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'Odin Sphere' embraces 2-D |
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Written by Justin Hoeger, MCT
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Friday, 06 July 2007 |
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ODIN SPHERE
3 stars
PUBLISHER: Atlus
SYSTEM: Sony PlayStation 2
PRICE: $39.99
AGE RATING: Teen
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Whatever else it does, "Odin Sphere" proves one thing: Flat is not dead.
The game actually holds a position on the PS2 much like "Valkyrie Profile's" on the PSOne. Both games were made toward the end of their consoles' life spans, when a new generation of systems was taking shape. And both eschew the newer style of 3-D graphics for a fluid, expressive 2-D art style.
The games even share a Norse mythological inspiration. One of the main characters in the game is the valkyrie, Gwendolyn.
The game is set in a tumultuous time following the death of a tyrant king. Two of the nations he controlled - the warrior nation of Ragnanival, led by the Demon Lord Odin; and the Fairy Kingdom of Ringford, led by the Fairy Queen - seek to fill the power vacuum.
Gwendolyn is Odin's daughter; she and several other characters spend the game fighting through numerous stages, each made up of several areas. Each area is actually an infinite loop: Each stage scrolls left and right, but if characters run in one direction long enough, they'll end up where they started. This allows for running battles and room to retreat without the need for large battle arenas. Clearing an area grants a chest full of items, with bonuses for fast and clean completion.
The game play is part action, part RPG, with an emphasis on the first. As Gwendolyn and the other characters in the game, the player can attack with weapons, cast spells to damage or defend, and go into a defensive posture to reduce damage. High jumps and long floats, combined with dashing attacks from the air, keep enemies under control and the player safe.
Each defeated enemy releases little specks of light called Phozons. Collecting these Phozons powers up a character's weapon over time and fills their Phozon meter, which powers magic spells. Phozons are also used to cultivate plants: Drop a seed in the ground at the start of a stage, kill some enemies, then come back to a full-grown plant bearing health-restoring fruit or new seeds or a flock of sheep (really). Eating items will increase a character's health with time.
Seeds and other items can also be combined with alchemical bases to create new items (the process also releases Phozons in varying amounts). These items range from healing and support items, such as antidotes, to attack items, such as flasks of napalm.
The beautiful graphics have nothing in common with the realistic visuals of "Gears of War" or "Oblivion." They're not meant to - "Odin Sphere's" look is singular, its characters and objects made up of numerous pieces to create a fluid form of animation.
The backgrounds are hand-drawn; the effects are suitably flashy. The game is nothing short of gorgeous, and it looks like nothing else.
Unfortunately, perhaps effort was spent on the visuals to the detriment of the game play. Combat is repetitive, with only a few attack maneuvers and combos to use, and they're timed in such a way that the player is constantly left open to cheap shots from powerful foes, a problem not relieved by the loose controls. Attacking too many times in a row leaves a character drained and helpless for a time, and too many enemies and effects onscreen at once slows the game down considerably.
Dying just sends the player back to the beginning of the current ring-shaped stage, but it's frustrating to have to repeat a tough spot over and over.
But these are pretty minor faults, and if the game play isn't always totally engaging, at least the visuals are. Even the storytelling is well done, with some rather good voice acting and an interesting plot line that ties the various (and often opposing) characters together.
Even the music is great, composed by the man behind the soundtracks for "Final Fantasy XII," "Vagrant Story" and other memorable scores.
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