I am going to talk about a game I recently purchased for the Playstation 3.
Enslaved: Odyssey To The West (Developed by Ninja Theory, Published by Namco Bandai Games, 2010).
The Basic Plot
Enslaved: Odyssey To The West is set in the future after the vast majority of the world and humanity has been destroyed. This has left the city and the surrounding area nearly empty with very few groups of people left living in basic communities. The case of all this hasn’t really been explained in the story however, we as an audience are allowed to come up with our own story plot to match the game. Personally, I think this is a good element to a game as you can interact more with the plot. Perhaps personalise it to a story you would like. Monkey, who is the main character of the game is captured by a group of slaves. Whilst waking up inside a containment pod, Monkey wakes up trying to break out when we meet the next main character, Trip. Both Trip and Monkey manage to escape the crashing slave ship through the very last escape pod. Quite lucky really! We learn more about the story when Trip and Monkey finally meet. Embedded with a slave headband, Monkey is forced to help Trip get back to her home in exchange for Monkey’s freedom. If Trip’s heart stops, Monkey dies…
Here is a trailer for the game which brought me to the game
A Little More About The Game
This game is mostly about escorting Trip back to her home so there is a lot of ground to cover, literally! You have to travel through a beautifully present world using some of the brightest colours grabbing any imagination of player. Using a HD TV will help present this game to its fullest potential. When I first played this game, I was using my own TV in my room which is pretty standard so at first I was really missing out on some of the mind grabbing graphics when looking at the landscapes. Finally going home, I was able to play through a HD TV. Really makes a difference!
There are a few issues with the graphics however. Throughout playing the game there were a few graphic glitches which had an effect on the game which also lead the game to crash as well as Monkey getting stuck in part of the landscape. The game developers seemed to have picked up on these glitches which has now been resolved with a couple of updates for the game. Unfortunately, I didn’t have an internet connection whilst playing the game so I had to make do and get around any glitch within the game.
Combat and Fighting Moves
When engaged with a battle with the Mec’s, Monkey has few moves to fight with although using his mysterious powerful staff, he destroys them in their paths.
In the odd occasion, Monkey will have a moment where he’ll release a large amount of rage upon a Mec destroying it with a mini cut scene. Always looks impressive! You have the ability to shoot powerful blast which can also be set to stun through Monkey’s staff as well as bring on the pain as he wields it through battle protecting Trip. Trip comes with some use throughout battle as she seems pretty helpless. Trip is able to emit a flashing device which draws the mec’s towards allowing Monkey to destroy without being detected. As Monkey deals with the battles and the wall scaling, Trip deals with the technology side hacking through doors and using the robotic dragonfly to pan ahead.
As the game develops on, we notice how both Trip and Monkey suddenly become attached to each other. Through some cut scenes, we see how close both characters can become. Suddenly this adventure game becomes a little romantic which is good as it helps aid the narrative. In the end, you are left to use your own ideas whether they both end up with each other. Personally, I hope they stay together.
The is defiantly a game which I enjoyed. I have been waiting for a game like this to finally appear in the market. I love the amazing detail to the graphics all around as well as the moves when up scaling the walls with some near misses. Always keeps the game exciting. Apart from the sad ending, I know I will be playing this game time and time over again. Overall, I highly recommend this game to anyone who loves an adventurous game.
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