I remember a few years ago when I was into the thick of my college days that I decided to take an I.Q. test at my local student office. I don't know what provoked me to do it, really. Maybe it was the time I locked my keys in the car when I kept telling myself "Robert, don't lock your damn keys in the car." Or perhaps it's the fact that I tried to barbecue some burgers once on a broken barbecue grill. But, anyway, I took my time with the test and it really taxed the back of my brain, but I eventually completed it and turned it in. The score I got? Oh, come on, do you really want me to tell you? All that matters is that I'm pretty smart and I look good in a tinfoil hat.

But let me present you with another way to tax your brain without having to resort to strange headwear or hours of paperwork. I give you Psychonauts, the latest game from the mind of insanely brilliant game developer Tim Schafer. Years ago, he brought us the artistically wild yet fully playable Grim Fandango, and now he's back again with yet another adventure from the far side of his brain. This game eventually found its way to Xbox earlier this year after a long journey out of Microsoft's hands and into Majesco's camp, and now it's the PlayStation 2's turn. Needless to say, the Xbox version is slightly sharper, but that doesn't mean the PS2 edition is just grey matter.

In the game, you take control of a rebellious young kid by the name of Raz, who has invaded a summer camp with a grand ol' entrance. But this is no mere summer camp. It's a training ground for the next elite group of psychic soldiers or Psychonauts, for short. Led by a drill sergeant with a war-torn mind and a couple of careful counselors, the group is surprised to find how much Raz knows about the brain and they allow him to temporarily stay on and learn more about the ways of the Psychonaut. However, in the midst of his training, Raz soon stumbles upon a dastardly plan to suck the brains out of the attendees at the camp for sinister use using a tank. A brain tank? Sounds like something the Incredible Hulk would battle.

The story kicks off by walking you through a tutorial level that introduces you to your psychic powers, including imaginary hands and feet that kick up during a combo and typical platforming skills that include double jumping, swinging on poles, and accessing new items for use during the game. There's a lot of item collecting here, and as you gain access to items, you can get into new areas and pick up plenty of new images that help unlock new content in the game. This may not be everyone's cup of tea, but stick with it, as Psychonauts gets imaginative rather quickly.

Part of the game's appeal lies in its wonderful level design. Some of it takes place on the campgrounds, where you interact with a number of kids, both snotty and friendly, but the real meat lies within their heads, where you enter through a virtual door of sorts and interact with their memories. You'll encounter all sorts of insane levels here, from the battlefield in the sergeant's head to the twisted black-and-white design of some German kid. There's even a great level where you get inside the head of a fish that's afraid of you, and stomp through a town like Godzilla.

Psychonauts is perfectly backed by some engaging gameplay. The way Raz controls is very well done, whether you're tapping into his complex psychic powers or just jumping around in typical platforming fashion. The game runs a bit slower at times than its Xbox brethren (more on that in a second), but past that I had no problem with the game's controls. It feels good on a PS2 pad.

As far as presentation, it mostly fits the bill. The voice acting (particularly the sergeant, who's in his own little world) is solid, and the wonderfully trippy music and various sound effects are perfect.

The game looked awesome on the Xbox, never missing a beat in terms of detailed animation and its design. It was built for it. The PS2 edition clearly looks like a port, as it runs into problems at times with some ugly textures and some slight frame rate issues. It's nothing to complain about, mind you, as the game still looks pretty impressive and doesn't break into any kind of mush like a port usually would. I just feel that maybe another month would have made the difference into making this game a little more identical to the other version. Also, Double Fine, along with the folks at Budcat Creations (who handled this version's development), still hasn't gotten the small camera issues in the game adjusted, so the ones that existed in the previous game exist here. It just takes a little getting used to. Overall, though, it's still a looker.

Psychonauts on the PS2 doesn't quite match up to the Xbox edition, thanks to its slight graphic issues. However, it should by no means be missed, if only for its high level of invention, its bodacious gameplay, and fabulous sound presentation. It's a welcome return to the weird, wonderful world of Tim Schafer, and should be purchased immediately, even if you have to go into a game store with a tinfoil hat on your head. THAT was fun to explain.