This gorgeous action-adventure platformer is loaded to the brim with ambiance, eye candy, and things to hit, but don’t expect much more than that.
El Shaddai was a game that drew my interest the first time I read the preview in Game Informer. It looked like a gorgeous title with a plot based upon the Judeo-Christian mythos, a realm that would normally make me think of the light-blue unlicensed Nintendo cartridges that unfortunately weren’t worth the plastic housing they came in.
So, unlike my review of Lords of Shadow, let’s turn to the light, shall we?
You play (for most of the game) as the Biblical character of Enoch, who, if the game is correct, is God’s scribe. Your mission is to return the fallen angels, who have been corrupted by darkness, to Heaven. Guiding you on your way is Lucifel, who is one letter away from exactly who you think he is. He’s the narrator of the story, but for some odd reason he’s also the intermittent save point. You’ll know when he’s close because his cell phone rings and it’s God on the other line. No, I’m not making that up.
Graphics: 10/10
Seriously… the Japanese guy responsible for the visuals must have been acid tripping 24/7. Every level looks like it was designed on mushrooms. Still, it’s just so gosh darn pretty. Nothing, however, is detailed. Not even the faces. Everything just seems to meld together like it’s a pastel watercolor. The picture in this post doesn’t do it justice; search for images and you’ll see what I mean.
There’s no HUD, which I kind of like; your “health meter” is basically denoted by the status of Enoch’s armor plating. If it’s completely gone, a few too many hits will kill you.
Story: 4/10
I skipped over the part of the Bible that has Enoch’s tale, but the reason you’re getting the fallen angels back to Heaven is to prevent the worldwide flood. Helping you along the way are four Archangels, one of which actually becoming your Limit Break of sorts; after enough bruises, you can summon him to augment your combos with firy strikes.
Other than that, though, the story completely lost me. You’re going up floors of a giant tower, fighting the same fallen angels a few times, losing your damn mind, and then coming back after some time. The story is hard to follow and it doesn’t really make all that much sense. What do you expect out of something Biblical, though?
Gameplay: 7/10
If the graphics drew you in, then you only might be inclined to stay for the rest. The only other things that El Shaddai has going for it, aside from the music, are the platforming and the combat. There is nothing spectacular here, though.
Combat is one-button. Hold it down to charge a counterattack, and delay presses to break guards. Other than that, it’s your standard hack-away-and-defend. You get three “drops of God’s wisdom”; a sword-like weapon called the Arch, a ranged projectile weapon called the Gale, and a big ol’ shield called the Veil. Enemies wield these weapons as well, and the three have a rock-paper-scissors thing going on in terms of advantages and abilities. You can steal these weapons from enemies to suit your situation.
When you’re not slashing/shooting/beating the living tar out of enemies that were conceptually porcelain and clay, the rest is either 2D or 3D platforming at its most basic level. Seriously. It’s Mario-style jumping shit. They didn’t even have the common courtesy to combine the two; at no point while platforming are you in danger of being knocked off by an attacking foe, just misjudging your depth. Good thing the game is awfully purdy, though, or all that jumping would be boring as hell.
Sound: 6/10
Not the best music I’ve heard in a next-gen title, but it’s not bad, either. The voice acting is fairly decent, but internationalization refused to make the speech match the mouth animations so it not only feels like a Japanese game, it looks like one too. Lucifel is the most guilty of this; listening to him is like watching an old Godzilla movie with English dubs.
Overall: 6/10
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron isn’t the best thing to happen to the next-gen consoles, but it certainly isn’t the worst. This game could have been just as successful on the PS2 or XBox given its gameplay, even with mediocre graphics. It’s a great timekiller, but don’t buy it. Rent it, put a controller in your hand, and take a bong hit. I’m betting the game is three times more fun and much easier to understand that way.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment