Traveling across the solar system, you are motivated by one thing: your job. You love the depths of an empty galaxy to find that one planet that is in need of your skills as an intergalactic bounty hunter. It’s the thrill of the hunt that makes you eager to prove that you are a Bounty Hound that legends are made of and it is your name others like you will recall in the mess hall or the saloon aboard the main ship. In Bounty Hounds for the PSP, you are such a man and you are about to embark on your most dangerous mission yet.

The game’s story revolves around a bleak future where humans travel across space in search of planets humans can call home before alien races can claim a hold of said planets. Of course, in order to colonize the planet, the humans hire a group of intergalactic bounty hunters known as Bounty Hounds to clear the planets of hostile aliens. You assume the role of Maximilian Webb, a member of the Bounty Hounds living aboard the mother ship known as Quicksilver.

The beauty of Bounty Hounds is that you start aboard the Quicksilver and you are able to explore your surroundings and speak to anyone you come across so you are not quickly rushed into starting the story mode‘s main mission. The ship, you’ll find, is the place where you can upgrade skills and items or purchase new weapons and gather information from friends and Bounty Hound colleagues. There are events scattered throughout the ship that trigger graphic novel-styled panels that introduce each character. You’ll meet Maximilian’s friend Perceval and the beautiful Corteria as well as the vicious cyborg named Archibald.

While you are able to explore the mother ship and return to it at any time during the game, the majority of the game is exploring the plants and wiping out hordes of alien enemies. Once you’re on a planet’s surface you are tasked with clearing each section of multiple alien enemies that appear on the screen. Much like a similar hack-and-slash, Dynasty Warriors, you will often find yourself surrounded by your enemy as you slice or shoot through the hordes. You are allowed to carry two weapons for each hand and you can mix and match them anyway you see fit. For instance, if you want twin blades you can carry your sword and a “Krull” inspired blade as your backup but then again if you like to mix your short-ranged attacks with some long-ranged ones you can carry a blaster in one hand and your sword in the other. There are over 500 weapons and armor pieces you can use and fit your upgradeable character.

Unfortunately, even with the over 500 weapons and armor items at your disposal, combat in the game becomes way too repetitive way too early. Yes, there are interesting aspects to combat, such as pulling off combo attacks and taking advantage of your Force Field and the cool Field explosion but they add very little when it comes to the action. This is made worse by the fact that the camera often doesn’t give you the best possible view of your attacker and the fact that the enemies you face - even the level bosses - hardly ever change. Sure, there are moments when the enemy will have you pinned and your health gauge will get dangerously low but the so-so controls make attacks a breeze to pull off. Add a confusing map that has you constantly backtracking after each mission and you have a game that will leave a sour aftertaste in the action department. Even the deathmatch multiplayer mode isn’t very fun for very long even if your friend doesn’t have to own a copy of the game.

Visually, Bounty Hounds is actually a spectacular-looking PSP game complete with neatly detailed characters and more than decent backgrounds. The characters, particularly Maximilian, look great in action and despite the fact that you will be seeing a majority of the enemy more than once throughout the game they do certainly look good. Still the joy is in the great visual effects and the wonderful art used for the comic book-styled cut scenes. The game’s sound is not as amazing as its visuals but it does the trick in terms of bringing a wonderfully cinematic score to the storytelling and doing just an Ok job with the sound effects. Since the game tells the story through comic book panels there isn’t any voice acting found in the entire game.

It’s sad to see a game with such potential fall victim of repetitive combat and poor camera control because Bounty Hounds for the PSP is a great concept that would have made a great game.  It possesses a great deal of things that would have made this a solid action hack-and-slash with a lot to offer gamers looking for some portable carnage. Unfortunately, due to its repetitive nature, I wouldn’t recommend this game but if you’re willing to put up with it this game will make you feel like you’re playing a game that could have been a true classic. 

Gameplay: 6.9
The great number of equipment and weapons you can mix and match works perfectly in this game and putting them to good use throughout the game is a real treat. However, when it comes to the combat, fighting wave after wave of similar enemies grows completely tiresome … as does the constant backtracking.

Graphics: 8.5
The character models look great as does the beautifully designed graphic novel-styled panels that give the story its great comic book appearance. Even the environments look great despite just a few rather dull backgrounds (most specifically the early exterior planet worlds).

Sound: 7.5
The game’s score is actually pretty good and wonderfully cinematic during cut scenes. It makes up for the lack of voice acting in the game. The sound effects are handled decently but then again they could have been more pronounced during combat.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
You’ll encounter a number of alien enemies and some of them are actually tough to bring down but there is nothing in this game that will have you sweating bullets. Even in later missions, you will find it hard to get killed.

Concept: 7.5
Think of it as a futuristic Dynasty Warriors with a good story and a great deal of upgradeable items and weapons at your disposal. There is a lot to cover on hostile planets and interesting character developments along the way. There is multiplayer but it is hardly worth mentioning.

Multiplayer: 6.0
The PvP multiplayer game is no substitute for a co-op mode that could have made a much better impression. The deathmatch-styled action runs smoothly enough but won’t hold your attention for very long even though the game supports Game Sharing (your friend doesn’t have to own a copy of the game to play).

Overall: 6.9
Bounty Hounds has all the right moves and a good story to boot but fails to rise above the hardware’s limitations or its repetitive combat. This is actually too bad, really, since the game does manage to bring many good ideas to this futuristic game that could have been a PSP classic much like Dynasty Warriors.