Okami

"An epic masterpiece proving the PlayStation 2 still has some life left in it."

Okami is without a doubt one of the best games released in 2006. With the next generation of gaming pooring in with the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii, the current systems may be overlooked in their final days. However, some games came out that truly shine. Okami is definitely one of them.

Graphics: 10/10

Probably the one aspect that drew gamers toward this title was the graphics. Now they aren't realistic, but they don't have to be. The cel-shading technique (seen in many games such as The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker or the Sly Cooper series) is used to perfection in this game. The art style is stunning, with vibrant colors leaping out at you. The cartoony world of Nippon is phenomenally detailed. Everything from people to cats to trees are executed perfectly. The style isn't only used to be pretty however, seeing as it works with the overall art theme of the game. Needless to say, the graphics in this game are amazingly detailed, beautiful, and rich, proving what the PlayStation 2 is capable of.

Story: 9/10

The story is very well done. In a mythical land, the dreaded eight-headed beast Orochi was slain by a wolf called Shiranui and a man Nagi. One hundred years later, a mysterious figure disrupts the shrine dedicated to Shiranui and releases Orochi once again. After filling the land with evil, the wolf is called upon once more to finish it. You play as this wolf, only it has been reincarnated as Okami Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess. Joining you is a small Poncle known as Issun, who serves as comic relief (though most of the time he talks too much and is pretty annoying). Together you search Nippon for the 13 Celestial Brush techniques, each of which you use in combat and for advancing in the game. This is only a very basic outline of the story, and details only the beginning. Throughout the journey, a fantastic plot unravels. Just when you think it's over, you realize you still have a lot left to do. One of the few problems I had with the game was that sometimes the story seemed to get side-tracked. It seemed as if it didn't know where it was going, and got carried away. This rarely happens though. The other problem isn't exactly a story problem, just the way it's told. There is no voice acting in the game, just annoying mumbles cause you to read everything. Now I don't have a problem with reading, it's just that sometimes there is a little too much dialog. Despite this, the story is amazingly well done and plagued with Japanese myths, giving it an epic feel that definitely gives one a satisfied feeling when all is said and done.

Gameplay: 10/10

The gameplay is another part of the game that drew people in. As said above, you play as the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, who was a master of 13 Celestial Brush techniques. However, you conveniently forgot all of them. Luckily, you are able to locate the other gods throughout the game who share their powers with you. These powers include things such as power slash and the always useful cherry bombs. How do you use these powers you may ask? Well, that's another reason Okami is innovative. At any point in the game, you can pause what you're doing by hitting R1 and then use Square or Triangle to draw. You can draw anything: your name, a pretty picture etc. These won't do you any good though. You can however use the Celestial Brush to your advantage (e.g. drawing a slash through an enemy to hurt them, or a circle around a dead tree to make it bloom again). Each brush technique is used in combat and solving puzzles (which are abundant in the game). Some of the abilities can be upgraded as well, which is nice. For example, you can upgrade Inferno from having to draw from a fire source to simple drawing an infinity symbol and watching things burn. Though these aren't required, and are obtained via side-quests, they are definitely nice to have and are a great addition.

Of course you aren't only limited to the Celestial Brush as a weapon. There are three types of melee weapons available in the game: Reflectors,
Rosaries, and Glaives. The reflectors are basically mirrors or shields, which can be used not only to damage, but to block attacks. The rosaries are beads that can be used to whip and shoot at enemies. The glaives (or swords) do just what they're supposed to do: viciously attack anything that moves. In battles you use your weapons with Square and Triangle. Sqaure is for your main weapon, and Triangle is for the sub-weapon. Each of them are used differently if set as a sub-weapon instead of main weapon (e.g. the beads are a whip if used as a main weapon, and as a sub-weapon Amaterasu shoots them). There are five of each type throughout the game, some of them even possessing awesome abilities (such as thunder).

The game is vast. The land of Nippon is enormous. Throughout this land are numerous side-quests to accomplish. They range from feeding animals to helping villagers. By doing these tasks, you are awarded with what is known as "praise." This is where the RPG element comes in. Using your earned praise, you can increase your health, ink pots, money pouch, or food pouch. You also earn a lot of money during the game which you can use not only to buy items, but to learn new moves that devastate your foes. My personal favorite is known as "Golden Fury", which causes Amaterasu to urinate on her enemies in order to get "Demon Fangs" (which are also used to purchase more things). While the side-quests are abundant, the actual game itself is very large. It took me 57 hours to beat. Granted, some of those hours were spent running around, straying away from the main game and doing some side-quests, but it's definitely a 40+ hour adventure.

Enemies are, for the most part, well done. Fights are never random (except in a few areas), and are never required. Throughout Nippon there are what are called "Demon Scrolls", which look like a wavy piece of paper floating around. By touching these, you enter an small arena-esque ground and fight a certain number of enemies. You can even get the upper hand by slashing the scrolls with your brush. You are judged based on how well you defeated the enemies (such as how much damage you sustained etc.), and are awarded thusly. Other than the occasional mandatory fights, you can go through the game avoiding them. Some of the enemies are pretty weird though (such as a spinning wheel of death with an ear in the middle that shoots lightning at you). The bosses are very well done. Each of them are creative and fun to fight. The only thing that I can say is "bad" about the game is the fact that it is very easy. I never died once, I never had to continue once, and you make so much money in this game that you can simply buy more Holy Bone S's/M's/ or L's that refill health. Despite this, the game is very fun to play. It's simple yet effective. Another thing I'd like to point out is that the game is very interactive. You can cut down trees, slice random people, and even start them on fire! Once again: it's very fun to play.

Sound: 9/10

The music in this game is excellent. You can definitely hear the Japanese influence in it. It's very Asian-sounding, but that is not a bad thing. It fits the game perfectly, and varies depending on the situation. For instance, you can be running across the land then suddenly be engaged in battle. The music would change from an upbeat tune to a fast-paced one. It can also become sad too. The music is definitely flawless.

The sound effects are also flawless. The noise of your brush painting sounds amazingly realistic. Amaterasu's howl is awesome, making it seem as if a real wolf was in your room. Explosions sounds great as well as slashes, water flowing, fire raging, lighting zapping, and wind blowing. Everything is without a doubt breathtaking. Even smaller details such as birds chirping are captured very well.

The only thing that I hate about the sound is that everyone speaks in a weird gibberish. All of them vary, but they are all equally annoying. Usually you can skip this and just read what they say, but sometimes you can't. Now I'm not saying the game is bad because it lacks voice acting (in fact it's better without voice acting), but the way people talk can give you a headache.

Overall (not averaged): 10/10

The Good:
- Beautiful art style. (Cel-Shading is perfect)
- Deep yet easy gameplay. Very fun to play.
- Celestial Brush allows you to paint in order to fight and advance through the game.
- Huge replay value.
- Many side-quests.
- 60+ hour game to accomplish 100% completion, 40-60 hours for main game completion.
- Easy to follow yet deep story that gradually unfolds as you progress, presenting with it twists and turns that keep you interested.
- Music is very well done.
- Sound effects are flawless.
- Nice boss battles and regular battles.
- Numerous puzzles/"dungeons" that are fun to solve

The Bad:
- Sometimes the story gets side-tracked.
- Some long-winded/repetitive conversations.
- Annoying mumbling replaces voice acting, which cannot be skipped sometimes.
- Very easy. Some puzzles are real head-scratchers, but other times they are simple and sometimes Issun flat out tells you what to do, ruining the fun. Enemies are easy to defeat, as are bosses.

Okami is the game that comes along once in a while that chooses to be different. It expands on features already present in many games, and adds its own flair that singles it out from the rest. Not only is it original and innovative, but it accomplished what games set out to do: It's fun. The very few flaws it has are trumped by the vast number of positive aspects. If you like games such as Zelda, or Action/Adventure/RPGs in general, then get this game immediately. The amount of content it has definitely warrants a purchase, and at ~$40 it is practically a steal. Okami will go down not only as one of the best games of 2006, but as one of the best for the PlayStation 2, and as one of the best of all time.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/27/06