In Coded Arms, the government has created a VR training program that was meant for the purposes of an alien invasion. Unbeknownst to the creators, the program continued to evolve on its own, turning into a vast and brutal VR world populated with virtual alien invaders, dangerous computer bugs, and the VR system's own security bots. It is up to you to arm yourself with a vast assortment of weaponry, battle these enemies through the virtual landscape, delving deeper into the heart of the unchecked system, and shut it down for good.

The graphics in coded arms are easily some of the best the PSP has to offer to date. The visuals are clean, the environments are not only well designed and have tons of textures and lighting effects and they are generated at random to keep the game feeling fresh over and over again. The weapon effects are also nicely implemented providing the right amount of oomph you'd expect from a rocket launcher, grenade, or machine gun. There are vast arrays of enemies you will encounter throughout the game, including some very large and cool boss fights. The VR presentation really sets the mood of the game, allowing you to immerse yourself into the world of Coded Arms. You will see levels generate before you eyes, items announcing that a file has been hacked, glitches will occur, and many other touches that give off the feeling of being inside a simulated system. Topping the game off is a silky smooth frame rate. Coded Arms is a title you can proudly show off to your friends who don't own a PSP.

Audio is good, but not great. The good stuff coming in the sound effects, as you will hear every shot, explosion, footstep, and enemy sound from every angle of this 3D world. What's more, it is all very loud and full of the perfect amount of bass and treble. This is easily a game where you will benefit from some ear buds or headphones. Where the game is lacking in the sound department is the music. I can understand trying to give off the impression of the future with some house techno, but seriously, these beats are just not very good. Lastly, the lack of voice acting is disappointing. In the cut scenes, they are missed, but it would have been nice to at least hear a CPU voice announcing the level you are in, items, or objectives needed to be met. This really hurts the character of the game and you must have a great imagination if you are to feel you are part of this universe.

Gameplay is the deciding factor for most gamers. Some reviewers, magazines, and even message boards have gamers who have played this who've criticized the controls. I for one had to resort to my old school Dreamcast FPS days with only one analog. Once my brain was adjusted to the control scheme I liked, I had to find a comfortable sensitivity level. Yes, the latter was harder to find than the former, but like most games, once the controls are second nature, the game is as good or bad as you see it. If you honestly give it some time, which you will have to considering this generation of consoles has babied us with two analog sticks, you will have no foreseeable issues with the game play. That being said, the A.I. is incredibly challenging, even from the get go, and I have a feeling some gamers will not have the patience to find their groove before the game become too difficult for them. Coded Arms is not for the novice gamer. There are several control layouts you can choose from, or you can even assign buttons to your liking. Once the game is in your favor, it controls much like any FPS.

Coded Arms has a short but engaging story mode. A few levels, some good boss battles, and a ton of enemies to destroy and you will make your way through the game in a matter of a few hours. The replay value comes in two forms, first being the aforementioned randomly generated levels. This will keep gamers coming back at least for another round though the game. The second is the multiplayer mode, which can be played with up to four players thanks to Wi-Fi. You even have a few mode types in multiplayer including Deathmatch; Keep the Mark, and Last Man Standing. What's more, the weapons and power ups collected in the single player campaign can be used in the multiplayer mode for more explosive action. There are more than 30 weapons in the game, including assault rifles, sniper rifles, pulse weapons, and the ever deadly rocket launchers.

How you will enjoy Coded Arms will depend solely on how well you adjust to the controls. I would be lying to say this game is a pick up and play FPS, but finding your niche will only take a half hour or so of tweaking and trying controls schemes before you find the one you like. If by then you have not found yourself comfortable with the game, you never will. Thankfully, I played a ton of Quake 3 and Unreal on my Dreamcast, so reacquainting myself with such controls took only a short time. I still have to say, Coded Arms is one of the better titles on the system, if not for the great visuals, but it is one of the few games that is actually original on the PSP and not some remake.