Heavenly Sword [PS3]

At last, the metallic sounds of battle echo through the cubicles of IGN PlayStation. Heavenly Sword, the eagerly awaited game from developer Ninja Theory, showed up in demo form on the PlayStation Store today. While this is a demo the PlayStation Team has seen before in various forms (see Jeremy's impressions from May), we were still pumped to spend some more time with Nariko and her incredible, almost poetic, heavenly blades.

Though Ninja Theory still has time to smooth out the edges of their title, the demo is an excellent showcase of what's to come. One of the first, most notable aspects of the game is the rich and illustrious music. An apparent blend of eastern and western mentalities, the lilting strings and eerie chimes create an almost perfect tone for Heavenly Sword. If the opening tracks are any indication of the quality of the game's score, fans are in for a real treat.

But the real question people have been pondering is how the game controls, since virtually everyone is in agreement that the game looks beautiful (Nariko's face is quite literally a work of art). We are happy to say that Heavenly Sword is not a button masher in any sense of the word, since your opponents block vigorously and often gang up on your solitary heroine. In fact, the game feels rather unique to me, since switching between Nariko's three stances (speed, ranged and power) and taking advantage of aerial combos and Superstyle moves requires a lot of concentration and planning. Although the gameplay may be somewhat reminiscent of God of War, Heavenly Sword feels like an original title.

The demo, however, is extremely short. In fact, it's only about two battles long, with a few timed action sequences in between (and it starts with a short cinematic that documents a conversation between Nariko and Kai). Although the length of the demo was initially disappointing, there's still plenty to experiment with during those two battles, and Ninja Theory was kind enough to start the demo off on a small, isolated cliff edge, so you have room to grow accustomed to the combo system. A system that is intricate, challenging and stunningly gorgeous. Every strike and technique at Nariko's disposal is pristinely animated and the sound effects are thrilling. If you turn the volume up enough, you can almost feel the blades cutting viciously through the air. Ninja Theory really knows their stuff, it seems.

Although I personally was pleased with the demo, there were a few issues that are worthy of discussion. First: the framerate. Although Heavenly Sword plays well and runs smoothly, it could be a touch better. Also, I was unable to use the motion controls effectively and had to turn them off, preferring a press of the X button to initiate aerial combos, as opposed to jerking the controller upwards. This may just be my unfamiliarity with the gameplay mechanics, but I was much more comfortable with strict button presses.

Otherwise, you should check out the demo if you haven't already: it's awesome. Nariko is an incredible character in general, considering her strength, skill and ample amounts of sexuality (though it's more of a subtle, artistic sexual energy, which keeps things realistic and serious). Something I'm also very pleased with is the dialogue, since I'm notoriously picky about voice acting. Luckily, the actors seem skilled in their trade and the writing isn't overly dramatic; it holds just enough substance to carry significant emotion. Although there's still a lot left to see, Heavenly Sword looks very promising and we look forward to seeing what Ninja Theory can really do.

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