Smooth and responsive, the controls should be immediately familiar to shooter fans. Jumping, melee attacks, sprinting and more are standard fare. In fact, about the only unique feature here is that the left bumper activates your character’s signature ability. Grenade tossing feels too imprecise, however — particularly an issue when equipping some of the game’s innumerable modifiers.

Beyond the basics, however, lies a deeper, timing-based layer to give the fights some meat. Blocks and counters, referred to as holds, become an essential part of combat once you start mixing it up with capable human opponents or crank up the difficulty. It’s no easy task considering you not only have to time your counter precisely but also ascertain where the blow is being aimed (high, middle, low) for your efforts to be successful.

In the “kill or be killed” world of post-humanity Tokyo, being able to deftly control your animal of choice is critical to your very survival. For the most part, the game holds up well in that regard. The most basic actions, such as jumping and attacking, are mapped to the face button while the shoulders house the hunting functions: creep and clean kill. Flicking the right stick executes a quick dodging move, though you can also use it to gain ground while pursuing would-be prey.

In a world built upon imagination the sky is the limit, and in the tradition of previous games in the series, Sackboy’s inaugural Vita adventure is cleverly done. Each of the story’s levels has a unique yet still consistent style with bright colours that hold up well on the OLED screen — it’s not as crisp as what we’ve seen on the PS3, but the reduced size seems to suit the source material better.