Okami

Game Info

Publisher: Capcom

Developer: Clover Studio

Platform: PS2

Genre(s): Adventure

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: September 19, 2006

Intro:
The intro took a full 20 minutes.  This seems to have been common in game design on the older systems. The story is setup via a series of scrolls that are "read" with verbal gibberish while the artistic cinematic plays before the player.  In other words, there is no real voice acting and the player must read the scrolls while watching the cinematic. The watercolor artwork sets the game up as an artistic game with a story from the very beginning.

Getting Going: 
Play is fairly simple and straight-forward.  An in-game tutorial directs the player in actions to take on the fly.  Hints and further direction are given throughout the first chapter, as well.  When all is said and done, it's very easy to get playing in this game once you are able to do more than click through the various story scrolls.

Fun:
The game is a little slow, at times.  In fact, the overall feel of the game is very laid back and zen. I actually enjoyed turning out the lights, sitting on a pillow on the floor and drinking some tea as I watched the blossoms float by, took in the watercolor art and listened to the Japanese score play.  It's not an edge-of-your-seat kind of game, but it is a great game to play if you have time to kick back and wind down at the end of a long day.

Visuals:
The artwork is a dramatic departure from most video game art, but it provides the feel of a relaxing game which is not meant to be rushed.  Instead of developing, the story unfolds.  Beautiful landscapes spring to life gloriously, providing an unusual, but effective player reward. Scrolls roll out to save the game and tell the story.  Dialogue is also on scrolls.  Blossoms float on the wind.  Everything is themed to feel like a summer day in the Japanese countryside, at least, after you clean it up from the evil lurking there. Issun, however is irritating.  He bounces around Amaterasu's head like an attention-seeking missile and there were times I wanted to just swat him.  The designers at Clover seemed to realize this, however, as there were times other characters in the game seemed to feel the same.  The option to swat him might have been an interesting, and humorous, addition to gameplay. 

Sound:
The Japanese musical score effectively conveys the layed-back feel of the game.  This game is definitely art and is meant to be enjoyed and savored.  The music draws the player in and enhances the mood.  There is no need for dynamic sound in this game since there is no voice-acting and nothing the player has to hear.  In fact, the muffled gibberish that accompanies the scrolls is rather annoying, instead of helpful.  Clover could have saved some time and money on this aspect and simply left it out.

Intelligence:
It was possible to walk past some enemies and some just seemed to re-spawn indefinitely.  In addition, it was possible to walk very close to any NPC without anyone seeming to notice.  For this reason, I would say the game lacks any real AI for NPC's.  Also, I can't say the game really played against me much at all.  There were puzzles to solve, but the answers were there, so I never felt frustrated.  There were plenty of hints.  I felt as if the game was meant more to be enjoyed than to offer a challenge.  This is not a bad thing, in fact it's good.  The game designers at Clover appear to have had a very definite feel and player experience in mind and they did a superb job of meeting that goal.

Immersion:
While I didn't get lost in the play experience, I noticed a significant mood change while playing.  This game has the unique ability to wash away the cares of the day and simply create a relaxing experience.  There is still killing and violence, still spells and melee fighting.  And yet, the overall experience can only be described as calming.

Cameras:
Offering a full 360 degree visual experience and the ability to focus/zoom, the camera leaves little to be desired.  My only complaint would be that, at times, especially during spells, the camera was a bit slow or at too low of an angle.  At other times, when you try to look, you end up at a very odd angle.  This is common in many games, however, and nothing that stuck out enough to be singled out in Okami.

Controls:
I was extremely impressed with the smooth controlling of this game.  Okami is a game that depends on brush strokes for many actions.  It had the potential for disaster and frustration if the controls weren't right.  For instance, drawing a circle for the sun can be difficult with a joystick, but the game seems to recognize the effort and I was never penalized for a sloppy circle or crooked slash.  The controls are repetitive enough so as to become intuitive rather early in the game and little thought need be given for actions in the heat of battle.

Ideas:
I was extremely impressed with the use of art and sound to create mood in this game.  This isn't the first time I've noticed it.  SSX uses a more cartoon-like animation to create a fun feel to the game where more photo-realistic art would have created a more competitive mood.  Bioshock makes full use of the surround sound and background noises to create mood while the visuals, themselves, tell the story.  Okami brings a unique style to gaming and effectively uses theming through every aspect of the game to create an unparalleled play experience.  That's impressive.  Also interesting, is the choice of reward.  Taking a land from barren to magnificent is an exciting and powerful reward.  I'd like to look into more unique reward systems for my games in the future.  One thing I would try to change, though,  is the 20 minutes prior to gameplay.  Was there a way  to show the player the story instead of telling it on scrolls?  Was there a way to involve the player in the action, even to make them a villager fleeing from the fray or witnessing it?  Perhaps there is another way to introduce the back-story and set up the game.  It's one of my lessons...remember the guy with his finger hovering over the button.  He wants to play, not watch.  Show, don't tell. 


Memory:
I will certainly play this game through to the end, someday.  While it is tempting to keep playing all of the games I'm growing to love even more through this challenge, it's not possible if I want to finish the challenge in a timely manner.  If I had to sum Okami up in 50 words or less, I'd only need one:  Zen.  It's an art game that creates a mood.