Heavenly Sword
As Sony Computer Entertainment America’s flagship title for this fall, Heavenly Sword had a lot of burden to carry and the media didn’t make things any easier for it, constantly augmenting the hype surrounding the title. The question that remains now after the game launched, is: Is it the console seller PS3 needs so badly? Well, yes and no. Let’s see why.
First off, I have to declare that all the pre-launch rumors about the game being just under eight hours long and the lack of diversity in the enemy design were all true(sigh). But luckily there are many great things to say about Heavenly Sword that make it a great game.
For those of you who don’t already know, the story of Heavenly Sword revolves around a young heroine named Nariko. Her father is the leader of a clan, who over the centuries has been entrusted with the safeguarding of a power weapon known as the Heavenly Sword. But, with time, the clan’s power has grown weak and now they are faced with the invasion of the despotic king Bohan, who wishes to take the sword for himself. Nariko, who at birth was believed to be the chosen one to fulfill her people’s prophecies, is now the only thing standing against the evil Bohan and the Heavenly Sword.
The game starts with Nariko’s death, her life force drained by the magic of the sword, so the game itself is conceived like a series of flashbacks. The story itself is a bit of a cliché but the actors involved in the project really set a new standard for character acting in a video game. Also another strong point of Heavenly Sword is the large number of breathtaking cutscenes which really make you feel like you’re watching an action movie and spoil you with fantastic sceneries.
You’ll be spending most of your time cutting down cohorts of enemies coming at you in seemingly endless waves. But have no fear, Nariko’s no push-over, she can hold her own with the help of a multitude of deadly attacks. The well implemented stances combat system really makes Heavenly Sword stand out in the action genre, rivaling the now legendary God of War. First off there’s the speed stance, which allows Nariko to inflict light damage but at high speed (this is accomplished by pressing the square and triangle buttons), and then there’s the damage and ranged stances( accomplished by pressing L1 and R1). Combos can be pulled off by pressing the square and triangle buttons in a specific pattern or by changing the stance in the middle of an attack. Combos also help fill a meter consisting of three thirds. Filling the first one unlocks a new combo, while the second and third unlock artwork and making-of movies. Still, although combos help you dispatch enemies much faster, you can probably get through the game without them.
But for that to be possible you need to learn how to attack different types of opponents and also how to guard against their attacks. Some foes are only vulnerable to some types of attacks, or can be attacked with a counter. Also blocking is a key to staying alive when overwhelmed. Just before they attack, enemies glow in a certain color, that’s the game’s way of tipping you off as to what attacks the enemy is going to use. If it’s a speed attack, you won’t have to do a thing, Nariko will block the attack on her own, if it’s a damage attack, you’ll have to push the R1 button in order to block and, finally, if it’s an unblockable attack you’ll have to roll out of the way.
Throughout the game you’ll also be playing as Kai, Nariko’s sister who’s skilled at shooting enemies from a distance with her trusty crossbow. These parts are pretty fun, as they give you the chance to control the projectile as it leaves the crossbow, until it reaches its target. All thanks to the sixaxis controls, well implemented for a change. Unfortunately she has no close combat skills, all she can do is push enemies off her, which can become frustrating at times.
The opponents you face in Heavenly Sword suffer from a lack of diversity, sure they attack a bit differently, some are faster, others shoot arrows, but most of them look the same and none of them really presents a challenge. Instead of attacking with some sort of strategy in mind, all they do is try and vanquish you through sheer numbers. The bosses themselves are pretty original and the voice acting makes them feel like real persons. Still they aren’t very tough to beat if you have the patience to empty their huge life bars.
All in all Heavenly Sword is an impressive game, non stop action, unprecedented voice acting and breathtaking cinematics come together to bring us probably the best action the PS3 has scene so far. So if you can overlook the fact that it’s just seven to eight hours long, you’ll really be satisfied with what Nariko’s saga has to offer.
