Genji

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Review of Genji

The mysticism of ancient Japan lends itself naturally to video games with a mix of magic, monsters and myths. It is that sort of world that is the home of Genji: Days Of The Blade for the PlayStation 3, an action hack-and-slash.

Set 3 years after the events of the original game on the PlayStation 2, players take control of four characters, each with their own weaponry and skills- Yoshitune Minamoto, who wields twin swords; Benkei Musashibo, the extra-strong warrior monk with a giant war club; Lady Gozen Shizuka, with chained blades for attacking from a distance; and Lord Buson, the God Of War who has come to earth to help in the batle against the Heishi. For reasons known only to him he has chosen to take the form of Kagekiyo Taira, the former Heishi clan leader who was killed at the end of the first game.

Each character has 2 different attack forms and one special move- Shizuka, for example, can grapple her blade to certain objects to make her way over large gaps. You begin the game with only one character, Yoshitune, but as you progress and meet the others they become available. You can switch between characters at any time with a simple press of the D-pad in the proper direction- doing this can make for some interesting and deadly combos. While each starts with just one weapon more can be found in chests that appear after defeating all enemies in certain areas. All weapons can be enhanced by using Mashogane, mysterious crystals dropped by certain enemies when killed. Doing so will increase the amount of damage. As you battle you also build up a Kamui meter- when filled you can enter a special plane where timed button presses will execute devastating attacks on your enemies.

Sounds somewhat interesting so far, doesn't it? Too bad the execution isn't as good as one would like. The fighting is, for the most part, pure button-mashing and gets repetitive very quickly. Meantime, the game camera is a fixed-angle, meaning you cannot control it at all. You are stuck with the view you are given, making for easy cheap shots on you while fighting. You do get a small map in the top right corner that will show the direction you are facing and nearby enemies but it can be rather useless when trying to figure out where to go. When running in a certain direction the camera can change on you suddenly and you wind up moving just where you don't want to go. If another sequel is in the works a controllable camera is a must. The game save system is not the best either. You can only save progress in certain areas shown as a blue glow (as well as recharge your health). These spots can be few and far between, making some stages more difficult than they need to be.

One more thing sorely missing from this is no multiplayer or online capability at all. Even a 2 player battle using the various characters would help elongate the lasting ability of this game. As it is, however, you are on your own and your friends can do nothing but sit back and watch.

I will say the game is pretty impressive in the graphics, especially in the amount of detail in some of the levels and character designs. The cut scenes look up to par with some of the top CGI animation found in tv and movies but for some reason I was seeing some stutter in bits of the animation. Considering the power of the PS3 this shouldn't be happening.

A good deal of voice acting was done for the cutscenes- some of it sounds a bit cheesy to me but overall fits nicely. The music is good as well, filled with traditional Japanese music and vocals. The sound effects, such as the clanging of swords, are repetitive buy still sound authentic.

OUR PLEDGE: We promise that we have fully played 'Genji' before writing this review. The scores given above are our honest opinion and were not influenced in any way by the manufacturer or distributor of the game.

This review was written by Lyndon McLeod © Absolute PlayStation

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