Kameo: Elements of Power

"Making a Kameo"

Rareware has had a wicked habit with making really good games. Rare's legacy on the Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64 is downright legendary. As the time switched to the Nintendo Gamecube, Rare was supposed to back the famous company in their exploration of the next generation of gaming. Ever since the buyout of Rareware by Microsoft, many people wondered what would happen to the long-awaited Kameo game that was originally set for release on the Nintendo Gamecube. Transforming fairies, fire-breathing dragons, colossal troll kings; Kameo has the skill and style to look great. But times change; Kameo didn't release for the Xbox as originally planned. Instead, Microsoft redirected Rare's handywork to the oncoming release of the Xbox 360, Microsoft's second effort at video game stardom. Kameo: Elements of Power debuted as a launch title for the first next-gen system in 2005. Is it absolutely memorable as Rare games of past?

Kameo takes place in a world wrought with war: a fierce battle between the Elves and the Trolls to be exact. Kameo, the chosen daughter of the Elf King Solon, is gifted with the power of the Elemental Warriors at her coming of age celebration. The problem resides in Kameo's sister Kalus, who jealously and rather foolishly unleashes Solon's great enemy, Thorn the Troll King from his slumber. The war intensifies as Kameo fights Thorn and loses the Elemental Warriors she fights with, who are taken by the Shadow Trolls. Kameo must rescue her family from Thorn's forces all while searching for the Elemental Sprites that control the power of Kameo's Elemental Warriors. The story doesn't really get going until around halfway through the game, and once the ties come together, the story is generally forgettable. It really doesn't help that the acting is bad and the text-heavy sequences are far too plentiful. There's a share of new concepts in the writing and storyline (characters have a lot to say), but there's still that looming cloud of melodrama and the game doesn't really get the story off the ground quick enough or efficiently enough.

The controls in Kameo also tend to make things pretty clumsy. Kameo controls with the Left thumbstick, camera with the right. Kameo's actions are mapped to the analog triggers instead of the face buttons, which are then used to switch off the different Elemental Warriors. Controlling the actions with the triggers is a neat idea, but there's too little precision in activating these controls. Switching off between warriors is generally easy to do; the face buttons can be mapped with different warriors, with the A button permanently used to switch back to Kameo. It takes some time to get used to it, and although I constantly was reminding myself how much better it would be with the warriors being mapped to the D-Pad, it isn't completely cumbersome and works out okay with practice.

Along the way, Kameo must save certain family members and rescue the Elemental Sprites from the Shadow Trolls. She must use different characters' skills to solve puzzles, defeat enemies, and explore. The Elemental Warriors are the key to her power. Kameo is the only character who can jump, but other characters are more suited to different situations. Pummelweed for example is a boxing plant who can sneak under doors and punch enemies. Major Ruin is an elephant-like creature who can roll around a la Metroid Prime. Sometimes different characters must be used together to complete a goal: roll off a ramp as Major Ruin and switch off to the ice-climber Chilla in mid-air. It's these moments that make Kameo a lot of fun, but these moments are far too few due to the other characters. Some like Flex (who can grab onto grapple points) and 40 Below (who can ride ice paths) are boring and a pain to use, mostly because you won't be using them in battle very often. Having to rearrange your characters on the face buttons just to solve a simple puzzle that absolutely requires certain warriors is a pain, and you wish that there was more buttons for a hot-key system. Alas, this is not the case, and many of the characters' abilities are wasted. Also, Kameo's main ally, the Wotnot Book, tends to give hints too much. These aren't required to use, but the game tends to hold your hand a bit too much throughout. The problems don't outweigh the fun moments, but some of these issues arise too much in gameplay, making Kameo a pretty hit-and-miss game.

The game is painfully short; immediately after you find all of the Elemental Warriors, the game's final boss looms over your head. The game is too short to show off all of the abilities of the Elemental Warriors, which is a shame. Fortunately, Kameo can find Elemental Fruits to spend on stronger Warriors' attacks and skills, and can search for certain abilities to increase her own strength too. The game has much more to collect than the last few Rare titles did, which is a healthy improvement. Also, the game throws some curve balls like offline and online co-op modes, along with the traditional Xbox 360 Achievements, which are plenty fun to complete. On the whole, there are some issues that could've been avoided, but Kameo is still a worthwhile game to play.

In all honesty, I wasn't a fan of the Rareware buyout, but I can safely say that the game is simply gorgeous on the Xbox 360. As a launch title, it is to be expected and Rare delivers the eye candy on multiple levels. The opening mission is so rampaged by forces you'd think that someone rolled the Lord of the Rings movies in sugar and threw in some color for good measure. The enemies each move independently instead of as a big army and will fight independent units in battle. The entire game is brilliantly lustrous and good-looking. There are incredible particles and glare effects, some of the best seen even today on the 360. There's a small bit of loading in between, but considering all the action that occurs on-screen, it's hard to complain. However, the game tends to take too much advantage in looking good, and it can make exploring the world a bit confusing. Everything is so lustrous and bright that it can become troublesome to know exactly where you're going. This isn't as rare as it should be; the game looks beautiful, but the different effects tend to be more showy, and it makes the whole game rather difficult to explore. Combine that with a shaky camera and the good-looking aspects of the game tend to be a double-edged sword. Some will love the beautiful effects and shiny textures, but if you're like me, you may find them to get in the way too much.

Pros
+ Different elemental warriors are fun to use
+ Pretty challenging
+ Plenty of hidden Elemental Fruits
+ Cool co-op modes
+ Really good-looking

Cons
- Story is pretty forgettable
- Visual effects can get in the way
- Some of the warriors are boring and/or a hassle to control
- Short story mode
- Game tends to hold your hand too much

Kameo: Elements of Power makes the types of moderate strides expected from Rare, but there are some simple equations that tend to backfire in places. Cosmetically, this is a brilliant achievement in graphic design, although some of the graphic effects can be more trouble than they're worth. The story and voice acting are pretty sub-par and the game is too short and clumsy for its own good most of the time. The warriors don't get enough screen time to test out new abilities and the controls aren't the best suited for some of the skills. There's a lot of things to overlook to see Kameo's stronger aspects, but if you can overlook them, there's some really interesting gameplay aspects throughout. The exploration and puzzle solving are still Rareware tradition and the warriors that have enough different skills are fun to use in tandem. It's not Rare's best offering, but it's a moderately enjoyable 360 romp that shows more raw power than polish. Let's just hope that Rare's next adventure offering sticks more to the roots, because Kameo, though okay as a typical adventure game, doesn't successfully strike there. It's worth a rental, and Rare fans will find some familiar aspects to remember.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 12/11/07

Game Release: Kameo: Elements of Power (US, 11/07/05)