Gamers looking for something unique and more than a little quirky should look forward to Patapon for the PlayStation Portable. Developed by the same studio that created the equally quirky LocoRoco, Patapon combines rhythm game elements with creature management similar to Pikmin.

Players will help manage a tribe of circular, single-eyed, two dimensional creatures that look and move like shadow puppets. They're only capable of rudimentary communication, so they rely on the universal language of music. Similar to how soldiers received orders before the invention of the radio, the PSP buttons will act as drum beats. Different button sequences translate into various commands, directing the tribal warriors to move around and confront enemies with various attacks. The tribe will sing back the command sequence as they carry out their orders.

Part of the fun comes from memorizing new commands and playing along with the rhythm, which will most likely increase in complexity as the game progresses. The developers have not revealed how far this control system can be taken besides getting the tribe to move back and forth and attacking. However, jaded gamers who believe that there's nothing new or original to catch their attention now have sometime to pique their interests. Currently scheduled for an early 2008 release, the world will soon see what Patapon can do.