusive.
Instead of rehashing my bile toward the games included in “BPSN1,” I’ll just link to my reviews:
“Fat Princess” is a bizarre strategy game rendered unplayable due to its reliance on massively multiplayer online co-op.
“Sound Shapes” is a Play/Create/Share title that everyone seems to think is a rhythm game or ‘music maker’ when it is actually a fun, but very trippy and abstract, 2D platformer.
“Tokyo Jungle” is a post-apocalyptic survival-themed Roguelike. ROGUELIKE!
“When Vikings Attack” is a repetitive, boring beat ‘em up that slightly resembles much better games like “Pikmin” and “Little King’s Story” due to the fact that the player controls a mob of expendable citizens in a nonsensical free-for-all against mobs of Vikings.
Out of these four games, only “Sound Shapes” stands out as good… which is beyond ironic, since upon purchasing “BPSN1,” I had no intention of ever touching it due to the genre it supposedly belongs to. The sad thing is, though, that I can’t actually come up with four PSN games that would be worthy of being included in a collection of the ‘best’ the platform has to offer. “Sound Shapes” could stay, but then I’d only be able to add “PixelJunk Shooter” and “PixelJunk Shooter 2,” leaving the final slot forever empty.
Of course, the fact that “BPSN1” allows Luddites, anti-DRM activists, and those cursed with terrible Internet to experience games that are normally only available digitally is a good thing. It also allows people to sell these terrible games upon experiencing how un-fun they are! Of course, when I buy compilation discs like this, I expect to get the ‘best’ versions of the included games. This is not the case with “BPSN1,” as none of the four games include their DLC, nor are they fully-patched and ‘final.’ Instead, “BPSN1” owners are expected to shell-out extra money for DLC that may-or-may-not already be on the disc. I like “Sound Shapes” enough that I would have wanted that extra DLC, but I certainly won’t pay extra for the privilege of ‘downloading’ something that should have been included as part of the physical bundle in the first place.
In the end, “Best of PlayStation Network Vol. 1” is anything but the ‘best.’ I doubt there will be a Vol. 2, as Sony has clearly already run out of good games to include. The cheap, DLC-free versions included in the compilation are an insult to users who are simply trying to avoid the technical issues involved with using a terrible digital platform with overbearing DRM and a limited lifespan (as all console digital distribution platforms must be).
Overall: 1/5
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