Note: This article originally appeared on GamesToaster.com, here.

Time has not been kind to the scrolling beat ‘em up. Before the arrival of the original Playstation, the genre was regarded as the one-stop-shop for those seeking their fix of action. The subsequent jump to 3D led to various failed attempts to reinvent the genre, before it was quickly laid to rest.

Rockstar then surprised everyone by developing a game based on a cult 1970’s movie that was, essentially, a side-scrolling beat ‘em up on celluloid. In doing so, they managed to create what was a true return to form for the genre - featuring simple yet satisfying fight mechanics and an engaging story. There were criticisms; most notably that one can only punch a faceless thug in the face so many times without the experience feeling a little repetitive.

Rockstar have done well in bringing this game to the PSP. The story-mode is present and accounted for, as is a quick-rumble mode for those wishing to dive straight into the face-punching, on top of multiplayer modes. The controls map well to the handheld, the visual and audio production is top-notch, and the load times are tolerable.

Indeed, in many ways the PSP is the best hardware for this game. Dipping into the game for 10 minutes here or there not only helps to stave off that sense of repetition which hampers the home console version, but is perfectly suited to the simple, accessible game mechanics.

It is not all sunshine and lollipops however, as the screen can get a little overcrowded during some of the bigger donnybrooks, and the fighting engine falls down when faced with such numbers. The abundance of cut-scenes is another annoyance, but thankfully they’re usually quite brief.

So, the rarest of games. a by-the-numbers port of a Playstation 2 game onto Sony’s handheld that doesn’t leave you completely underwhelmed, but rather accentuates the positives and all but removes the negatives of the original