Game of the Month #128 (September 2025) - Psychonauts

Psychonauts


Psychonauts are special psychic operatives with powers they use in service to the world's governments. When students begin disappearing from Psychonaut boot camp, a young recruit begins tracking down the mad scientist responsible. Face inner demons and wrestle with other people's nightmares, while accomplishing your mission -- all without going insane. Immersive story injected with lots of humor and lots of imaginative environments Challenging puzzles with alternate solutions that self-tailor to your strategies & abilities
How long is Psychonauts?
When focusing on the main objectives, Psychonauts is about 12 Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 21½ Hours to obtain 100% completion.
Platforms: Linux, Mac, PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 4, Xbox
Genres: Third-Person, Platform
Developers: Double Fine Productions, Budcat Creations
Publishers: Majesco Entertainment, THQ
NA: April 19th, 2005
EU: February 10th, 2006

Psychonauts
Completion January 29th, 2022
Main+Extras 13h 12m 36s
Review
+Unique levels with there own different spins on a platformer level
+Fun and quirky little humour sprinkled throughout the game
+Levels give great details of the characters they are based on
-At times you can end up fighting the camera
-Controls can feel rather stilted in this age
-Some levels are more frustrating then fun to play
Overview: Psychonauts is a fun and wacky platformer about delving into peoples minds. Each of these minds has a unique setting but also unique spin of the level (i.e. having a race in the level or the level taking part on a single cube) which keeps the game fresh but doesn’t go overboard to make the game feel like mess of ideas. It is really only held back by some more frustrating level choices (escort mission) and having to fight the camera and the controls feeling relatively stilted to today.
9/10

I never really enjoyed this game and by extension it's a sequel. It gets celebrated for the how it tells a story using the gaming medium but I never cared for any of that stuff. Sly 3 and Ratchet Deadlocked came out the same year and I enjoyed those much more than this game. It just feels like a cartoon concept that got rejected by Disney, Nickelodoen and Cartoon Network so it got made into a game instead.

I mainly finished this for the sake of beating games back then. Psychonauts 2, I just couldn't stand playing for more than a few hours. Having the accessiblity option that is basically a god mode cheat really rubbed me off the wrong way. On top of the game having so little platforming and actual gameplay that it just bored me to death.

I did somehow forget I beat this game years back even if I used cheats for the Meat Circus considering the infamous reputation that level has and I didn't want to get overly frustrated. However I did get pissed off when the game forces you to use a clarvoyance power that you need to use once throughout the whole game and never need to use again. It may be adventure game logic but there's a reason why I never actively seeked out and played those games.

One of my favorite games of all time. The creativity is off the charts and the humor manages to be both clever and just plain goofy at the same time. It’s probably been 15 years since my last replay so I’m probably due to dive back in. Then I can finally get around to playing the sequel too!

Hope you all enjoy this one, it’s a rare treat.

Psychonauts is on my radar for a while now, as I've heard as many good as bad things about it. Hope I will enjoy it. I'll probably start the game next week.

Managed to start the game after a few snags.

PS4 version - Surprisingly bad performance.
GOG version - Runs fantastic but could not get the right joystick to act as the camera and it wouldn't move.
Steam version - Surprisingly crap graphics and the camera moved, but just spun endlessly in a circle.
Emulated - Except for some slightly fuzzy graphics, perfect. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I’m not too far in, there was a incident with some squirrels, I’ve been chased by two bears, and have experienced simulated child endangerment. I’ve never been to a summer camp but everyone is acting as if this is the norm so I guess we’re good? I keep getting distracted from my route when we I see purple sparkles so my collecting impulses are getting triggered.

FYI

The PCGaming Wiki page has a lot of info, patches and fixes for this games.

https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Psychonauts

I heard so much about this game and loved watching the review on x play back in the day.,

FYI

The PCGaming Wiki page has a lot of info, patches and fixes for this games.

https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Psychonauts

Thanks for this.😅

Have fun at the meat circus, y'all. Genuinely one of the worst platforming levels I have seen in a game. Otherwise, this game is pretty great.

I'm definitely doing this one as soon as I'm finished with MGS Delta; it looks really good!

Good game outside of the meat circus and having to farm for money if you don't have the cobweb duster before the thorny towers section of the game. Those two items can go straight to the grave. The Milkman Conspiracy is a longtime favorite of mine.

Have fun at the meat circus, y'all. Genuinely one of the worst platforming levels I have seen in a game. Otherwise, this game is pretty great.

I reached it today.

This is why save states were invented.

I reached it today.

This is why save states were invented.

Many of the games I've beaten pre 7th gen involves me using save states in some way. Mainstream games did start to get a difficulty reduction around 2005 with some outliers of course. The Meat Circus being the way it was due to devs not having enough time to polish the level at least that's how I remember it going.

Many of the games I've beaten pre 7th gen involves me using save states in some way. Mainstream games did start to get a difficulty reduction around 2005 with some outliers of course. The Meat Circus being the way it was due to devs not having enough time to polish the level at least that's how I remember it going.

This makes some sense, before I started using save states I found myself wondering how much how much QA it got.

The credits have been rolled! While I did stick with emulation as I already had some progress I didn’t start save stating until the last area of the game. Would I have been able to clear it without it? I think so, but it definitely would have taken me a lot longer. Particularly after I had cleared the first section of the meat circus and saved to pick it up the next day, only to find that loading put me at the beginning of the level (luckily I had a backup).

From my own experience the controls were a bit iffy when it came to platforming. I often slid off platforms unintentionally and thought some spots were just unreachable, but it was usually a height/gliding issue. Never did fully master telekinesis… the command is simple but either I couldn’t grab it, it didn’t land, or it just dropped. And there was that time where I got the garbage can stuck to Cruller’s head.

But I did like the game. It was a creative little adventure and Raz is a likable character. I’m surprised how dark the lore got; how simple the slideshows were somehow added to how eerie it was. Maybe because there was no background sound but the effect would have been different if it had been animated. And the levels were successful psycho therapy for the most part, a lot of NPCs are better off mentally by the end. I’d play this again, but I wouldn’t want to go into the last level without save states.

Am I the only one who enjoyed this one more than its sequel??

Just finished the game, was a bit anxious about playing this one as I generally don't enjoy platformers, and people mentioned the Meat Circus being difficult.

Pros:
Charming whimsical story and design with great atmosphere and characters.
Playing this game made me feel like a kid again, warm and cozy feelings.
Good level of challenge.
Using Clairvoyance on various characters to see how they view Raz is hilarious.

Cons:
Controls a bit clunky.
A little vague of what to do at times (though the old man helps immensely).

Solid 8/10

Lasty, I'm a terrible platformer but surprisingly didn't find the game too difficult. Most areas/bosses beat first try. Not sure why the Meat Circus has such an infamous reputation. I played the Steam version so I wonder whether they changed the difficulty?

Am I the only one who enjoyed this one more than its sequel??

I prefer the first game but not by much. I did at least finish it where the sequel I stopped after a point.

Just started the game today, and I got as far as saving the blue psychotic kid's brain. I'm liking the game well enough, it's like a 7/10 so far. I think it does a good job of showing what bastards children can be. The platforming is also fine, nothing spectacular yet. I'm guessing the game gets better, otherwise I doubt it would have the reputation it has today.