Okami

"You will say "Wow"."

There's a lot of things people can say "Wow" at: For example, you come home from work early, and find your wife in bed with another man. (Or, vice versa for any girls reading this review). You will say "Wow". Another thing to "Wow" at (okay, I'll stop doing that) is Okami, one of the most awesome games to grace the PS2. Like, ever. With it's amazing graphics based off early Japanese watercolors, amazing story, and gameplay innovative enough to make The Legend of Freakin' Zelda want to "borrow" some creative ideals, Okami is just plain... wow. Okay, I'll stop foaming at my mouth and get on to the review.

Graphics: 10/10

Okay, okay, I'll admit I have had a bit of a predisposed opinion to the graphics of this game, but that doesn't mean that they're not worth a ten. It uses early Japanese water-color paintbrushing on the textures of the characters, background, and, well, everything. And it wins. It looks amazing, and you will not take your eyes off this screen. I'm sorry, you just won't. There are so many details they added to the graphics: As Ameratsu (the wolf-goddess you play as) sprints across the dark and brooding forest, it gets brighter, as if you were in the middle of some beautiful fantasy painting in ancient Japan. It's fluid cel-shaded graphical technique is also pulled off without a hitch: I have never seen a simple glitch, lag, or pop-up ever in this game, and I have been addicted for awhile. This pure and utter perfection gives the graphics a tremendous 10/10.

Audio: 4/5

Well, the music in this game is flawless. It's Japanese tones that fit the mood perfectly (covering the range from inspiring to tranquil to demonic) in every single case. That pure awesomeness was just awesome (this game allows me to be redundant in describing how awesome it is). The SFZ are also great. The sound of Ameratsu running through the grass, her mauling an enemy, hell, breaking a bottle is awesome. However, I have one word for you (or is it two?): voice-overs. Boy, do they annoy me to no end. I'm sure they fit the game, I'm sure they're authentic, they just tick me off. Most likely, you too. But, it's perfect SFX and music give the audio a terrific 4/5.

Controls: 4/5

The controls are for the most part easy to handle, and pretty responsive. They make sense for the game, and are pretty cool: circle attacks, X jumps, I'm sure you can surmise the basic premise for the controls in this game. They're not super-amazing, just basic, except for the paintbrush (more on that later). Hard to master, easy once you get used to it, the awesome paintbrush bumps the controls up to a fine 4/5>.

Story: 9/10

"You're Ameratsu, the Sun Goddess, in the form of a white wolf." You had me at hello. It, however, is slightly unoriginal, but it's quest to save Nippon from Orochi (*cough* save Hyrule from Ganon*cough*) is delivered in such an epic way reminiscent of Ocarina of Time. However, the need for an awesome RPG-quality storyline has improved since then, but it's epic delivery, and Ameratsu's intriguing displays of emotion make this story worth a fantastic 9/10.

Gameplay: 14/15

This game is art. Painting shows art through images; books show art through words; games show art through a unique combination of graphics, audio, story, and it's most unique element: gameplay. Okami is also artistic and innovative at this level. Okami's gameplay is quickly defined by the Celestial Brush. It's just so important, it had to be shown in bold. Although a bit hard to master at first, the unlimited time it gives you to draw what you need to draw works out nicely, and you can do so much with the paintbrush, provided you have ink. Ameratsu loses color each time it's used, another awesome touch to how cool it is.

There is a lot of exploring (surprise), and that is a LOT of fun. The combat is pretty easy (I'd say LoZ: Wind Waker easy) and, well, it just doesn't present a challenge. It gets a bit complex when you get all the weapons and a lot of sophisticated paintbrush techniques... but it's still not hard. There are a lot of stats in this game (using an interesting "Praise" system that kind of annoys me), but they're easy to upgrade. About as easy as the numerous puzzles are to solve. In fact, there's a lot of direction in this game, mostly from fellow characters. The gameplay itself is awesome, but it's lack of difficulty gives it a still-amazing 14/15.

Replay Value: 3/5

This is not a game with a lot of replay value. However, the ridiculous amount of time (about 60-70 hours) it takes to beat the game and all its sidequests gives it this score. There's no after-mode, and that's not that surprising. But maxing out everything takes a long amount of time, and it's fun to replay it (more som than other games) giving the replay value a respectable 3/5.

Okami. It's time to get this game. You need to experience this game, and I have a feeling that you'll love it, especially if you like action-adventure. Personally, I've always wanted to play a game as an animal (I still want to be a lion on the African jungle), and, instead of doing cutesy spin moves, mauling my enemies and walking like, you know, an animal. Okami accomplished that, and although the voiceovers are a bit annoying and the game is pretty easy, it's amazing sound, breathtaking graphics, and innovative gameplay accomplish a lot.

Averaged Score: 44/50, or 8.8/10, rounding to 9.

Bottom line: Okami's amazing brushstroke graphics, periodic audio, innovative gameplay, and epic storyline will make you say "Wow".

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/16/06