Game Info

What is Patapon?

Patapon is a video game published for the PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld game console combining gameplay features of rhythm games, real-time tactics and God games. The game is presented in a cartoonish, silhouetted two-dimensional environment, and features the player acting as a deity who commands an army of caricatured miniature tribal creatures by beating traditional talking drums.

What’s the Story?

The Patapon were a flourishing people until they were defeated by the evil Zigoton tribe. The player takes the role of their god and uses sacred war drums to direct the Patapon tribe to take back their land.

As the story progresses, the Patapon also embark on a journey to Earthend to look upon “IT”, a sacred object whose appearance and purpose is unknown to the tribe. The enemy of the Patapon tribe is the evil Zigoton Empire, a powerful tribe of circular creatures with red irises (as opposed to the white-irised Patapon) that have oppressed the Patapon since their fall from power. Along the way the player will guide the Patapon through various battles against the Zigotons and guardian creatures such as dragons, giant worms, golems, and the ultimate evil known as Gorl.

How Do You Play Patapon?

The player controls a tribe consisting of infantry, ranged troops and cavalry. Initially, the player’s forces consists of only a few spearmen (Yaripon) but as the game progresses, more units, greater warriors and more powerful weapons can be obtained. The army is commanded by beating rhythm combos on four different talking drums (Pon Drum, Pata Drum, Chaka Drum and Don Drum), each mapped to one of the PSP’s four control buttons. Different combos tell the player’s group of Patapons to do various things such as advance, attack, and defend. Keeping the rhythm going and not missing a beat puts the army in Fever mode, which increases its combat abilities.

The game and story is unfolded through a number of missions of increasing difficulty. As the player progresses, new opponents are introduced and more drum rhythms are unlocked. Between missions, new troops can be spawned by spending currency, called ‘ka-ching’, and various resources obtained during the missions to create stronger Patapon troops. Throughout the game a player can also edit troop formations and acquire new weapons.

Tell Me More About the Patapon

There are various types of Patapon that can be integrated into the player’s army that are unlocked throughout the course of the game. While there are 6 unit types in the game, only 3 squads, each comprised of a single unit type, can be included in an army at any given time. This makes unit selection and formation a key strategy aspect of the game.

The different unit types are:

• Yaripon - Spear-throwing Patapon (these are the only unit available to the player at the start of the game)
• Tatepon - Axe-wielding Patapon/Melee fighters
• Yumipon - Archers
• Kibapon - Cavalry/Horses
• Dekapon - Large, mace-wielding Patapon
• Megapon - Horn players

The Zigoton army is a direct parallel to the Patapon army and are named in an identical fashion, e.g. a Zigoton Kibapon is called a Kibaton.

During the ‘birthing’ phase at the Tree of Life, players can use different combination of ka-ching and raw materials they gathered during individual hunting missions, minigames, and other means. Higher quality or rare ingredients coupled with higher ka-ching costs results in higher quality base units.