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I didn’t have a PSP when the original Patapon came out in 2007 but I did have access to one at my back-then job, which afforded me the opportunity to play around with it a bit. I don’t remember much about it except that it was quite good (and of course the relentless, rhythmic pata-pata-pata-pon that still erupts in my head now and then), and disappointment that it wasn’t available for PC.
It’s been a bit of a wait—18 years, give or take—but that PC version is finally on the way. Patapon 1+2 Replay, a remastered pairing of Patapon and the 2008 sequel Patapon 2, is coming to Steam on July 10.
At its core, Patapon is simple: You, the God of the Patapons, lead your people on a “grand adventure” against a host of different enemies, controlling their actions through the rhythmic beating of four “mystical drums.”
The challenge, as the Steam listing says, arises from “using the right battle commands during the right situation, and creating an army comprised of the classes (jobs) of patapons.” Your patapons can be created and enhanced using 400 different weapons and pieces of equipment, enabling the creation of a customized “one-of-a-kind squadron to take on the various enemies and challenges this game has to offer.” It plays out sort of like a side-scrolling, rhythm RTS, with spearmen and archers lobbing projectiles at enemy armies and giant boss monsters.
Despite (or perhaps because of) that simplicity, Patapon was one of the best games available for the PSP, and was nominated for numerous awards following its release. It also made a lasting impression on players, as seen in this reaction to Patapon 1+2 Replay on Reddit:
Despite all that, it took years for Patapon to shed its PSP chains: A PlayStation 4 version of the original came out in 2017, followed by Patapon 2 in 2020. But until now (well, July) it’s never been available on PC, which makes this kind of a big deal.
This new remaster, which is also coming to PS5 and Nintendo Switch, will feature the same gameplay as the original releases along with new quality of life features including adjustable difficulty and button-press timing, and an option to keep the drum icon displayed at all times. Full controller support is included.
Also interesting is that while Patapon and Patapon 2 were published by Sony, this updated version is being published by Bandai Namco. That’s becoming kind of a thing for the company, it seems: In September 2024 Bandai announced a PC version of Freedom Wars and then in March 2025 it did the same for Everybody’s Golf—both of them previously Sony-published PlayStation exclusives.
Patapon 1+2 Replay comes out on July 10, which I’ve already said—a price hasn’t been revealed but it’s available for wishlisting now on Steam.
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Kurt Indovina
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