Papa Yo

10 cert, Minority/Sony, PS3

Any game that distances itself from badass super-soldiers is off to a good start. In this case, Papo Yo follows a schoolboy, Quico, who escapes his harrowing home life into a fantasy world.

At first, this looks like any other working-class city, but the differences soon become apparent: chalk drawings on walls become interactive – opening doorways, expanding as steps, keys, cogs and so on – and the buildings themselves become malleable, moving when prompted and even sprouting limbs and walking.

Along his journey, Quico encounters a mysterious, lumbering monster – one who proves to be a metaphor for his home life. Is this all happening in his imagination? That’s suggested by his tendency to retreat into a cardboard box.

Despite its sometimes traumatic subject matter, Papo Yo is a stubbornly charming third-person puzzle/platform game. It ambitiously mixes the fantastical with the rational in an engaging, allegorical story. Yes, I really wish it had a longer running time, but that’s a good complaint.