Hammy Goes Nuts! is a standard platformer. Levels are introduced by a new character, Boris the Beaver, who knows more about the neighborhood’s inner workings than anyone else. From here, you switch between Hammy, RJ and Verne as they run, jump and use their special talents through a series of adventures in the neighborhood. RJ can use tools and is your standard, all-purpose character. Verne is the slowpoke of the group, but can take lots of punishment thanks to his shell. Hammy is the hyper one and, with a little help from caffeine, can enter a bullet-time mode, allowing him to get past obstacles. Although you will use multiple characters in each mission, which you use is based on the story.
Generally speaking, Hammy Goes Nuts! is a solid game, though it doesn’t do much to expand the genre or improve it. Most of the gameplay problems are a result of the developers trying to build a home console experience on the PSP. Sure, the PSP packs a lot of power, but what works on the PS2 doesn’t necessarily work on the PSP. Chief among these problems is the camera. Adjusting the camera is a pain, especially with the shoulder buttons. A fixed camera would have made sense, especially on the PSP.
Five Ad Hoc games are available in multiplayer mode. Each is a variant of Capture the Flag. One has you collecting items on a map while another has you trying to collect as many items as you can before being tagged. The variations are simple, but fun if you can find three people with the game.
