PSP GAME REVIEW
PQ: Practical Intelligence QuotientBrain training for the PSP? |
Intelligence is relative, one of my psychology lecturers often said. You may be able to solve quadratic equations while disputing the validity of Einstein's theory of relativity, but, to a Bedouin gallivanting around the Sahara, if you can't keep yourself warm at night and find enough water to drink during the day you'll come across as pretty stupid.
It's one of the reasons why clever psychologists question the value of IQ tests.
Professor Masuo Koyasu at Kyoto University in Japan seems to agree. I know this because it says so in PQ's instructions booklet. It also mentions the professor has been instrumental in helping developer Nowproduction put together a series of tasks and scoring system that more accurately measures how bright you are than the standard IQ test.
How does it do this? Well, it splits 100 three-dimensional puzzles into ten stages of ten. Each brainteaser is based on logic and involves working out the simplest and quickest way to reach the exit. In order to do so, however, you may have to bush blocks around, avoid lasers, throw colour-coded switches to open the appropriate doors, navigate mazes, ride uni-directional escalators, construct steps out of several pieces or memorise a route before recreating it blind.
Don't hang around, though – there's a time limit and the longer you leave it, the fewer the points. Then again, do think before you act because you also have a limited number of moves. And, naturally, every move made reduces the score.
So what you end up with is a pressure cooker of a situation to rival the tensions of the Middle East. Sure, early levels are mostly a breeze but they also fail to offer the most points – the juicy stuff is found in the latter half of the test. And that's obviously when things start to get tough. You'll soon be cursing your brain for its inability to work out the solution to the challenge laid out before you, when all the while the score keeps on tumbling.
Get it all wrong and you can restart but don't expect to fool the system: the puzzle will reset, but the time, moves and score you have left will carry on from when your thumb stretched over to the 'Start' button. If you really can't work the solution out, you can either pass on the task or if you run out of grace period (which is added after the timer reaches zero), you'll automatically fail. Needless to say, both carry a heavy points penalty.
Just how well or badly you've done per stage is displayed at the end of the tenth puzzle, with a list of the points scored of penalties incurred for each of the segments. But that's all it is: a list of numbers. For the overall analysis and that all-important intelligence quotient, you're going to have to stick through to the end.
When you get there, after some five hours or so of play time, it's difficult not to feel a little deflated. Not necessarily because the number isn't as high as you know it should be, of course, or due to the considerable brain drain you've suffered in the process. It's because the analysis – which reveals your character's ponder type / action type balance, together with a short assessment – is a little light.
Clearly, it's an approximation, and it's unrealistic to expect an evaluation on which you could hang a PhD research paper but a little more detail would have been welcome. As it is, the payoff for battling through the 100 challenges feels like an insult to your intelligence. (However low the program is adamant yours might be.)
The other disappointment is the fact that with only 13 types of puzzle, things inevitably get repetitive. Often it's the same task with an added degree of difficulty.
But there are positives. Played in measured doses (and with later puzzles lasting around 20 minutes each, this is advisable), PQ is often a welcome distraction from the more typical experiences you find on PSP. It can also be genuinely compelling, and even when completed the option to post your score on the game's online ranking may convince some to play through a second time.
Beyond that, it's hard to see it lasting the distance, but if you can find it at a decent price (the suggested £25 still feels too high) it's certainly worth checking out.
As for my overall PQ score? Well, you know what they say about intelligence being relative, don't you?
PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient |
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Different, satisfying but also limited – that's the game, not an appraisal of the review
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