.:TOKYO MEW MEW PLAYSTATION GAME:.

A big thank you goes out to Pikari of Strawberry Parfait. You are totally awesome.

Please note that this game WILL NOT PLAY IN AMERICAN SYSTEMS. You must either purchase a Japanese system, download an emulator and a ROM of the game online, or purchase a chip for your Playstation game system which will allow you to play foreign games. (I don't have any information on the chip.) Please note that the game will still be in Japanese only.

Story:
The game starts out with the Mew Mews, Ryou Shirogane, and Keiichiro Akasaka exiting an airplane. Apparently it is vacation time and Ryou has invited the girls to an island wildlife reserve - in search of Mew Aqua ofcourse. You'll be staying in a log cabin in the woods. While roaming the woods, you will eventually bump into the penguin - Yuki-chan, who will in time lead you to Ringo Akaii. She is a very sweet girl who is able to transform into a Mew Mew thanks to Yuki-chan and the Mew Aqua pendant that she wears. You will also meet Ringo's overprotective brother, Mashio, who bears a striking resemblance to Masaya Aoyama (and the same voice actress). Ofcourse, this is a walk in the woods, not a walk in the park - the aliens (namely Kisshu and a new character named Gateau) are also after the Mew Aqua, so they've been sure to leave you plenty of Chimera Animas which you must defeat. And that's just the beginning.

Game Play:
Your first decision (yes, you do get to make some decisions in this game) is dividing up yourselves between the two girls' bedrooms. Depending on who you pair together, they will gain "friendship points" (when I speak of points, I'm not entirely sure what they're called, so bear with me - but they are basically EXP - experience points). You should also talk with the girls whenever you get the chance to gain more "friendship points". While Keiichiro is your source for buying items you will need in battle, and Masha aids you in accessing save points, viewing stats and data you've collected, and teleporting to different locations, Ryou really doesn't do much except to tell you to be quiet and listen to what he has to say, and occasionally reward you with items. However, he does have some pretty amusing moments. As for Kisshu - you will battle him and Gateau on a number of occasions. While outside of battle you can only control Ichigo.

Battle System:
The battle system used in the game is turn-based. You can only have up to three Mew Mews active at a time (though you can switch between them as much as you want when it's a certain character's turn), and you will be faced with up to four enemies at a time. Characters attack in order of speed. When it is a Mew Mew's turn to attack, a menu will pop up, giving you different options. Some normal (physical) attacks are always available. Depending on the number of "heart points" a character has, better physical attacks and even some special attacks and team-ups may be available. In the menu you can also use items to heal, revive, or cure characters and raise or lower ally or enemy stats; switch between characters; raise stats; skip a turn; or try to make a run for it. During an enemy's turn, a different menu will appear where you can choose to try to either defend or dodge. Some characters are too slow to dodge while others have weak defense, so you'll have to pay attention to how a character is progressing. If a character is asleep, paralyzed, etc, you will not get a menu option for that character, and thus they are left vulnerable. Poison depletes a characters HP before it attacks each time. Most of these ailments will go away with time even if you don't cure them. Also, when a Mew Mew's HP gets low, she will fall to her hands and knees and her [esp. attack] stats will be decreased, though she can still attack, dodge, defend, etc. Fainted characters can be revived, but not switched out for other characters. When all of your active characters faint, the game ends and you will be taken back to your last save.

Mew Mew Stats: (Please note that these observations may not be completely accurate.)

Notes: Mew Ichigo is a fairly well-rounded character with speed and evasion skills above average and fair defense. It is easy to team her up with the other characters to attack together, and her attacks tend to be very good, though usually they can only be aimed at one target. In her leveled up version, Mew Ichigo gets a new set of Physical Attacks and the old ones disappear, but her strength seems to increase a bit to make up for it.

Notes: Mew Mint has good speed and fair evasion skills, but her defense seems to be relatively weak. She seems to faint quite often if you don't heal her right away. Her attacks are average, though she is the first to learn a group attack (with Mew Ichigo).

Notes: Mew Lettuce is one of the slowest characters to attack, however, she has fair defense. Her attack power is decent, but probably most impressively her "Ribbon Lettuce Rush!" ability targets all enemies and not just one. Also, I'm not sure if it was something I equipped, or just a default, but later on she attacks on her own sometimes.

Notes: Mew Pudding is the fastest character, and her dodging ability is absolutely incredible. I tend to rely on her a lot, because I know she can dodge most everything that comes her way. However, her defense and physical attacks are rather lacking. Also, her "Ribbon Pudding Ring Inferno!" targets all enemies at once.

Notes: Mew Zakuro has decent speed and attack power, though her defense is rather lacking, and her evasion isn't always good. It took me a while to develop her in the beginning, however, her "Ribbon Zakuro Spear!" is a nice attack, and she's good for finishing things off.

Notes: Mew Ringo is also another character I tend to rely on a lot. While not always available, Ringo's special abilities center around healing the group, and this becomes a very valuable asset. While her defense is alright, her speed is fairly poor, and her other attacks are just so-so.

Gameplay Videos: (All of these are of me playing, obviously. O.o;)

Summary:
The game itself is enjoyable. The graphics are cute, however, this game is not Kingdom Hearts by any means. While it is easy to understand even for people who don't know Japanese, walking around in the woods can get monotonous at times. The music, also, is cute, but nothing stellar. It never got really annoying for me, although it did get stuck in my head more than once. I think one of the most appealing things about the game for fans, however, is that the Tokyo Mew Mew anime voice actors read out their character's lines. Even during battles you have a good variety of dialogue, which is something I thoroughly enjoyed, since it makes you feel like you are playing a role in Tokyo Mew Mew in a way, or, in another sense, that you get to "become" Ichigo in the game. Another draw is that the original game often came in a set including a music CD and a very nice action figure of either Mew Mint or Mew Ichigo in her new form.

Overall, I really can't see this game appealing to anyone who isn't a Mew Mew (or at least a magical girl) fan. But, for fans, I expect they would like it very much.