Death, Jr. gets life in retail

One highlight of the 2004 Game Developers Conference was an in-house demo of Death, Jr., the first officially announced game for Sony's PlayStation Portable. Though it was the first game revealed for the handheld, it wasn't the first to emerge from the developmental netherworld. Long after the wave of PSP launch titles have come and gone, Death, Jr. has finally made its way to stores.


Konami, which signed on to the project in January, is publishing the game. Death, Jr. was developed by Backbone Entertainment, one half of Foundation 9, the largest conglomerate of independent game developers in North America.

In Death, Jr., gamers play as the scythe-wielding, soul-sucking son of the Grim Reaper. Nepotism would seem to leave "DJ" to a careless lifestyle, but when he and a group of friends open a mysterious box (which actually doesn't belong to DJ's friend Pandora), they unwittingly unleash an ancient demon in the process. DJ must right his wrongs, save the world, and make sure he covers his tracks--all before Dad gets home.

To help him accomplish this gargantuan task, Death, Jr. will have his trusty scythe, pistols, flamethrowers, and exploding hamsters at his disposal. DJ can also team up with his misfit friends to unleash deadly combos on enemies.

I'm excited about this game. I pre-ordered it about a month ago. I should get it today.

Anyone know what firmware this game requires? I Thought I'd be able to hold out until someone releases an exploit for 1.51/1.52/2.0, but if this game is as good as I've read, I might have to do the ultimate sacrifice and update! Then again if Yoyo's next release of his snes emulator comes out and runs most games full speed and sound I would be kicking myself. Someone please help me with my decision, I don't know what to do :confused:

The game has the 1.50 update on the UMD. 1.0 users will have to upgrade, but not 1.5 or higher.

I've gotten thru the first 3 levels and I must say this game is tons of fun. It encourages fast-paced shredding of your enemies (and surroundings) by awarding combo points, but it still lets you explore once the baddies are dead to find lots of secret power-ups.

DJ has his scythe (square button) for close combat and acrobatics. It's a decently powerful weapon with unlimited ammo, and it helps him do tricks such as grabbing ledges higher up, bouncing on it like a pogo stick, and spinning around helicopter style to float across chasms.

The other weapons (circle button) are his ranged attacks. You start with 2 pistols which can shoot as fast as you can press the button and have unlimited ammo. Each shot does little damage, but with a fast enough trigger finger, you can shread most enemies before they can reach you. Other ranged weapons are gained as you progress in the game. Most of these consume ammo, which can be found thruought the levels. There are traditional weapons such as a shotgun and flamethrower, as well as more...interesting weapons. The C4 hamsters fall into this category.

The controls take a few minutes to get used to. The camera doesn't always turn quite as fast as I'd like, but that is easily remedied with strafing (hold R) or dodging (press triangle) when an enemy is behind you. All movement is done with the joystick. The D-Pad left and right scrolls through weapons and up opens the weapon select menu.

The story has the quirky sort of humor that I'm always into. DJ and his friends Pandora, Stigmartha, The Seep, Dead Guppy, and Smith and Wesson are on a school field trip to the Museum and they find a box. Obsessed with opening things, Pandora insists on getting it open. Once Death Jr. forces it open, all hell breaks loose.

So far, this is my favorite game for PSP. Finally, something to tear me away from Lumines :P

That first sentance is all I needed to know! leavin now to go buy it thanks a bunch

I love this game I it's very addictive.

Yeah I can't get enough of it, it will keep me busy till the next TYL is released.