Psychonauts review

Where's your head at? It should be telling you to go buy this wonderful platformer

GamesRadar+ Verdict

Pros

  • +

    Unique

  • +

    funny story

  • +

    great voice acting

  • +

    Brilliantly twisted level design and art

  • +

    Plays like a dream

Cons

  • -

    Some frustrating platform bits

  • -

    Collectibles can get overwhelming

  • -

    Camera can give you a headache

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

At some point in their lives, every person on Earth has looked at another person (usually a significant other, in our experience) and wondered, either silently or aloud, "What in the name of eggs and waffles could be going on in that clearly malfunctioning brain of yours?" Psychonauts is a brilliant platform/action adventure that gives us the answer to that question - from the inside out.

Each level of Psychonauts actually takes place inside the mind of a different character. Moreover, because most of these folks are severely warped, Psychonauts boasts, quite literally, the most creatively designed levels we've ever seen. Before the end credits roll, you’ll have stomped around the non-stick brain pans of, among others: a paranoid milk man who sees conspiracies everywhere, a boot camp sergeant with a Napoleon complex, and a misunderstood, lobotomized mutant lungfish. Yes, as in "I have lungs and I’m a fish."

You’ll be making your journey into the mind's eye, ear, nose and throat as Raz, a young circus runaway who wants to join the psychonauts. They're a team of psychic secret agents who protect the world from villainous mind terrorists. Raz gate-crashes the psychonaut summer camp, where mentally-active pre-teens go canoeing, practice campfire songs, and learn to waltz around someone else's gray matter. Shortly after he shows he's a natural on some training missions in the minds of the camp counselors, students start disappearing, bad vibes descend upon the camp, and he learns first-hand why there are rumors of a monster in the lake.

More info

GenreAction
DescriptionPlay as Raz, a young boy gifted with psychic abilities who runs away from the circus and sneaks into a Psychonaut boot camp, with operatives that possess the same psychic powers. When a crazy scientist begins abducting Psychonauts for their brains, it's up to Raz to put an end to it once and for all.
Platform"iPad","iPhone","PS2","PC","Xbox"
US censor rating"","","Teen","Teen","Teen"
UK censor rating"","","12+","12+","12+"
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
More
CATEGORIES