As the development that was billed to carry PS3 at E3 2007, I remember hearing that Heavenly Sword largely impressed in those early showcases. Then, the final version released, opinions changed, and the reviews fell flat. I returned to the comforting familiarity of PS3 having nothing, and forgot about it.Now that we’ve crossed paths firsthand, I find that Heavenly Sword is (mostly) my kind of game. As SCEE’s highly-stylized take on the most familiar refrain in hack-’n-slash gaming–of blood feuds, internecine warfare, accursed weapons, and the fated prophecy that ties them all together–it’s a description that reads like any given pagan myth, lasts only as long, and causes the occasional abraision through needless button-mashing and the Six-Axis’ slightly rough edges. Once you get used to the motion controls, however, the ever-popular Aftertouch becomes the highlight of Nariko’s five-day quest, next to the oldest story in gaming–in which our interest, perennially renewed by a mere modicum of skill in presentation and delivery, is ramped up as Heavenly Sword veritably flexes PS3’s cinematic muscle. Although combat may tend towards combo-matic monotony and visual flair, there’s some engaging boss fights to bind the mindless battles and puzzles in between.One can easily trace its bloodline to the likes of God of War and Jade Empire, right down to the epilogue-as-prologue chronology, but the tried-and-true formula of Heavenly Sword is still working. It ain’t broke, and they didn’t fix it.

Posted on June 29th, 2008 by katie