That lovable and addictive puzzle game from years gone by is back -- now on the PSP. All of what you loved the original game for is there -- in fact, all of the original levels are included, along with a slew of new ones. However, the style of the graphics has been updated; the levels still play in a 2D manner, but the graphics are, in fact, 3D. This is most evident in the background environment, especially at the beginning of each level, where the camera pans across the background and into the level.

The musical scores each have their own flair, some sounding almost like circus music and others being a bit dark. It seems that the music is randomly chosen, so don't be surprised when the music doesn't fit with the background.

The voice-work is comprised of high-pitched, shrill little outbursts from the excited Lemmings. This can be a scream when they realize they're falling too far to make it or a lighthearted, "Yippee!" when they jump through the exit door. A little more disturbing is the splattering noise they make it when they land from too high up. The animations and sound effects are done in a comical style, but some bits (such as when they go splat) are a bit more dark than others. These Lemmings are going to have to go through Hell -- literally. It's up to you to save as many of them as you can, but, inevitably, some of them will be lost to great falls, fire traps, rope traps, mincers...

Levels. Levels, levels, levels. If you liked Lemmings way back when, but you wanted more levels, Lemmings for the PSP has the answer. Not only does Lemmings have all of the original levels along with a ton of new levels, but it also features a level editor to allow you to create your own levels using the different environments in the game. You can save these custom levels to your memory stick and even upload them so that other people can download them and try them out.

For those who aren't familiar with Lemmings, I should back up a bit. The idea is fairly simple. You are looking after a large group of somewhat dim-witted and accident prone creatures called "Lemmings". Basically, these little guys are content to continue in a direction until they get to an obstacle they can't pass and then they'll turn around and go the other way. They don't bother to stop when they reach the end of a ledge or when they approach a device that just shredded 30 of their friends ahead of them. So, in order to save them, you need to help them avoid such pitfalls and help them to safely reach the exit door. The trick is - you can't actually do anything directly to help them; all you can do is help them help themselves. Each level has a certain allotment of different skills, such as the ability to bash through solid rock, dig down through the dirt, act as traffic cops to prevent the others from reaching a pitfall, that sort of thing. To empower a Lemming with one of these skills, you navigate to that skill with the shoulder buttons, then use the analog stick to target the Lemming of choice and push X to empower him. In this manner, you can create Climbers, Floaters, Bombers, Blockers, Builders, Bashers, Miners and Diggers. Most of these names are fairly self-descriptive, but when you designate a Lemming as a Bomber, you are giving him a death sentence. He will count down and then blow into tiny pieces. This is typically done to remove a Blocker, who would otherwise keep blocking things up even after you've used other Lemmings to prepare the path for the others. Floaters have umbrellas and can drop from any height without dying -- they simply use the umbrella as a parachute if the height is too high. Some of the skills can be combined on the same Lemming. For example, you can make a Lemming into a Climber and then also make him into a Floater. Doing this will create a Lemming that has both the hat that indicates Climbers and the Umbrella that Floaters have. What's more, he can scale up to great heights and then float down from them unscathed.

The puzzles in Lemmings range from simple and straightforward to simple if you know the trick to tricky, indeed. There's a wide variety of puzzles here; something for beginners to get the hang of it and enough more advanced puzzles to challenge those who have got the basics down. If that's not enough levels for you, you can always download new ones from the Internet or create your own.

Lemmings is an excellent game for a portable system such as the PSP since the levels are designed to be completed in only a few minutes. If you have a little bit of time free, you can probably play your way past another level.

As far as the puzzles being too challenging or not challenging enough, you can solve either problem by creating your own levels. You can create the puzzles, set the speed, decide how many Lemmings have to survive for you to move on to the next level... When you create a level, you can tailor the difficulty as you see fit.

The concept of Lemmings is a great concept and the implementation here is fairly straightforward. Unlike some of the sequels to the original Lemmings game, the version doesn't seek to add new gameplay elements that change the balance of play; this version is essentially a port of the original game with some upgrades to its look and feel. At the same time, there are a lot of additional puzzles to be solved and the ability to roll your own. Lemmings for the PSP plays it safe while bringing a true arcade classic to an entirely new audience as well as serving as a welcomed encore to old fans.

As I see it, the editor adds a lot of replay value. I found even some of the simplest levels I made could prove challenging if I set the settings just right. Raise the speed up to there, increase the number of Lemmings that you have to save and, voila!... the level is hard. If I play it for a while and simply can't pass it, then perhaps I made it too difficult. I can simply adjust the settings a bit to make it a bit easier.

I found Lemmings to be a very amusing game that not only brings back some nostalgia from yesteryear, but also provides an engaging and challenging gaming experience that is still fun today.