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This article probably isn’t really about what you might think. Then again it might be, I do a lot of random free flow writing. A short while ago I decided to break out the demo discs that I’d been getting for my PS2 from my free OPM subscription. After being dulled to death by Lego Star Wars 2 and it’s “what the hell am I supposed to do next and when will these Storm Troopers stop atacking me?” game play I tried out a game called Okami.

I was vaguely aware of Okami previous to this in name only. I’m sure I had glossed over it a few times in my RSS feeds. This game is without a doubt the most visually interesting and impressive game I’ve played ever. Back on the Dreamcast, Jet Grind Radio mainstreamed the Cell Shading style. Other games had tried, JGR made it work. It has been used quite a bit with mixed success. Persoanlly I’ve always seen it as still being 3D. It looks sort of like a cartoon but it’s still obviously a three dimensional world and game.

Okami takes Cell Shading to a whole new level. It takes it beyond a gimmicky trick to lure Anime fans to a game and makes it an art. A perfect beautiful work that flows together incredibly believably. At almost any point in the game you can take s till and it will look like a perfect painting. Here’s a sample.

This si a 3D world game. You can run in all directions. All of the hills and walls and trees transform perfectly as you move. It’s perfect.

It’s also wholey appropriate given the game’s gameplay. I’ll admit, I’m not entirely clear on the details but it revolves around you controlling this wold creature with wierd flaming wings of some sort on it’s back. Occasionally you’ll come across things that need to be repaired. For example, in the demo you find a bridge that’s broken. To cross the bridge you have to draw it back in to cause it to reform. You also use this technique to create a river to swim through. Later it’s adapted for attacking enemies.

There are very few enemies in the demo. The game seems to be more centered around solving puzzles witht he brush than fighting. There’s only one spot with enemies actually. The combat actually seems more like an after thought really but then again where’s the suspense of a game without villains. Oh wait, Shadow of Colossues pulled off the “No enemies jut bosses” thing didn’t it?

Anyway I plan on picking this title up when I get the chance and I can recomended it fromt he demo. It’s too bad it’s not really the type of title the mainstream audience will flock towards bcause it’s really quite an impressive experience. Even if you don’t buy it you might at least try to find the demo or rent it for a few days.