Psychic Force

"Taito's first contribution to the 3d fighters is a noble one"

Psychic Force is a unique game. Its options and style come forth in a strange way. I can’t imagine what the creators were thinking when they made this different game. But whatever they were thinking, it works for me.


Psychic Force involves a barrage of fighting techniques. In all the battles, the characters are flying through the air, enclosed into a certain fighting arena. Each character is gifted with their own psychic powers, based on an elemental system (Water, Electricity, etc.). The game allows for long range shots and close punches with small button taps, each depending on the distance between you and the opponent.

Psychic Force contains a lot of old ’96 phrases and stories that give this game a hint of longevity. A lot of the dialogue is now common street slang among many people. The characters are quite unique alone, seeing that they are psychics. I found that the character design was well thought out for an old game. The story divides the characters into three groups, the Noah, who attempt building an ideal world, and the Anti-Noah, who insist that the Noah will fail. The third group contains the characters that hate psychics, the Neutrals. Throughout the story, these groups clash with each other, which is where the battles come in.

I see Psychic Force as a unique game, a vintage game if you shall say. The fighting and character designs are similar to its neighbor, Virtua Fighter. If I were to make one change, however, I would remove the Neutrals from the story, and absorb them into the Anti-Noah. I would also appreciate more hidden characters, rather than just Keith Evans.

Psychic Force’s longevity and graphics show how far we have come with Playstation, and before the Playstation 2 comes out, for about $5-$10 you can see the past in a different way.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/15/00, Updated 06/15/00