–Tagline from the Psychonauts boxart
Psychonauts is a series of video games with three titles. The series is centered around the main character, Razputin Aquato, on his journey to become a Psychonaut.
Psychonauts[]
Cover art for Psychonauts.
Main article: Psychonauts
Psychonauts is a platforming game developed by Double Fine Productions that first released in 2005. The game was initially published by Majesco Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, Xbox and PlayStation 2; Budcat Creations helped with the PlayStation 2 port. In 2011, Double Fine acquired the rights for the title, allowing the company to republish the title with updates for modern gaming systems and ports for OS X and Linux.
Synopsis[]
Psychonauts follows the player-character Raz (voiced by Richard Horvitz), a young boy gifted with psychic abilities who runs away from the circus to try to sneak into a summer camp for those with similar powers to become a "Psychonaut", a spy with psychic abilities. He finds that there is a sinister plot occurring at the camp that only he can stop. The game is centered on exploring the strange and imaginative minds of various characters that Raz encounters as a Psychonaut-in-training/"Psycadet" to help them overcome their fears or memories of their past, so as to gain their help and progress in the game. Raz gains use of several psychic abilities during the game that are used for both attacking foes and solving puzzles.
Psychonauts: In the Rhombus of Ruin[]
Cover art for Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin for the PS4.
Main article: Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin
Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is a first-person virtual reality adventure game developed by Double Fine Productions on the PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. Released in 2017 on PS4 and on PC the following year, the game's story bridges the events between Psychonauts and Psychonauts 2.
Unlike the original Psychonauts, Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin is not a 3D platformer, but instead a first-person puzzle-focused game similar to a point-and-click adventure. As Raz, the player always remains in a seated position, and may interact with characters and objects in the world using his psychic powers such as telekinesis and pyrokinesis. While many VR games have utilized a "blink teleportation" mechanic to allow players to travel in the virtual world, Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin instead requires the player to use Raz's Clairvoyance ability to see the world from the perspectives of the other characters in the scene (who also remain seated throughout). These mechanics are used to solve puzzles to gain information and trigger events which further the plot and advance the game.
Synopsis[]
At the end of Psychonauts, Raz is recognized as a talented PSI Cadet and is asked to join his tutors as a fully fledged Psychonaut. But as Raz prepares to go home from camp with his father, news arrives that Lili's father, the Grand Head of the Psychonauts Truman Zanotto, has been kidnapped. The team, Raz and Lili included, fly off in the Psychonauts' jet to rescue him. Using his Clairvoyance ability, Raz discovers Zanotto is being held in the Rhombus of Ruin (a play on the Bermuda Triangle). The team travels into the Rhombus of Ruin, but the jet crashes before they can act.
Raz awakens tied to a chair in the chamber Zanotto is being kept. Using his psychic abilities to explore the junk filled ocean, Raz finds Sasha, Milla, Lili and Oleander trapped in hallucinations due to a Psilirium deposit below them. After freeing his team from their hallucinations, Raz is pulled back into the chamber by Dr. Loboto, the insane ex-dentist from the first game, and Zanotto's kidnapper. By using a Psycho-Portal given to him by Oleander, Raz enters Loboto's mind. There he fights a gigantic version of Loboto and enters his memories, where Raz learns Loboto was once a psychic himself, and his parents disapproved of his abilities and had him forcefully lobotomized.
After Raz exits Loboto's mind, Loboto seems to have a change of heart, but instead leaves Raz and the others and floods the base. They escape from the base with Zanotto, and the game ends with Lili telling her father about their adventures, and him shouting in disbelief that Raz is her boyfriend.
Psychonauts 2[]
Promotional art for Psychonauts 2.
Main article: Psychonauts 2
Psychonauts 2 is a video game developed by Double Fine and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game was announced at The Game Awards 2015 ceremony, and is planned for release in 2021 on Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Playstation 4, Xbox One and Xbox Series X.
Double Fine and game director Tim Schafer had expressed the desire to create a sequel to Psychonauts, but the financial demand of developing the game stalled any serious attempt. After strong sales of the original through various outlets along with strong demand from the fanbase of the original game, Double Fine sought to acquire part of its financial capital to fund the developments of Psychonauts 2 through a US$3.3 million crowd-funding and investment drive through Fig, launched simultaneously with the game's announcement. The campaign raised nearly $4 million by the beginning of 2016.
Synopsis[]
The game picks up after the conclusion of Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin, with Raz having assisted Sasha Nein and Milla Vodello in rescuing head Psychonaut Truman Zanotto — a mission begun at the end of Psychonauts. Following Zanotto's rescue, the team returns to the Psychonaut Headquarters, where Raz discovers that the organization is not all that it seemed. In Zanotto's absence, the Psychonauts organization had been changed by its second-in-command, and psychic research was directed away from peacekeeping efforts towards more unorthodox studies including necromancy.
Unreleased mobile game[]
The title screen.
Main article: Unreleased Psychonauts mobile game
The unreleased Psychonauts mobile game was developed in 2011 by Doublefine productions intended for release on mobile platforms. The story of the mobile game takes place before Psychonauts. The mobile prototype of the Psychonauts prequel has the player taking the role of Ford Cruller building Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp.
Trivia[]
- Some characters have four fingers on each hand while others have five. This is not addressed at any time in the series.
References[]