Of all the sports represented in the PSP’s launch line-up, the most noticeable absence was of football. That hole has now been plugged with NFL Street 2 Unleashed, and though it’s not the proper sim (okay, so its not Madden) that some were hoping for, it’s still football.

Unleashed will always stand out in my mind for one reason – it was the first game I saw running on the PSP when the system was officially unveiled at last year’s E3. I was amazed at just how accurately the PS2’s presentation had been depicted on the handheld. Nearly a year later, I’m still amazed at how closely the PSP version resembles its console cousin. A few items were, of course, taken down a notch, but the overall experience is still largely intact. Players are still able to pull off all sorts of stunts during plays (though the number of moves has been reduced) and the framerate keeps up at a constant clip.

Audio hasn’t fared well in the translation. All of the commentary, which consisted mostly of Xzibit’s inane chatter, has been removed. As was the case with NBA Street Showdown, I really didn’t miss the commentary and considered it a good thing. All of the tracks from the console version make it over to the PSP. Once again, the songs work within the game’s context, so I had few complaints even though it wasn’t anything I’d listen to otherwise.

Unleashed is essentially a port of NFL Street 2 with a few additional minigames. Even without these additions, the pacing of Unleashed lends itself well to a handheld since you can jump in and play a quick game in no time (though the long load times work against this).

“Own the City” and NFL Challenge are the two core gameplay modes. “Own the City” allows you to create your own custom player and hook up with Xzibit, who acts as sort of your Mr. Miyagi for all things Street. After a brief tutorial, he’ll take you through a series of challenges meant to boost your stats and give you some practice with getting used to the ins-and-outs of the game.

NFL Challenge operates in the same manner, only instead of one player you’re in control of an entire team. Here you’re given 150 days to complete challenges. These include scoring a certain number of points or gaining so many yards passing. Besides controlling the destiny of an entire team, NFL Challenge also differs from “Own the City” since you’ll match up against real NFL teams instead of a bunch of no names.

Both modes suffer from the same problem as the console versions: they’re long and rather frustrating. As I went through the modes, I found myself having to force my way through each challenge. There has to be a better way.

These modes aren’t what help to make Unleashed a good handheld game. Instead, it’s the mini-games and quick game options. Console mini-games like “Kill the Man with the Ball” are joined by new mini-games, like a run through an alley littered with obstacles. There’s also an endzone dance game that where you match up key presses. All of the new games are just as fun as the old ones.

Another mode includes an option to play both single and multiplayer versions of the "Own the Street" mini-games. You can also choose to play though the Gauntlet, which pits you against NFL teams in succession.

Gameplay is rounded out by ad-hoc multiplayer. In multiplayer mode, you can take on another player in an exhibition game or some of the minigames. Non-wireless “pass the system around” multiplayer is also included for minigames.

Unleashed isn’t very hard once you adapt to the game’s speed. Unlike Madden, this isn’t a game where you can drop back a few yards and wait for things to develop. Instead you have to remain constantly aware of what’s going on at all times and even take a few gambles with your passes.

Both “Own the Street” and NFL Challenge are more arduous than difficult. As you play, you’ll no doubt find little tricks that work most of the time and almost always assure victory. Still, both modes are by no means cakewalks and will require some actual skill in addition to “tricks”.

Unleashed is a much faster football game then your typical sim. If you’ve played the console versions, you should know what to expect, but if you haven’t, here’s a little background.

NFL Street takes the rules of football and bends them. There are fewer penalties and more attention is given to style than play selection. During plays, you can pull off trick moves that boost your Gamebreaker bar. Once this bar fills up, you can pull off a really fancy maneuver resulting in easy points. The tempo of a typical game is very fast and requires you to work more on quick-thinking and instinct. Taking your time to pass usually results in a sac.

As with most of the game, nearly everything makes it over to the PSP intact. Controls are responsive, though the absence of two shoulder buttons hampers the number of moves available during a game. Another aspect to find its way over to the PSP is that it is still very easy to build up multiple Gamebreakers per game, guaranteeing easy victories most of the time.

Constant and long load times kill Gamebreaker. From the moment you fire up the game until the last touchdown, you’re treated to some of the longest load times found on the PSP. I can handle shorter load times, or at least one long one, but multiple lengthy ones sour Unleashed’s portable friendliness.

NFL Street 2 Unleashed is a great game if you’re a fan of the series or absolutely dying for a football fix. Still, if you can stand the load times and painful “core” gameplay modes, there’s a lot here to like.