Psychonauts in The Rhombus of Ruin

A fun, if short-lived trip back into the mind-bending world of Psychonauts. [Apr 2017, p.88]

Old Psychonauts fans will surely enjoy Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin, which is a good virtual reality experience. But it is also really short and could have been a deeper from a narrative point of view.

Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is a fun, bite sized package that once again brings back the brilliant voice acting and characters that made the original game so special. The two hour game length will be a sticker for some but it doesn’t outstay its welcome and gives us a cheeky morsel of the things to come in Psychonauts 2, which cannot come soon enough.

Clever and charming in equal measure, Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is a decent enough, if overly lean and uneven excursion into VR for one of Double Fine’s most cherished series that could have been so much more.

A really good crack at a VR title by Double Fine. The characters will feel familiar to those who have played Psychonauts, but those new to the series will not feel too lost when following the story. However it is a short title that feels like it could have done a lot more with its intriguing setting, and while the tracking was on point most of the time there were moments where it could have been better. Rhombus Of Ruin is a fun experience and provides one of the best produced PSVR titles so far, but it ends a bit too soon.

Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is a game made specifically to appease the fans as Double Fine dips their toes in VR development and prepares the world for the second coming of Razputin Aquato, but this level of immersion is like psychically diving into the mind of Tim Schafer himself, and that alone is worth the trip.

Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is an entertaining way to wait for Psychonauts 2 and a quite good VR experience. It can be considered too short and too easy, but it's still funny and capable of letting everyone spend some good time with Raz.

Psychonauts Rhombus of Ruin has its feet firmly planted in foundation laid by the first game - as it should. Though it is trapped within a medium that is still trying to find steady feet, Rhombus at least has the heart and spirit of what made Psychonauts so enthralling. It's a fun and delectable morsel designed to satiate the palate until the second game comes out. While it does excite me for Psychonauts 2, it's only because I know that a console game will let Double Fine’s imagination soar much higher than the VR platform would let them.

I enjoyed the original Psychonauts, and it was fun to see the characters again – even though the circumstances are fairly lame. If you find yourself in the slice of the Venn diagram that overlaps “Psychonauts fan” and “PlayStation VR owner,” then it might be worth the couple of hours it takes to play through Rhombus of Ruin. Otherwise, this isn’t a great showcase for VR or an introduction to the Psychonauts.

As a point-and-click experience in spirit, Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is much better suited to hardcore adventure gamers than its sometimes demanding platforming predecessor ever was, but it isn’t a standout game in terms of enjoyment or quality. It’s a short side mission that doesn’t wow with its puzzles or offer anything revolutionary in terms of gameplay or narrative. But it accomplishes what it sets out to do, by bringing a sorely-needed new dose of Psychonauts to the faithful, or at least those with a PlayStation 4 and a PSVR headset. It neither particularly delights nor disappoints, but marks its place as a competent placeholder in the expanding Psychonauts series, and a reasonable point of entry for those new to the virtual reality experience.

It’s hard to treat Rhombus as anything more than an appetizer before Psychonauts 2, but it does make a good use of VR and lets us reconnect with characters we haven’t seen for over 12 years. [04/2017, p.74]

It should of course be noted that the original cast has returned to reprise their roles and, considering how long it’s been, they all deliver great performances. The same level of quality is true for the writing and jokes throughout the game. It’s clear Double Fine still has a firm grasp of the world of Psychonauts and its characters. So, while Rhombus of Ruin isn’t the most mind-bending VR adventure out there, it’s still good to be back with these characters. I still laughed and appreciated some of the smaller details present throughout the game, it’s just hard to not want a little more out of it by the end.

Another impressive PlayStation VR tech demo, but as a game, and the long-awaited return of a beloved franchise, the experience fails to satisfy.

It feels dirty to say “no” to new Psychonauts, but Rhombus of Ruin is a half-baked attempt at wrapping up the first game’s cliffhanger bundled with some monotonous gameplay and too little content for the asking price.

Rhombus of Ruin adopts a smart approach to VR and executes it with humor and confidence. But it could have been longer and deeper, more challenging and surprising. Like the story, the gameplay is superficially enjoyable but barely has time to develop, and because you’ll know all the puzzle solutions by the end, the campaign doesn’t offer much replay value.

As a VR game this is most often dated and only rarely the eye-opening adventure that a VR game about characters that can climb inside your psyche should be. I’m happy that the Psychonauts are alive and well, however anyone but the series’ most devoted fans should wait until next year for what will hopefully be the coming home party they so truly deserve.

That’s a shame, because there’s a lot of potential in the Psychonauts universe for a fantastic VR game – this much is apparent even to me, despite having never played the original game. The quirky characters and outlandish locations are just begging to be explored with the kind of immersiveness that VR offers, but Rhombus of Ruin isn’t that game. If anything, it’s a game that makes me want to finally check out Psychonauts itself, but that’s due as much to what this game fails to deliver as to what it succeeds in.