Cave Story PSP demo now available!

Now that all y’all got your PSP homebrew on courtesy of Lumines, you might be feeling overwhelmed — thinking “my God, so much crap to load, how will I ever decide?” That’s why I’m here, baby. Allow me to direct yer browser to the LiveJournal post of one ufo_z, wherein he showcases the first demo of his port of Pixel’s immortal Dokutsu Monogatari, known overseas as Cave Story — that’s right, running on the PSP.

As it turns out, previously announced efforts to port the game to handhelds by US developer Variant Interactive have fallen through — a pity, too, because if there’s anything this game needs, it’s widespread distribution. Genius like this can’t be restrained to a niche audience of diehard Metroidvania fans on PCs, after all. ufo_z has picked up where Variant left off, successfully coding a demo of Cave Story up to the first boss, rendered in brilliant widescreen.

This is definitely Cave Story as it was meant to be played. While the PC version is just as enjoyable with big, beefy speakers and a solid USB controller, there’s something magical about Pixel’s brilliant little game rendered on a handheld. If your PSP is capable of running homebrew — and by now it better, what with that Lumines business — don’t hesitate to give this a download, especially if you’ve never played it before. It’s one of the greatest games ever made, and it’s freeware. 

As Destructoid’s resident whore for all things Cave Story, I’ll keep you guys updated on ufo_z’s progress as he updates the rest of us.

[Thanks, Belvie!]