Sony Squashes Out LocoRoco Demo

Cute, amorphous slimeballs traverse bright levels. And it's free. How could you possibly resist?

Among the throngs of me-too and rehashed games on or headed to the PSP sits a charming and unassuming action game of sorts called LocoRoco. The infectious music and smile-inducing characters have won over many in the months ahead of the game's release and now Sony is planning a downloadable demo.

The demo, the first available as file you can download on your PC and load on a Memory Stick, gives you just a taste of what to expect from the full game.

There are a few points to take note of, though. The demo is only available from Sony's Japanese site, and it requires the new PSP firmware version 2.7 update. You'll also need to clear 8 MB of space on your Memory Stick for the demo.

The demo appears to serve more purposes than just getting gamers acquainted with what could be a runaway hit.

Firstly it represents the latest strategy by Sony for ensuring that gamers update their PSPs with newer firmware. This is important because the company is involved in a race with the modding community, which has managed to crack previous version in order to run homebrew games, applications and the occasional pirated game too.

The demo also tests the reception of downloadable games, which Sony has said will be a big part of its distribution strategy going forward with PSP and PlayStation 3.

For now, though, all that matters is LocoRoco. After trying the game, we're sure you'll agree.

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games