Releasing on: June 4th NA, June 7t
Capcom, Dontnod Entertainment.
Playstation 3/Xbox 360/Microsoft Windows
This is not a review of the very little and limited time spent with what may be a finished or unfinished product nor full of details of content already presented such as features/visuals but a glimpse of one of the most important factors of interactive entertainment... the interactivity.
The 10 minute demo starts off in the city of Neo-Paris where our protagonist Nilin awaits. The first thing that grabbed my attention was not on the monitor screen but right below on a sign that displayed the controller’s different input configurations. That’s where I noticed the different combat functions that comes along a platform-like adventure. Kick and punch combos. Shooting. Special abilities.
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| So many flavors! |
Melee combat is easy as 1, 2, 3 (which is kick, punch, and dodge.) The aiming is free roaming yet has a minor lock on once blows are met and can switch through different targets by simply moving towards the next target. The standout feature of these traditional mechanics is the combo system. The 2-button combo system is quick and rewarding for those who are familiar with timing queues and the “create your own combo” gives depth to advance players. To properly set off a combo one must quickly and consecutively strike an enemy without taking any damage. Once the player completes a certain combo, they are granted a special perk like being able to heal. This way of healing in an action game really reinforces a fast-paced offensive gameplay. Exclamation marks pop up around the enemy’s head giving the player just enough time to react and balancing out these reactions with producing combos to help defeat enemies is quite a challenge. Luckily, Nilin has a few tricks up her sleeves like a boost in damage that can be activated by holding a face button and selecting through a radial menu of special abilities which all have cooldowns.
