Gun: Showdown is a portable version of the console game Gun that was released on all the major platforms: Xbox, Xbox 360, Game Cube, and PS2. You can read Video Game Talk's reviews for the Xbox 360 and Xbox systems. The game puts you in the place of a man named Colton White in the Wild West. The game features a free-range world, where you as Colton have the ability to go on missions as you wish (much like Grand Theft Auto). As you progress in the story, you try to uncover and exact revenge against those who robbed you of everything that meant something to you.

The problem with this portable adaptation of the console game is the controls. Because of the very different setups between the PSP and a gaming console controller makes for a huge inconvenience. The problem is that due to the PSP's lack of dual analog joysticks, the buttons (cross, square, circle, triangle) are used as a directional pad in conjunction with the sole analog joystick. It is an extremely counterintuitive process and hard to get adjusted to. However, withstanding the awful controls, Gun: Showdown features a strong game with lots of action, missions, gaming options, and a good story to follow with voiceovers.

Gameplay:

Gun: Showdown might actually be a fun game if the controls did not suck so much. Maybe "sucks" is a bit strong, but I had a really hard time getting adjusted to the game. What I could not stand is that either movement (forward, backward, left, right) is controlled by the analog joystick and free aim/look with the buttons (triangle, cross, square, circle). Or the movement and free aim/look controls can be switched around. The problem is how difficult it is to use the buttons. They were not made to handle this kind of control. The console versions have dual analog joysticks, which works quite well. Unfortunately, the PSP only has one analog joystick and it is a royal pain to get used to. I have found first person shooters on the PSP (e.g. SOCOM: Fire Team Bravo where movement is controlled by the analog joystick and free aim/look is toggled by holding down a left trigger.

However, there is a way to (slightly) make the problem somewhat bearable. While playing, you can put the main character into a "quickdraw" mode. While in this mode, there is an auto-target toggle. But how long you can last in quickdraw mode is dependent on the fullness of quickdraw meter. Awful controls withstanding, it is time to talk about the game.

Gun: Showdown features several different modes of play that include both single player and multiplayer. For single player modes, there is a story mode and a couple quick play options. In story mode, you play as Colton White and go on a journey for justice to get revenge on those who took everything important to you. While on Colton's adventures, you will meet a few new friends who stand by your side to kill bad guys. As for weapons, there are plenty to use--Colton's arsenal range from pistols to rifles to shotguns to melee (e.g. knife) to thrown (e.g. explosives) to bows to sharpshooters.

In addition, the story mode allows you to go on a variety of side missions such as "Pony Express", deliver goods within the allotted time, "Ranching", corral livestock, "Bounty Hunting", bring outlaws to justice dead or alive!, "Mining", mine treasure, "Poker", gamble and play Texas Hold 'Em, "Keep the Peace", kick the bad guys out of town, "Hunting", hunt animals, and "Marshall", stop the bad guys, protect towns and citizens.

In story mode when you reach certain points, you unlock quick play modes that enable you to play through the side missions. They include "Quail Hunt", hunt and shoot quails, "Hold the Fort", take out as many enemies as possible before they story the fort, "Suppress the Outlaws", stop the bad guys by taking them alive to jail or stopping them dead in their tracks (literally of course!), "Bear Hunt", hunt bears (unlike quails they fight back), "Fire Fight", take down shady businesses while being attacked, and "Hollister's Dynamite Run", kill Hollister as many times as possible before he kills you. There is also "Poker", which is a stand alone game of Hold 'Em. It is available from the beginning (you don't need to unlock it in story mode.)

Multiplayer mode is the last mode of game play. It is supported via Ad Hoc wireless--your friends have to be within wireless range to play (sorry no Internet play). There are three multiplayer modes. The first is "Deathmatch", where 1-6 players get put into an all out free-for-all competition. Next is "Golden Cross", where 1-6 players join in a match that has the same premise as capture the flag that is common to many other first person shooters. Whoever has the golden cross tries to stay alive the longest. The last mode is "Poker" and it allows 1-5 players to compete in Texas Hold 'Em.

Overall, Gun: Showdown has a lot of potential to be a great game. Gun: Showdown has already proven itself as a strong game on the Game Cube, PS2, Xbox, and Xbox 360 gaming consoles. But I found the stripped down PSP version not quite as good. The game is lacking intuitive, easy to use controls. Instead, we are stuck with a haphazard combination of movement and free aim/look that is difficult to use and get used too. Unfortunately, the PSP controls are just not made for this style of control. I think with a slight rework of the controls to allow for something more like SOCOM: Fire Team Bravo, Gun: Showdown would have made for a much better game. There are many gaming options for both single player and multiplayer, although support for infrastructure wireless would be a plus.

Visually, Gun: Showdown is a good looking game. It utilizes the 3D-rendering capabilities of the PSP pretty well. The 3D character models have a fine level of detail. The bad guys are fairly generic in terms that the same bad guys are used over and over again. The models do look pretty good though. The environments and settings are also detailed fairly well.

Audio:

The game's audio features sound effects (gunfire, explosions, etc.) that fit well into the gaming experience. The sound effects are rich and make good use of the PSP's stereo capabilities. The music is a decent, but not a huge part of the experience. What is really strong are the voiceovers during the cut scenes that help give personality to the characters and what is happening in the story.

Conclusion:

I really wanted to give this game higher marks, but I didn't. I might be making a huge complaint out of something that might not even bother you, but I really could not stand Gun: Showdown's controls. Using the buttons as a directional control is awful and counterintuitive with the PSP's setup. It made the gaming experience almost unbearable. This is, of course, pretty unfortunate because the game itself has a lot of potential with a solid storyline and solid gaming options. If you can get over the horrid controls, Gun: Showdown should be at the top of your list. It is a fun game with lots to do and an interesting story to follow. I suggest you rent it first and see if the controls bother you nearly as much as they did for me before shelling the cash out for it.