 = Crush ( video game ) = 
 
 Crush is a platformer @-@ puzzle video game developed by <unk> Entertainment 's Zoë Mode studio and published by Sega in 2007 for the PlayStation Portable . Its protagonist is Danny , a young man suffering from insomnia , who uses an experimental device to explore his mind and discover the cause of his <unk> . Each level of the game , representing events from Danny 's life and inspired by artists such as Tim Burton and <unk> <unk> , requires the player to control Danny as he collects his " lost marbles " and other thoughts . 
 Crush 's primary gameplay feature involves manipulating each game level between 3D and 2D views , allowing the player to reach platforms and locations inaccessible from within a different view . This element was noted by critics to be similar to one in Super Paper Mario , also released in 2007 , though the Zoë Mode team had envisioned the concept five years prior . Crush received positive reviews upon release , with critics praising its incorporation of this dimension @-@ shifting component alongside other aspects of the game presentation . Though Crush won several gaming awards , including PSP game of the month , it failed to meet the developer 's sales expectations . A port of the game for the Nintendo 3DS called Crush 3D was announced on January 19 , 2011 and was made available on January 13 , 2012 in Europe and on March 6 , 2012 in North America . 
 
 = = Plot = = 
 
 While Crush and its Nintendo 3DS port Crush 3D retain the same gameplay mechanics and premise , the two versions feature different plots . 
 
 = = = PSP version = = = 
 
 ( Note : The voice actors for the story are unknown at the moment as Zoë Mode never credited them ) 
 The protagonist of the game , a young man named Danny , suffers from chronic insomnia caused by worry , stress , and <unk> memories . He is admitted to a mental institution for it , where he <unk> a mad scientist , Dr. Reubens , who treats Danny with his <unk> <unk> <unk> <unk> <unk> ( C.R.U.S.H. ) device , which has a sentient female persona . The device 's helmet places Danny under hypnosis , during which he can regain control of his <unk> by collecting his lost marbles , and facing his <unk> fears in the form of monsters ( i.e. cockroaches , slugs ) . Danny starts <unk> the beans to Reubens about his city life ; moving into his first apartment and his suffering job as a chef ( because " the ladies love a man who can cook " ) . He heavily depends on Reubens for some serious help if he wants to get rid of his insomnia . Later , when C.R.U.S.H. projects the image of a bucket and shovel at the beach onto the helmet , he recalls his love life some few years ago with a girl named Tina Ash ( who Reubens mistakenly thought was Danny 's mother ) . Returning the next summer , Danny is <unk> for a more handsome man . <unk> , Danny ends up sitting on the pier crying , inadvertently falling into the ocean below , but eventually rescued . Reubens claims Danny 's rejection made him " shy away from the <unk> sex " , and tells him to get some rest . The next day , Dr. Reubens tunes up his machine to " match [ Danny 's ] abnormally low cognitive frequency . " Danny recommends he give them some time alone , but the word " alone " has Reubens allude to the time Danny was heavily abused as a young boy at a local funfair by three thugs , however , Danny <unk> that he <unk> his parents to go to the funfair alone , but they find and rescue him . He then promised his parents that he 'd " stay with them forever . " Dr. Reubens uses this evidence to come to a conclusion that <unk> is the cause of his insomnia , recommending that Danny moves back into his parents ' house , but his conclusion is proved wrong when Danny returns one more time . Dr. Reubens lashes out at Danny for wearing out his machine , demanding that Danny <unk> up to where he " buried [ his ] pain " and if he is merely " <unk> " with them . <unk> the limit , Reubens subjects Danny to <unk> all the way to his childhood , when he was only six years old , against Danny 's own will . Danny cries at the breaking point , <unk> that Reubens stop " unlocking doors that should stay <unk> , " but in the end , Danny <unk> the words , " Come back , " implying that his parents went out on a date and left him at his house alone , with disturbing shadows of the night leaving Danny in psychological trauma . Danny discovers that his childhood fears at that time , principally being afraid of the dark , are the real cause his insomnia , sending him " <unk> back into [ his ] six @-@ year @-@ old self . " Reubens is full of disgust that his treatment was a complete waste and that Danny ruined his machine due to his <unk> , but tells Danny he 's cured . Right when Reubens begins to snap Danny out of hypnosis , C.R.U.S.H. , following suit in Reubens thoughts , goes over the edge and seems to attack Danny 's mind , with Reubens <unk> and Danny 's life on the line while the screen fades to black at the start of the attempt . 
 
 = = = 3DS version = = = 
 
 Doctor ' Doc ' <unk> ( instead of Reubens in the PSP version ) , is infuriated that all of his inventions failed , but today he ' shall surpass them all ' with his latest invention , C.R.U.S.H. He uses a tape recorder for his scientific narrative on the experiment . With the help of his best friend and protégé , Danny ( a running gag consists of him <unk> Doc throughout the game ) , he enters his mind as his subject to C.R.U.S.H. , but after a few tests , Danny is trapped inside C.R.U.S.H. , where he can collect his lost marbles ( which will unlock new dressing gowns / robe designs ) and facing his fears in the form of monsters ( i.e. cockroaches , slugs ) . At one point , Doc tells Danny that C.R.U.S.H. will not let Danny out due to " unresolved feelings . " The two question that reasoning as they progress . Towards the end , C.R.U.S.H. interrupts contact between Danny and Doc , overly infatuated with Danny . Danny slowly admits to C.R.U.S.H. that she is simply a machine and compares it to " flirting with a parking meter . " C.R.U.S.H. , infuriated , sends Danny back to his childhood as a result . When Doc comes back into contact with Danny , Danny lashes out at Doc for building a machine " with the heart of a teenage girl " who " <unk> " at him . Doc , calming Danny down , explains how this " <unk> " is not really his , but old data , and suddenly Danny becomes shocked when he realizes he took the place of someone who underwent treatment with C.R.U.S.H. ( being the PSP Danny ) , but " she knows [ he 's ] not the same . " C.R.U.S.H. really wanted Danny to clear her head . In the ending , Danny finally escapes and is free out of <unk> 's mind . He and Doc discuss <unk> 's future , while Doc says that he 'll fix her . In a sudden plot twist , it turns out that they were not in the real world at all , but all the levels throughout the game are outside Doc 's lab . C.R.U.S.H. <unk> and laughs into the camera , she <unk> and the screen cuts to black . 
 
 = = Gameplay = = 
 
 Crush contains ten levels in each of the four locations , all based on an event in Danny 's past . The levels represent Danny 's mind : a dark city landscape with many tall buildings and the occasional street lamp , a hotel resting aside a seaside location , a dark and mysterious funfair , and a haunted childhood bedroom . Levels are mostly composed of platforms formed by blocks . The player 's goal in each level is to collect marbles , which give the player points based on their color . The exit from the level is opened once a predetermined number of points have been collected . Danny can <unk> into narrow areas and jump a small height . 
 The main gameplay feature of Crush is the ability to <unk> the layout of a level between 2D and 3D representations to reach seemingly inaccessible areas and solve the game 's puzzles . The player can switch the third @-@ person camera between four directional side views and a top @-@ down view at any time while in 3D . When in these views , the player can have Danny " crush " the level , collapsing all 3D elements into 2D ; crushing from side views results in a 2D platformer @-@ like view , while crushing from the top @-@ down view provides a 2D top @-@ down perspective . <unk> can connect and merge platforms on the same visual plane in the 3D view but separated by a large distance , creating pathways across the level in the 2D view . The player can also " <unk> " the level at any time . Certain blocks , when crushed , become either obstacles through which Danny cannot pass , or ledges the player can use to reach other parts of the level . Attempts to crush a level in any manner that would harm Danny are thwarted . However , <unk> can leave Danny in a helpless state , such as hanging in mid @-@ air . 
 Enemy monsters inhabit the levels , but the player can crush them by flattening impassable blocks against them . The player may also encounter <unk> in the form of alarm clocks that will begin to <unk> when crushed for the first time and can only be stopped when Danny jumps on them . Danny wakes from his mental <unk> if he falls off the level or too high of a surface , is touched by a monster , or fails to stop a <unk> , but the C.R.U.S.H. device <unk> him at the start of the level or the last <unk> Danny passed . 
 Throughout the levels are scattered large spheres and cylinders , which the player can roll when crushed appropriately . These can then be used as platforms or to depress switches . <unk> pieces can be collected to reveal concept art and extras in the game 's menus . Some of Danny 's " thoughts " , represented by glowing neon icons on the walls of the level , are only activated when the level is crushed in a manner that does not obscure them . Some thoughts allow Danny to jump higher or stop time . Once the player completes each level , they are graded by the duration of Danny 's stay on the level , how many times Danny " <unk> up " , and a bonus for collecting all marbles , the <unk> piece , and a hidden thought trophy . The thought trophy , once completed by crushing , unlocks a level 's special challenge mode for later play which requires time @-@ limited completion of the level with an allotted number of <unk> . 
 
 = = Development = = 
 
 In an interview , Zoë Mode executive producer Paul Mottram claimed that the game concept was envisioned in 2002 , but work did not actually begin until 2006 . The initial concept was built on the crushing mechanism between 2D and 3D , and they only had to create appropriate obstacles to prevent players from simply " crushing " across the level . Mottram noted that during the development of Crush , the gameplay of Super Paper Mario had not yet been revealed , and thus the team was surprised to learn that it shared a similar feature . 
 Mottram stated that the crushing mechanism had been developed and refined for six months before developing the story and characters ; the development team wanted to have " a normal person in an impossible situation " . The art and level design were inspired by Tim Burton , Mike <unk> , and <unk> <unk> . The plot was originally more <unk> than in the final product , with Danny dying and the rest of the game told as flashbacks . 
 The game levels were developed on a level editor on the PlayStation Portable , but Zoë Mode were not able to refine the editor in time for shipping . Mottram said " It would be great to see user generated content and this is something we have been seriously thinking about for the future " and that downloadable content " would work perfectly with the Crush level structure and I am sure that fans of the game would be eager to see more levels . " Mottram has stated they would like to market a sequel based on the highly positive feedback they had received ; however , with other Zoë Mode projects such as <unk> and Play taking precedence , he does not know when this could be . 
 
 = = Reception = = 
 
 Crush received generally positive reviews , with aggregate scores of 83 out of 100 from Metacritic and 82 % from Game Rankings . The game was highly praised for its innovative approach to gameplay . Ryan Davis of GameSpot appreciated Crush for owing " very little of its novel concept to games that preceded it " . Nick <unk> of <unk> called the game a " <unk> rewarding , expertly designed puzzle experience that truly plays like nothing else " . Reviews were mixed on the game 's learning curve . IGN 's Jeremy Dunham praised the ordering of the puzzle elements , that new gaming elements are introduced at " an ideal pace " , and that most puzzles have solutions where the player must " think ' outside the box ' " . Eurogamer 's Dan Whitehead commented that the game introduces these elements too quickly and " doesn 't give you much time to put the <unk> into practice " . Some critics found that elements of the game detracted from the game 's uniqueness . X @-@ Play 's Greg Orlando , while stating that this was " one of the most novel games ever made " , noted that it was " simply not very fun " , as it lacked many player <unk> beyond manipulating the world and collecting objects on each level . Reviewers noted that some puzzles were awkward due to the selection of the PlayStation Portable 's controls . Reviewers found the game 's story poor , but this was overcome by the gameplay elements ; Charles Harold of the New York Times said " the minimal story is as forgettable as its puzzles are ingenious " . GamesRadar included it in their list of the 100 most overlooked games of its generation . Editor Jason <unk> stated that the ability to switch from 2D to 3D was " one of the most unique ( at the time ) features we ’ ve ever seen . " 
 IGN awarded Crush PSP Game of the Month for May 2007 . GameSpy called Crush the third best PlayStation Portable game and the " PSP Puzzle Game of the Year " for its Game of the Year 2007 awards . Similarly , IGN awarded Crush the " Best PSP Puzzle Game " , " Most <unk> PSP Game " , and " Best PSP Game No One Played " awards in their Game of the Year 2007 selections . Crush won the 2007 <unk> Conference Industry Award for " Best New <unk> IP " . According to Paul Mottram , positive reception of the game did not translate into high sales , but the game " will hopefully stick around for a while and continue to shift units " . 
 
 