Heavenly Sword

"The PS3 gets Heavenly"

Heavenly sword, a game from Ninja Theory, has been developing for almost 6 years and jumped multiple console until Sony did the wise thing and pick up the publishing rights. But has Sony got a hit or a bust. Here is my review.

Graphics (5/5): You know when I played Bioshock I wonder to myself how the graphics could get any better. I admit I was one of the people who thought the PS3 and 360 were equal in graphical power. Well this game proved me wrong. I know that Mass Effect (360) may be the only game to match the graphical power of this game. Oh, and is it lovely. When you first enter the game you realize that what you thought was a CGI intro is actually the games engine. It blew me away. Every character in the game is Mo-Capped by the actual people who did the VO for this game. The characters also show freakish real life expression on thier faces. When the camera zoom up close to Noriko in the game's Hub world you can see how realistic the faces are. It is great. Oh, and let not forget the enviroments. They have a GOW feeling to it but mulitply by 10 and you get the vistas of Heavenly Sword. My only complaint is the games HD output which is only 720p, but that is minor the how gorgeous the game is.

Gameplay (4/5) : If anything this is the worst part of the game, but don't worry the gameplay is still great. When you first start out you may think this is going to be another Hack n'slasher. It isn't til Noriko gets the Heavenly Sword that the game play opens up. You get three modes of attack. Speed, which is quick attacks but do medium damage, Power, is what you think, and Ranged, spinning attacks that do little damage. The strategy comes from these attacks since you can only counter attack those of the same kind. If it wasn't for this the game would very likely get stale. But the game stays intense throughout. Now to the bad stuff. Since Noriko is incapable of jumping the game can get frustating at some points when the enemy count is large. Also the Boss battle, even though fun, can also lend to frustation. Even though these are two only minor things it is still enough to lower it a point.

Story (5/5): The Story follows the Heroine Noriko a red haired beauty who chose the take possession of a sword that will kill her soon after she wields it. What follows is an engrossing story that, even though may be short, is worth playing through again and again. It is that good.

Sound (5/5): Andy Serkis and countless other stars do the VO and Mo-Cap for this game and it really good. All of the actors nail there performances so well I felt like I was watching a movie. Also the music is superb, expecially the final battle music.

So all in all this game is a game you need to pick up. If not with a new PS3 then just go pick it up for you PS3. Have fun and enjoy.

Post-Review Report:
+ Awe inspiring graphics
+ Fun battle system
+ Emotional story
+ Superb VO and Music
- Can't Jump
- Frustrating Boss battle
- Length 5-8 Hours tops (Even this isn't a big deal)

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/05/07

Game Release: Heavenly Sword (US, 09/12/07)