Finally after four years of wanting to attend London Expo in cosplay I went with my college dressed as Amaterasu from Okami! I really enjoyed my first time there and hugged loads of Links, Rainbowdashes, Shizuos, Izayas, Mikus, a Jigsaw, a Bryan and a Chihiro! :)
I still have to take some photos but whilst I was there I got a free Tomb Raider poster and brought:
~A blonde wig
~LOZ: Spirit Tracks bag
~ Twilight Princess Master Sword for my Link cosplay! =^^=
Also I met some of my friends down south~ love you guys! So I'm now planning to go to the May convention next year!
Our assignment A Link To The Future was to discuss about the gaming platforms Link has appeared on and how the games have progressed since 1986. We had to present what we found yesterday to the whole class with a time limit of 5 minutes- sadly mine was 18 but I didn't fail because I cosplayed as Link.
I gained a double distinction according to Kyle- yay! I did say though I would post up my assignment notes after I presented my work...
The Legend Of Zelda series is as nearly old as the Mario
brothers and over a long period of time, has developed along with various other
consoles.
1980s
Legend of Zelda game
appeared in Japan on February 21,1986 on a system called Famicom Disk. It was a
cartridge version using a battery-backed memory that was later released in the
US on August 22,1987 and five days later for Europe. At this point the game
featured a ‘second quest’ which was only available after the game was completed
or by registering your name as Zelda when starting a new quest. This would then
lead to dungeons and items placed elsewhere in the level and eneimies becoming
harder to kill.
The Famicom System was created and released on February 21,
1986 by Nintendo.
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was again released for
Famicom Disk System but it was also released for Nintendo Entertainment System
as well between 1987 in Japan and 1988 for Europe and North America. This time
the game allowed the gamer to experience a top-down perspective for
side-scrolling and introduced RPG elements like experience points, health bars
ect Meanwhile none of these featured in the first Legend of Zelda. Both were
released in gold-coloured game cartridges instead of grey ones and were
re-released in the final years of the NES.
The NES was released in Japan in 1983, 1985 for North
America, 1986 for Europe and finally 1987 in Australia. Both the Famicom Disk
System and NES were created by Nintendo as home consoles during 1980. Comparing
between the two Famicom ignored standard cartridges and used big yellow disks
that would contain game data on both sides. This meant the data could be saved
on the disk or the game copied onto a blank disk. The Famicom Disk System was
able to manage larger quantities of graphic data and featured an extra sound
channel.
Even though the console was a success, it meant players
would have to swap the side of the disk to continue playing the game and also
hardware faults were at the time really hard and expensive to fix. Eventually
the console dropped to replacing the disks with cartridges which meant minor
alterations had to be made to the games such as loss of extra sound channel and
passwords for saved data.
The NES was actually a US release of Famicom but renamed and
modelled into a grey box with a flip lid, with an aim to sell the console as a
home entertainment device rather than a videogame console. The cartridges for
the NES were larger than Famicom carts and featured an indent for pushing the
game down into place. However problems with the console were the significant
amount of dust building up in the connectors at the back of the console.
Controllers were no longer hardwired making them easier to swap and replace
with other controllers and add-ons.
After four years another game known to be The Legend Of
Zelda: A link To The Past was released for the NES in Novemember 1991 then
later re-released for the Gamboy Advance hand held console on December 9th,
2002 in North America using a cartridgethat contained four swords. It was the first Zelda to be multiplayer and
added concepts of an alternate dimension, the Dark World. The same perspective
views from previous game remained on this one.
Later’ A Link To The Past’ and a loosely based sequel called
BS Zelda no Densetsu Inishie no Seikiban were released on a downloadable format
for Satellaview in Japan on March 2nd 1997. In 1994 where the
Famicom’s lifespan was nearing, the original game was also re-released on a
cartridge format along with a modified BS Zelda no Densetu on August 6th
1995. Both titles has rearranged dungeons, an altered overworld and new voice
acted plot lines.
The Satellaview is a satellite add-on for NSFS (Nintendo’s
Super Famicom System) which released in Japan in 1995 and came bundled with the
BS-X Game Pak and an 8M Memory Pak. It became developed to receive signals
broadcasting from satellite TV station WOWOW’s satellite radio’s St. GIGA.
These were responsible for the file server management, maintenance and
vocalisation for ‘SoundLink’ However for any broadcasts to be seen, people had
to have the use of a BS tuner and if one didn’t have this, they would have to
buy it from St. GIGA and sign up to a monthly contract plan- reducing sales of
the Satellaview in June 2001 by around 46,000 subscribers.
Link’s Awakenking became the first Zelda in the series to be
released for a Game Boy handheld in 1993. It’s set outside Hyrule excluding the
Princess Zelda. In 1998 the game was re-released featuring a full colour format
as a launch title for the Game Boy Coluor as Link’s Awakening DX. In addition
it featured also an extra coloured-based dungeon and a photo shop that could
collaborate with the Game Boy Printer.
The Game Boy is an 8-bit handheld console that was
manufactured and licensed by Nintendo and was also the first even hand-held
video game device created. It’s release date was April 21,1989 in Japan, August
1989 in North America and September 28th 1990 for Europe.As time grew on for the Game Boy Colour to be
released despite other handheld consoles introduced to public, the Game Boy
systems were a huge success and sold 118.69 million units worldwide
Finally graphics started getting better by making them 3D
with Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64 released in November 1998. It was
initially known as Zelda 64 and still have core gameplay of the previous Legend
Of Zelda 2D games. It ranked highly on IGN and EGM’s ‘greatest game of all
time’. The improved gameplay had a lock on targeting mechanism which focuses
the camera on a nearby targer and alters the player’s actions. This then could
allow precise sword fighting is a 3D space because the actual game relied
heavily on context-sensitive button play enabling the player to control various
actions with Link only using one button on the N64’s game pad. In 2002 Ocarina
of Time re-released for Nintendo GameCube when it was offered as a pre-order
incentive for the Wind Waker in the U.S, Canada and Japan. Europe however
continued to receive it free in every copy of the Wind Waker except for the
discounted Player’s Choice version.
It included a previously unreleased 64DD expansion known as
Ura Zelda in Japan and Ocarina of Time Master Quest in North America. Ocarina
of time was included as part of Collector’s Edition for the Game Cube in 2003-
now it’s available through the Wii’s Virtual Console service and in 2011 a 3DS
titled game called: The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time 3D was released.
Game Boy Advance is a 32-bit handheld console also
manufactured by Nintendo and developed from a Game Boy. Its release was March
21th 2001 in Japan, June 11th 2001 for North America and 22nd
June 2001 for Australia and Europe. Compared to the Game Boy, the GBA had a
smaller screen but better graphics/sound qualities, smaller cartridges and was
easier to store away.
Ninentdo 64 is the third home console for international
markert. It has a 64 bit central processing bit( hence the name) and released
between 1996-1997 for Japan, North America, Europe, France, Brazil and
Australia. The N64 became the last home console to use ROM cartridges to store
games but continued to use Game Paks. In 2002 the N64 was discounted because of
the new release called Game Cube in Japan, North America and other PAL regions.
The N64 console was released in 8 different colours and sizes with an
assortment of limited edition controllers that were sold or used as contest
prizes during the N64’s lifespan. During the fifth generation, the Nintendo 64
was the most technologically advanced with one minor drawback of limited
texture cache which could only hold textures of small dimensions and reduced
colour in depth that had to be stretched to cover larger in-game surfaces.
Eventually due to its storage media limitations many third-party publishers
that previously supported Nintendo’s past consoles would reduce or stop
publishing games. In fact the most successful titles of the N64 came from
first/ second party studios.
The GameCube game console was released by Nintendo in Japan
on September 2001, November 2001 in North America, May 2002 for Europe and
Australia.As part of the sixth generation of gaming, the Nintendo GameCube
competed with the Sega Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
Game Cube’s greatest features were using optical discs as
its primary storage medium and compared to the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, the
GameCube used miniDVD-based discs instead of full-size DVDs. Therefore it does
not have the DVD-Video playback functionality of the PlayStation 2 and Xbox
systems and couldn’t play CDs as a part of this. It became the first Nintendo console outside
Japan to support online play collaborating with the Nintendo GameCube Broadband
Adapter and Modem Adapter and allowed to the Game Boy Advance to access
exclusive features of certain games or to use the portable system as a
controller for the Game Boy Player.
Majora's Mask was released in April 2000 and uses the same
3D game engine as the previous game Ocarina of Time. It added a time-based concept
which Link relives the events of three days as many times as needed to complete
the game's objectives. The gameplay changed significantly eith a time-limit
feature and using masks to transform into creatures that hold unimaginable
abilities whilst containing a motion-blur in some part of the gameplay. However
the game deals with darker emotional themes like death, tragedy and an impending
doom. It’s now available on N64, Game Cube and Virtual Console.
Virtual Console is an online service of the Wii Shop Channel
and Nintendo eShop, allowing players to
purchase and download games and other software for the Wii and Nintendo’s 3DS .
. It launched on November 19th 2006 for the Wii, June 6th2011 for the 3DS and will be re-launched on
November 18th 2012
Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages were simultaneously released
on February 27, 2001 in Japan, May 14, 2001 in North America, and October 5,
2001 in Europe exclusively for the Game Boy Colour and interacted using
passwords or a Game Link Cable because after one game had been completed, the
player was given a password that allowed the other game to be played as a
sequel; like Oddworld’s Abe games. Ninetndo collaborated with Flagship in the
development if both games, experimenting with porting the original ‘The Legend
of Zelda’ to the Game Boy Colour. Oracle of Seasons was more of an
‘action-packed’ genre compared to Oracle of Ages which was in fact mostly about
puzzles.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past & Four Swords is
an action-adventure game released on December 2, 2002 in North America, and on
March 14 and March 28 in 2003 in Japan and Europe and Australia; co-developed
by Nintendo and Capcom, published for Game Boy Advance as the ninth installment
in The Legend of Zelda game series. The actual game contains modified parts of
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past that was released for the NES and
created an original multiplayer-only game titled Four Swords. It was later
released on September 28th 2011 for the DSI including new features
such as single player mode and more areas.
Wind Waker released for the Nintendo GameCube in Japan on
December 13, 2002, in North America on March 24, 2003, in Europe on May 2, 2003
and in Australia on May 7, 2003. The game is set on a group of islands in a
vast sea, making an instant difference to the other games in the series. In the
game, Link struggles against his nemesis, Ganondorf, for the control of an
ancient relic known as the Triforce. Throughout the game Link spends a lot of
the time sailing between lands and searching in dungeons/temples to gain the
necessary power to defeat the antagonist Gandondorf, whilst searching for his
younger sister Aryll. A lot of gameplay is based on its previous series Ocarina
of Time and Majora’s Mask, as an added feature the gamer must learn as Link how
to use and control the wind with a baton called Wind Waker (hence the name)
This helps in sailing and floating in the air.
The next game released was Four Swords Adventures for the
Game Cube,again, which released in 2004 in Japan and America, and January 2005
in Europe. Based on the handheld Four Swords it focused on level-based and
multiplayer gameplay containg 24 levels and a map screen; there is no
connecting ‘over world’ unlike the other game series. For multiplayer features,
each player must use a GBA system linked to the Nintendo Game Cube using a
certain cable for this. It also contained two gameplay modes, these were:
·Hyrulean Adventure- where the plot and gameplay
are parallel to some of the previous game series.
·Shadow Battle- which multiple Links battle other
players.
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap is the twelfth game in
The Legend of Zelda series developed by Capcom, with Nintendo watching the
development process. It released entirely for the GBA hand held console in 2004
in Japan and Europe and 2005 in North America and Australia. It’s known to be
the third Zelda game that involves the legend of the Four Sword, expanding on
the story of Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures. We meet a new character, who’s
a magical, talking cap named Ezlo who can shrink Link to the size of the
Picor-a thumb-sized race that live in Hyrule. It was named the 20th best Game
Boy Advance game in an IGN feature!
Twilight Princess was originally developed for the Game Cube
but instead released as the first Zelda game on the Wii, and then only later in
December 2006on the Nintendo GameCube. Compared to the Game Cube, the Wii
presents a ‘reverse world’ where everything is in the east whilst on the Game
Cube it’s in the West. This was to make Link right-handed so it looks more
natural to the Wii gamer, whereas in the other games Link is actually
left-handed.
In the game Hyrule is threatened by a mysterious force
called the ‘Twilight Realm’, an elder version of Link desperately struggles to
clear the troubles caused by this. Upon entering the realm he’s transformed
into a wolf which changes during gameplay. Twilight Princess finally features
horseback transportation and mounted battle scenarios, including boss battles.
It became noted the game had an ‘adult’ like theme to it due to the graphics
becoming more detailed in comparison to the cel-shading during Wind Waker.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass was released after
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the Wii and before The Legend of
Zelda: Spirit Tracks for the Nintendo DS. It’s an action-adventure game
published for the Nintendo DS, being released in Japan in June 2007, in North
America, Australia, and Europe in October 2007. Due to being the first Zelda DS
game the graphics were 3D cel-shaded with an overhead camera perspective. It
taken advantage of the Nintendo DS features for controls which including the
touchscreen and microphone and the Wi-Fi Connection for online play, allowing
people to play against other players.
Phantom Hourglass’s story
follows that of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, focusing on Link journeying
to save his friend Tetra from the story's antagonist, Bellum, with the help of
Captain Linebeck and his ship; the S.S. Linebeck.
The next Legend of Zelda for the DS was The Legend of Zelda:
Spirit Tracks and it released in December 7, 2009 in North America and December
11, 2009, in the UK. During the game 'spirit tracks' are actually railroads
which disappear without a trace due to Zelda’s chancellor’s evil magic;
extracting the princess’s spirit from her body. Zelda and Link go to the
'Spirit Tower' to find out how to revive the spirit tracks and defeat the
antagonists, who’ve stolen her body for the resurrection of the Demon King.
They use a modified engine that was used in Phantom Hourglass and for the first
time in the series, they’ve allowed the gamer to control both Link & Zelda during
the quest.
Nintendo DS is a hand-held console first released on
November 21, 2004. It’s special features are the use of two separate LCD
screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, closed within a clamshell design,
similar to the Game Boy Advance SP. The console also promotes a built-in
microphone and supports wireless standards allowing players to interact with
each other within short range, or online with the Wi-Fi Connection service.
On March 2, 2006 in Japan,
Nintendo released the Nintendo DS Lite, which is a slimmer, smaller and lighter
version of the original DS later being released in North America, Europe, and
Australia in June 2006. The DSi however, possesses more powerful hardware than
the original DS, including a faster CPU and more RAM. Unlike previous models it
doesn’t contain a slot for GBA games because this has been taken for the use of
SD memory cards. On November 21, 2009, the same company also released the
Nintendo DSi XL which featured higher screens than any DS model.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D’s genre is an
action-adventure released on June 16, 2011 in Japan, June 17, 2011 in Europe,
June 19, 2011 in North America and June 30, 2011 in Australia. It features the
original version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time mirrored some of the
rearranged dungeons taken from the Master Quest version of the game, along with
updated graphics and added 3D effects. As of July 2012, the game has sold over
one million units in the U.S. and 2.68 million worldwide!
Skyward Sword is the sixteenth entry in the Legend of Zelda
series. It was released in all regions in November 2011, using MotionPlus of
the Wii for sword-fighting, with a studied Wii Remote pointing system used for
targeting enemies in the distance or high in the sky. Skyward Sword’s game plot
is set in the earliest Zelda continuity, preceding The Legend of Zelda: The
Minish Cap. It follows an incarnation of the series protagonist Link, who’s
raised in a society above the clouds known as Skyloft. After his closest childhood
friend, Zelda, is swept into the land below the clouds by demonic forces, Link
does whatever it takes to save her traveling between Skyloft and the surface
below while battling the dark forces of the self-proclaimed "Demon
Lord", Ghirahim.
The Wii is a home
games console released on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console,
the Wii competed with the Xbox 360 the PlayStation 3. As stated the console
targets a broader demographic than that of the two others. In the first quarter
of 2012 the Wii leads the public over the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in
worldwide sales and in the US, it broke the record for best-selling console in
a single month. It features primary wireless controller, the Wii Remote, which
can be used as a handheld pointing device and detects movement in three
dimensions, whilst being able to connect to WiiConnect24, which enables the Wii
to receive messages and updates over the Internet while in standby/gaming mode.
Nintendo 3DS contains an auto stereoscopic device which is capable
to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any
additional accessories, whilst featuring backward compatibility with Nintendo
DS series software, including the Nintendo DSi software and now competes with
Sony PlayStation Vita handheld console. The Nintendo 3DS was released in Japan
on February 26, 2011, in Europe on March 25, 2011, in North America on March
27, 2011 and in Australia on March 31, 2011. Just like the Nintendo DS models,
a redesigned version called the Nintendo 3DS XL, was announced on June 21,
2012, featuring screens that are 90% larger than the original Nintendo 3DS just
like the DSI XL.
Compared to the first Legend of Zelda game that released in
1986 on a home-console, Namco were still releasing arcade based games. However
an arcade version could be quite costly in comparison to buying the Famicom
Disk System in the long run, plus you would no doubt have to wait for someone
to lose on the arcade game in order to play, meaning it could take a while and
you couldn’t save your progress either. Unlike the Famicom Disk System, whos
graphics wasn’t as good as today’s, they were worse on an arcade platform and
only allowed you to use a joystick and two buttons for the actions of the protagonist,
whereas the FDS had similar controls to that of the Play Station.
Although the arcade games did contain what seemed to be
‘special features’ back then, which the Zelda didn’t have until 1988 with their
second game. This feature was changing the gamer’s perspective to their
advantage. For example Genpei Toma Den was an arcade game developed by Namco
and released in 1986, in its gameplay it offered three types of action: Small
Mode, Big Mode (standard but with large characters and usually boss fights) and
Plain Mode (viewed from an overhead perspective).
Another thing compared to the first Legend of Zelda series
was the actual storyline behind Zelda, even though each one started off
differently with different Links, none of the arcade games could compare to the
protagonist risking his life to protect the princess and Hyrule by discovering
different dungeons, monsters and items. On the other arcade games were classed
as ‘simple-minded’ because the actions were very limited due to only able to
use a joy stick and two buttons. A lot of the games released were mainly
shooting games.
Initially
a compromise was made between Nintendo and Phillips in the 1990s to create a
series of games for the Phillips CD-I.However both companies failed to develop a CD-I based version from the
NES. Phillips then created games known as: Link: The Faces of Evil, Zelda: The
Wand of Gamelon, and Zelda's Adventure, which hold no influence from
Nintendo-hence why they didn’t include them in the Zelda timeline; considering
them to be in a separate, self-contained canon.
Legend of Zelda II- Still used the 2D gameplay but started
introducing RPG elements.
A Link To The Past: Returned with a top down (¾ perspective)
view
Games made for the Game Boy handheld started to increase speed
in the game, graphics started becoming clearer for the player instead of just
using blocks. Sounds were slowly developing from the occasional bleep to more
recorded sounds, such as a monster’s roar, door slamming and even sword
duelling.
During Ocarina of Time 3D graphics were introduced to the
public earning respectable reviews and was classed as one of the best games
made.
Wind Waker’s graphics became cel-shaded because the target
audience was aimed at children more than teenagers.
Four Swords became one of the first multiplayer Zelda games
when it was created for the GBA.
In Twilight Princess, Nintendo strived to make the graphics
more realistic to public; speed was increased tenfold because the Wii focused
on motion-sensor meaning that the game has to incredibly responsive to the
gamer’s movements especially during sword fighting and target practice. By now
a lot of sounds were being introduced during the game making each set of music
different to place/character, whereas before a sound could be interpreted by
numerous characters during the game.
In the DS versions they adapted
the graphic style to a chibi like version, bringing in again 3D rendering
techniques.
Throughout Legend of Zelda we know the main plot is all
about rescuing Hyrule from evil forces such as Ganon and saving Princess Zelda
from the antagonists. We also know Link has to travel through countless
dungeons in order to gain needed times like a sword, shield and of course
Rupees (all except one game) to unlock the secrets of each mystery, that will
save the world! In some games like The Adventure of Link, it’s hinted a romance
between him and princess Zelda after he’s rescued her, again. During the third
game it’s based around another world other than Hyrule called ‘Dark World’
which is ran by the main antagonist Ganon.
In Ocarina of Time we witness Link being able to ride upon
his horse, Epona, fighting on horseback even during boss battles. One of the
best Zelda games I’ve witnessed is Twilight Princess which I’ve seen been
played. In this game Link must go through the Twilight realm in order to save
Hyrule from a mystic power as well as saving princess Zelda. He can change into
a wolf and can still ride around on Epona, however the game was considered ‘the
darkest Zelda’ due to its over-powering emotional themes of death and
destruction which drove away the younger target audience.
In respects to this Nintendo aimed the DS Zelda series at
the younger audience once again pulling them back into the world of Link. They
used a boat that travels around Hyrule in Phantom Hourglass and a whimsical
steam-train that’s used in Spirit Tracks, plus in this game you can also play
as Zelda to solve certain puzzles and take out enemies by using her spirit. In
Skyward Sword it allows Link to fly around on Loftwings and takes place outside
of Hyrule where Zelda is actually Link’s childhood friend.
1.Storyline: In Okami the main objective is to
retrieve 12 Celestial Brush Techniques from 12 Celestial Gods by freeing them
of evil and defeating the dark lord (Yami) as wolf with a companion known as
Issun who’s a poncle. In Twilight Princess you must rescue 4 light spirits from
evil in order to carry on through the game by collecting light beads with the
help of Midna , an Imp, also as a wolf from the Twilight Realm. Both Gods and
spirits are portrayed as animals.
Movements: Even though Link isn’t always a wolf in this
game, the movements you can get him to do are similar to Amaraterasu. They can
both dig in order to carry through the level or find treasure, both bite and
share similar fighting techniques when confronting the enemy.
However the art style and graphics of the game are
completely different. Okami is based on an old Japanese art known as Sumi-e
style which is a watercolour art. As mentioned before Twilight Princess
conisits more of a realistic 3D graphics because even though it was meant for
the Game Cube, it released on Wii first whereas Okami was going to also go for
this style but failed due to the PS2’s limitations on texture cache and didn’t
change when the same game released on Wii not long after because it was rated
and still is rated one of the best games by IGN and Nintendo magazine.
1.Instead of the graphics being focused on the
characters more than the background, the devlopers have decided to change this
so that the backdrop is more detailed.
Based after Skyward Sword?
The Wii-U has a larger ram than PS3 or Xbox 360 and is
supposed to beat them at anything possible including wi-fi/EE/3G connectivity-
something Nintendo never really focused on.
Hi Peeps!
So on Friday we will be looking at cutscences in games and why the graphics are so much better than the actual gameplay (CGI rules!) So I thought I would make an AMV of all the games I've played/want to play- MUWAHAHAAHA. I own nothing so no flagging :)
Yeah video here is from my Youtube account so beware =^^=
By looking at the three main topics that decide whether a
gaming company will live or surrender to its opponents and the public, it gives
us and maybe those in the gaming section an idea on what to think during the
creation of the gaming brief, and before development even starts. This would
then lead to fewer lawsuits, closure of games and less people feeling as though
they’re being discriminated against- making the gaming world a better place to
be.
In our Monday lesson (Gaming Platforms) we've recently been handed out an assignment that contains a presentation on Legend Of Zelda series and it's gaming platforms.
(My notes on this will be out after my presentation has been given)
Before starting this assignment I had never played any Zelda games in my life, I heard great praise about them but I think at plenty of times in my life I was obessed with Spyro The Dragon series and no doubt Okami later on in life. Anyways I brought myself Spirit Tracks (second DS Legend Of Zelda ) It's not a bad game although I did get annoyed because I forgot to save my progress and well- had to repeated the darn thing! I think after finishing the presentation I really wanted to buy Twilight Princess because it had similarties to Okami and as an added bonus you could ride horseback.
Although I do know you can do this on Ocarina of Time but Twilight Princess looked cooler =^^=
Released :Novemeber 2006
Available on : Wii and Gamecube
Rated : 12 for fantasy violence/ horror
Personal Rating: 12
Twilight Princess revolves around an Ordon Villager who resides in the land Hyrule, Link at first, starts helping the villagers with ordinary tasks such as rounding goats, summoning hawks from the sky to either destroy a behive or rescue a baby cradle from a monkey. Saving a cat by fishing and simply destroying pumpikins and rocks to collect 30 rupees in order to gain a sligshot; entertaining the village children. It's here you discover how to ride Epona, use the lock on target for the sligshot and sword, climb and toss a goat. The trouble starts by one of the village children going missing on Link's day off and will lead you to the Dark Temple's entrance later on in the game. It's there you rescue the girl and the female monkey who will help you later on. One of Link's childhood friend's does take your horse to clean a slight leg wound giving you a scolding in the process, once you get through a tuneel and talk her over into letting you have your horse back to go to Hyrule, minions of Ganondorf appear and kidnap the girl and Colin the little boy knocking you out cold. Link then gets taken into the Twilight Realm and transformed into a wolf.
Waking up Link discovers he's a prisioner in one of Hyrule's dungeons and escapes with the help of Midna, an Imp, together they manage to get back to Ordon Village which is yet to be swarmed in darkness. The objectives here are to get a shield and sword using wolf techniques:
~sensing for holes and spirits
~dig- (similar to Okami)
After that you find out the Twilight Realm is slowly taking over Hyrule because they've captured the four spirits of Light. Going to the second form of Light, that shows features similar to a Tanuki, it takes you to a cutscene of these demonic creatures who've taken the Light source away from the creatures and you must restore this to all four in order to progress further.
~Sadly this is where I've gotten too :(
Reasons as to why I like it is definately because of the graphics compared to Spirit Tracks and not to mention it looks a lot more realistic than a chibi style. Second of all is the game plot behind Twilight Princess and it's gameplay because it continously wants me to proceed further and further to the points where I've forgotten to see to my dogs- it's that gripping! Then I suppose it's amazing features of summoning a hawk and not to mention the horse-back riding combat as well, it does look as though you are riding Epona when your not and the motion cycles of just about everything in the game is fluent which is an added bonus there!
Oh word of advice! When you come to get more oil for your latern make sure you have 20 rupees otherwise if like me you accidently took the oil, the bird will never forgive you and continously peck at you screaming your thief even though you try to pay him back after accidently stealing his goods- oh and dont fill your milk jar with oil! I thought I was being clever there but I've now made the jarn useless :(
Personally I feel as though there's a huge influence from Okami in a few situations although I'm only at the beginning of the game. First off if controlling Linki as a wolf, the main protagonist in Okami is Amaterasu who's in wolf form and you can control her. Second is being able to dig holes in order to finde treasure or go through buildings- Okami digs to also find treasure but to allow plants to surface so they can blossom and receive points. One of the main storylines in Twilight Princess is the revival of the four Light Gods whereas in Okami you must revive the 12 Celestial Gods in order to recieve brush techniques- so yeah those are my few similarties between the two. One thing I would like in Okami is to steal the merchant's goods just like you can in Twilight Princess :)
I would recommend this game to any fans of the LOZ, Okami, Pokemon , Sonic and RPG gamers purely and simply it's one of the best games yet that have caught my attention. However for those with a younger audience that's prone to night terrors of any sort- don't let them play this. They have actually said the game Twilight Princess is more of an adult game because the emotional themes and game display involved, which could be why they released a chibi version of the LOZ series on DS to regain a younger target audience in 2006.
Hiro is the main antagonist in the story Elemental Wolves,
being Faith’s Uncle he sought to destroy her at a young age along with her
mother and farther Zora and Kushina Little who did perish. He follows the dark
acts and at that time is the last remaining Element Seeker before Faith, his
guardians at first are Cai (darkness wolf) Hei Lei (dragon) and Mids (horse)
What
He’s the last Element Seeker before Faith and her Uncle as well
as Zora’s brother. Hiro is known as the ‘Black Destined’ purely and simply he’s
not the darkest character in the series but follows under the Dark Lord’s
orders, however he doesn’t appear in this part of the story.
Where
Born in Crystal Dynasty and raised alongside Zora who were
both brought up by their farther because their mother died at childbirth. Zora
was given the power to befriend animals and turn into a wolf whilst Hiro had
the opposite. Easily he could control the elements but could only shapeshift
into a mythical equine. Although when he started to commit his sins, his form
soon changed into a black unicorn covered in skeleton armour much like a
dragon’s.
When
His birthday is 27/10/1965 born on a blood red moon- symbol
of darkness dwelling, whilst Zora was borna year later on 18/08/1966
Why/ How
Hiro was born on a blood red moon which was a symbol of
darkness to the people living in Crystal Dynasty. His mother and farther raised
him in amongst the palace walls constantly teaching him the wrongs from rights,
combat and spells. When Zora was born Hiro couldn’t remember his mother dying
because he was only a year old, however because Zora reminded their farther of
their mother, the farther paid more attention to Zora than Hiro. This led Hiro
to escaping the palace walls at the age of 18 in order to commit suicide.
He tries desperately to drown himself in the rapids and is
sudden saved by a mysterious figure who tells him about how mother is died.
Hiro felt nothing other than revenge and anger swearing himself and his
servicesto the Dark Lord promising him
the throne.
Hiro never returned after that and allowed his farther to
pass away through old age. The day after Faith is born he sends Zora’s wolf
(Yuki) to kill the girl whilst leading a war against Zora and the citizens of
Crystal Dynasty, after waiting for a while he storms back to the palace killing
Kushina and faced off against Zora who hid Faith. After finding out minutes
later Zora died and Yuki was now on the run with Faith to save her, he sends
his army to capture and kill Yuki who teleports Faith into the real world
giving the wolf the curse of immortality.
DO NOT STEAL THIS CHAPTER (although I dont think anyone would because it's rubbish) BECAUSE IT'S PART OF MY STORY!!!~ thanks peeps! =^^=
Elemental Wolves by Eillisha Buccheri
Chapter ? : Memoirs of the Fallen
Yuki slowly arisen from his deep slumber upon a bed of
malleable blankets, his left paw supported by small wooden splint hidden
beneath the wispy ashen bandages. Two-toned rose eyes sluggishly forced
themselves open, albino ears nervously flicked back and forth twitching at the
slightest sound of the familiar voices outside the boxed room. Slightly putting
pressure on his front paws, the canis lupis growled in annoyance at searing
pain surging through his hopefully not broken ankle.
“Nice to see your awake”
Soft steps padded across from a nearby corner followed by
radiating warmth.
“Nice to hear a welcoming voice” commented the wolf.
“That’s my speciality Yuki” it commented.
“Now now let’s not get hasty Dreyer” The ghost phoenix
proudly stood in front of Yuki, eyes gazing on the appendage.
“You should be able to put pressure on it in a couple days’
time” she stated.
“You done this?” questioned Yuki. Dreyer shook her head,
eyes meeting with her best friend’s gaze before turning them towards a shoji
screen. The room around them illuminated with candles from every angle,
barricading them in a slight semi-circle half way across the apartment. It was
cosy for a solemn soul, one who liked the odd piece of company which is what
Yuki is. A couple of weapons laid dormant near the exit along with some scrolls
a few books. She had to admit reading was not an animalistic thing, yet credit
where credit’s due the pallid wolf always had his big nose stuck in a book- or
used to for that matter.
“No” the phoenix replied. “Faith and Itachi helped but
something didn’t seem right” The canis lupid tilted his head slightly, eyebrows
furrowed in concentration. Dreyer copied her partner’s features. “What’s up
with you?”
“What do you mean something didn’t seem right?” questioned
Yuki. Dreyer shrugged unaware of the current situation.
“Well I don’t know…” she hesitated slightly, observing the
wolf’s demeanour. “Her aura didn’t look right; it was red like she wanted to
let something out, anger? I don’t quite know” Yuki closed his eyes for minute
before attempting to arise again.
“But then she’s been busy riding Yangxin and coping with her
training and that Itachi lad- ya know real typical teenage angst moments”
Dreyer softly breathed a low tune stopping the wolf in his tracks.
“What happened, Yuki? What aren’t you telling me? Come on
you know if I have a problem I tell you- spill the beans!” Yuki sighed,
beautiful pink orbs locked on Dreyer’s lithe form, her translucent body lit by
the nearby golden flickers of light. She pressed on, curious now of what had
gone off.
“It’s not every day I see our fearless leader being carried
by Baowu and Joey now is it?” That hit a nerve.
“Dreyer” his voice quivered slightly, hiding away what
seemed to be an impending doom, confusing the young phoenix further. “Spear… he
ambushed me when I went off to hunt that day”. Flashbacks of that day swamped
his teenage mind; memoirs of facing up to that slimy red dragon made his
stomach twist regrettably, the words of truth and acceptance about the incident
danced around until all he could hear was his own voice reiterating.
‘Ha you don’t think
that pathetic excuse for a seeker will find out the truth!” growled the crimson
dragon, his body tense with excitement of the coming battle.
“She’s not pathetic”
snarled Yuki still fixated in a defensive position, hackles raised and pearly
white teeth bared in warning. “Faith is everything you’ll ever be! She’s a
bloody good Seeker that has surpassed her farther-“
“Shut it” spat Spear
“- and she will become
rightful heir to this land, Faith is the princess of Crystal Dynasty. Faith is
your ruler and mine too” The dragon instantly lunged at the wolf aiming for his
legs, Yuki launched himself into the air above narrowly missing the dragon’s
attack before releasing an insignificant sphere of lightning upon the serpent.
Countering it with an equal amount of fire, the dragon smirked as Yuki was
forced through the clammy air landing harsh along a family of piercing, jagged
rocks that relentlessly penetrated his sensitive flesh. Yuki immediately jumped
back up into his fighting stance ignoring the agonising that spread across his
right flank, like a dangerous disease taking hold over a person’s body.
Lowering the front of his body down to the ground, paws outstretched feeling
the dirt writhe underneath his claws, eyes knitted in pure concentration of
tactics. The dragon charged over to the wolf letting loose an ear-splitting
battle cries of harsh flutes being simultaneously blown on the highest note
possible.
Yuki howled in unison
over- powering the element of music himself, all the while waiting for the
earth to respond to his call. Spear discharged an intimate fiery burst of
flames towards where the ashen wolf lay.In a spilt second the inferno clashed against ligneous ancient roots
from below, sending sudden sparks across the mountain top, alighting tiny
patches of grass that were scattered anonymouslyaround them as the vegetation twisted in vain
from dragon’s flame. Jumping over burning stems, Yuki spun in mid-air lashing
his twenty tails against his enemy’s right eye. Spear stumbled back in mixture
of pain and alarm, rearing up on his hind legs, wings outstretched in an
attempt to terrorize the canis lupis.
Smirking at the failed
attempt and knowing the scaly serpent had a blind spot; Yuki bounced back up
into the air above Spear’s head.
“Kai!” he commanded.
Liquid from the nearby waterfall sprouted into long streams that danced around
canine willingly awaiting his commands. Thrusting a paw towards the dragon
below him, Yuki observed images the fluid moulded into. First a formation
eagles diving for Spear like a fish before crashing into the earth next to him,
rapidly transforming into a pack of wolves. In amongst the gorging wolves the
body of the dragon disappeared into nothing more than smoke and ash. Silently
Yuki landed amongst khaki shrubs that concealed his existence perfectly.
Unexpectedly a vermillion tail holding yolk yellow feathers collided with the
wolf’s side, throwing the canis lupis across the edge of the rock-strewn cliff
where water freely cascaded into treacherous rapids.
Yuki whimpered in
shock as he hastily clawed scorched terrain below him, desperately hoping he
could cling on to something- anything; just as long as he didn’t fall.
Malicious sinister laughs ricocheted across the mountains previously before
drowning amongst the rushing water that descended below. Menacing golden orbs
flared with pride and smugness gazing upon the weaker species. A bulbous
encrusted paw bitterly landed on top of the wolf’s left paw slightly pressing
weight against it. Spear lowered leisurely lowered his scaly head glaring at
the ashen canis lupis who held that impending stare with his own. Yuki growled
at self-satisfied smirk his opponent wore, feeling his fur slightly rustle from
Spear’s breathing sending icy chills down his spine.
Little did either
know, Faith concealed herself behind a prehistoric tree trunk taking in every
aspect of the battle behind her; confused at why Spear, a guardian of Crystal
Dynasty was attacking her mentor ruthlessly without an excuse to explain his
actions. Yangxin nickered anxiously also witnessing the scene displayed before
him, wanting nothing more than to gallop off into the distance and join Shun in
the pasture, nibbling that sweet, oozing, fresh grass in the beautiful summer
evening.
“Tell me traitor, if
Faith is supposed to be the princess why hasn’t she banished you- or is she a
traitor as well?” The grip on Yuki’s paw tightened making the wolf grimace.
“She doesn’t know” he
breathed out in shallow gasps, his body giving slight spasms.
“Oh is that right?
Tell me then why did you murder her parents allowing that scum, Hiro, to
massacre not only the rest of my family, but hers and your pack of flea-bitten
wolves family as well?” Spear forced all his pressure onto the left paw,
twisting it forcefully until a sickening crack shadowed by discordant scream
reverberated throughout the mountain range.
Faith’s stomach
summersaulted at Spear’s interrogation setting loose a rampage of questions
upon her innocent mind- did Yuki kill her parents and why? The sounds of Yuki
voice whimpering brought her back to the real world.
“I-I didn’t know I was
being used, I-I wanted my parents back..I was only a cub-“
“Silence!” screeched
Spear. Without warning, Yuki spat out a fearsome jet of fire once again
stunning Spear and making him free his grip from the wolf’s shattered paw,
letting Yuki solemnly becoming entwined against the rushing current, exposing
his form to the nearby rapids allowing himself the pleasure of slipping into an
ecstasy of darkness.
“Yuki?” The ashen wolf snapped out of his daze and eyes
Dreyzer. He cleared his throat from the oncoming lump that began to form.
“Fetch Faith for me”
“Yuki?” questioned the ghost phoenix.
“Please Dreyzer?” She nodded and effortlessly flew through
the shoji screen to find Faith. Not long after her departure, the screen
slightly slid across letting a decent amount of light scatter amongst the
candle lit room; a silhouette stood still between the threshold of the hallway
and Yuki’s room.
“You required to see me Sensei” The bowed graciously letting
her brunette locks tumble across her petite shoulders towards tatami mat
flooring. Yuki wagged his twenty tails in acceptance of her presence.
“Come sit by me Faith” Faith stood straight again for a
second and cautiously moved towards the wolf. Yuki watched her intently,
patting a cushion for her to park herself on. Instead the female kneeled down
in front of the wolf, questioning spheres locked on his cherry eyes.
“Is there something you wish to tell me?” started Yuki.
Without considering the outcome, Faith hurriedly shook her head.
“Don’t lie to me student” growled Yuki. Faith bit back her tongue, venomous
thoughts flooding her mind.
“You want to know what Spear was talking about don’t you?”
“Hai” she whispered silently. Yuki gazed upon nearby candles
not wanting to face his own student’s stare.
“Well let’s start from when you were born” Faith nodded
eagerly. “As you know, you’re an Element Seeker and your role is to understand
and control the 14 elements of life and befriend nature in any form” Again the
girl nodded.
“Before you were born, your Dad who was the greatest ruler
of this kingdom, rescued me from your Uncle’s monsters who murdered my parents.
Zora raised me like a child and taught me about the elements as I am teaching
you now. He and your Mother looked after me well and in the end I became one of
the best knight’s under your Dad’s rule along with Spear. However one night I
was on my way to the palace returning from a mission when I stumbled upon Hiro.
He asked me to join him willingly in the understanding my parents would be
brought back to life. In the end I left him and told Zora what had happened.
He told me it wouldn’t be possible and at first I agreed.
Months passed by and I couldn’t help but wonder was Hiro really lying? So I
snuck out at certain time in the day seeking Hiro’s offer. Your Uncle is a very
clever man in the dark arts, he shown me how he could manipulate the body of a
living creature by resurrecting them under his control. Then I started to doubt
Zora’s words after seeing Hiro. Then you were born Faith, I remember your
mother Kushina holding you tight against her and Zora hug you both with pride.”
“But why did you murder them Yuki?” growled Faith
“Patience Faith, when you were old enough to be left alone
for a few hours, I took charge of that job and used to give you piggy back
rides. Sometimes we would sit out under the cherry blossom trees watching the
world drift by, other times I led you round the stables and let you stroke the
equines there. But I still visited Hiro and not long after that Spear ratted me
out. Your farther banned me from being near you and I couldn’t help but resent
him.
So I ran away before the night of the Great War and joined
forces with Hiro. My orders were to destroy your parents and I would have my
parents and still look after you. On the night of the war I watched as Zora’s
forces succumbed to the darkness. After a while I began to question where your
parents were so I fled to the palace. When I got there your mother had been
murdered by Hiro and your farther was slowly dying. He smiled when he seen me,
stroked my face and revealed you to me. He told me as a last wish to transport
you to the other world and stay there with you and that’s when I seen his
memories of Hiro trying to kill you.
Instantly I ran out of the palace with you past the Forest
of Miracles and even further than the Temple of the Peaceful Dragon with Hiro
trailing behind us. The only way I could get you to the other world was by
starlight and I did. You landed near a couple who took you in and raised you
until you were 10 before they died and I was given the curse of immortality as
a punishment. Since you landed on Earth Faith, I watched your every move
waiting for the day you turned 16 and the portal to Crystal Dynasty would open
once fate brought you to the wolves. Now your job is to over-throw the King and
take your rightful place as princess of Crystal Dynasty”
During my story deevelopment lesson we were asked to create a character preferably for a game we want to create later on. To be honest I created a story 3 years ago now and had a lot of the work deleted by my old laptop so since then I've been trying to re-write it. Sadly since I started my GCSE's it's been put on hiatus until now. So because we had to great a protagonist I used Faith who's the heroine in Elemental Wolves- please bear with me her picture will follow soon.
Faith Little
Who
Faith Little is a teenage girl who first of, roams the
streets of Tokyo, Japan as a street orphan searching for a next meal by pick
pocketing or looking in bins or empty tables in restaurants- never stealing
food off people though. She’s then transport by 3 people to a Sekkusu house and
manages to unlock a passage way, leading her to 14 wolves.Escaping from the Sekkusu house unharmed,
Faith and the Elemental Wolves go back to Crystal Dynasty to find out her real
self and heritage.
What
Faith is an Element Seeker, keeper to learning all the
different elements portrayed by 15 wolves as well as protecting the nature in
this parallel universe and bringing peace during against the war: All Against
All
Where
She originally is born in Crystal Dynasty but to protect her
from her Uncle’s destruction upon the realm, Zora her farther, deports his baby
girl to Japan via Starlight saving a memory of himself and his wife so that
when she returns, they would be there to see her and tell her the truth about
her, still only as a memory.Crystal
Dynasty is a parallel world consisting of fantasy, animals and a few humans
that choose to live in an olden way, even though date and timing is the same as
modern day world.
When
In Earth the date and time are as now meaning that Crystal
Dynasty is the same. Faith is 16 years of age so she was born on 18/12/1995 in
Crystal Dynasty-being transported to Shrine in Japan where a couple took her
in, previous before their death 10 years later.
Why
Faith having more knowledge on how to survive the streets
she uses this to make decisions in Crystal Dynasty. Having had no one to
socialise with (shut away memories of her foster parents) Faith doesn’t become
attached to people and closes herself from contact because people look down on
her or with lust because she’s a lonely teenager walking the streets. This then
means her view on love is abysmal, hence why in Crystal Dynasty she bonds
easily with the wolves as her pack mates, her horse as a friend and Itachi (the
boy) as an enemy at first.
How
The story towards the end, her mother Kushina takes Faith
back to a war between her Uncle (Hiro) and her parents. In that memory, Faith
finds out about Yuki’s past (the wolf who wields all elements) her heritage
being the Princess of Crystal Dynasty and the face her Uncle Hiro is a traitor
trying to imprison all those who stand against him and the darkness. Before
this time people also find out about Itachi, Tsume, Cai, Hei Lei, Mids and her
foal Star.
(There were supposed to be pictures with this but sadly my laptop failed to complete this :( )
History of Okami and the Game Team
Okami was first released into the United Sates and Japan on
Play Station 2 format in 2006 by Capcom, later releasing the game in Europe a
year later. The producer Atsushi Inaba
created Okami to give the public a view of some Japanese culture, beliefs and
artwork. In doing so he hoped it would gain more of a public attention than
other games which were on the market, such as the Spyro The Dragon games. He’s
also famous for other games: Viewtiful
Joe and God Hand. Its director is Hideki Kamiya who’s also employed by Capcom
and the developer Clover Studios, who are also responsible for the release of
Okami. Kamiya designed both Resident Evil games and Devil May Cry. He continues
to work with Clover Studios who is now known as Platinum Games.
As you can see here, there was a massive difference
between the two formats in graphics. Even though the story is still
considered to be one of the best ‘grippers’ the wii/ Play Station 3 version
can and does steal the target audience’ attention.
However Clover Studios was shut down, not
long before the Wii platform release which offered the same storyline as the
Play Station 2 version, yet the graphics were altered and made very clear to
the gamer.Still the Wii format of Okami ws developed and
produced by Ready At Dawn, Tose and once again Capcom, releasing the game in
2008 for America and Europe and 2009 for Japan. This game’s distrubutor is
Activision (an American Company) who’s very well known through other games like
Spyro The Dragon, Guitar Hero Series and Call Of Duty. It’s said a Play Station
3 format is soon to be released later in 2012, last year Capcom brought out a
sequel to this wonderful game known as Okamiden which is supposed to be a
‘chibi’ and next generation version of the main characters.
This
was released in September 2010 in Japan and in March 2011
for
America and Europe on DS format.
The Japanese DS design for Okamiden, released on 30th
September 2010.
Genre of Okami and Its
Competitors
The game itself is believed to be aimed at people wanting to
know or follow the Japanese customs in life or admire cultural art rather than
a manga/ anime style. A lot of people who’s into fantasy, art of any kind,
nature enthusiasts or even ‘wolf’ admirers play this game also. Genres are
mainly fantasy, combat and problem solving. The rating (PEGI) is counted as a
12+ or ‘T’ (ESRB) for:
·Blood and Gore
·Crude Humour
·Fantasy Violence
·Suggestive Themes
·Use of Alcohol and Tobacco
Even though this game is rated for Teens
or 12+, younger audiences play this as it’s become the crossing from
‘family-type’ games (Mario) to older or more violent one (Resident Evil or
Assassins Creed)
During this time a lot of Playstation
2 games were being released daily, increasing the difficulty to attract people
and tempt them into buying Okami. A lot of the games were sequels of previous
one, manga/anime, films or created based from the public’s wants in the target
audience age groups. Some of these are:
ü
Okami battling his nemesis, Orochi, who swears to bring
destruction, pain and misery to the Earth
Hack Series
üAstro
Boy
üBleach
üDance
Dance Revolution Series
üFinal
Fantasy Series
üFIFA
Series
üKingdom
Heart Series
üPokemon
üResident
Evil
üSouth
Park
üSpyro
The Dragon
üTeenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles
üXiaolian
Showdown
üZombie
Hunters
Most of these games were produced and distributed by other
companies like Atari, Tamsoft, Konami, Bottlerocket, Comedy Central, Sega,
Square Einx , Matrix, Sierra and many more alike.
Okami's
Gameplay
The gamer controls the main protagonist (Okami) through an
‘olden’ and whimsical version of Japan which is shown through various types of
watercoloured, woodcut and ink-illustrated art also known as ‘Sumi-e’ style and
other styles that were created by China during the Tang Dynasty, giving off an
authentic feel to the game making it more personal and realistic (in a way) to
the gamer.
Some of the games mentioned above, that were released
(or its previous sequels) in 2006
Another main character that’s involved
throughout the plot is a tiny person, who proclaims he’s an artist and has an
eye for women. Issun, as he’s called, rides with Okami dropping hints of where
to go and what to do, to the person playing the game. This allows the gamer to
explore different parts of Okami’s world, fighting against evil using a variety
of ways to combat. This can include weapons motivated by the Imperial Regalia
of Japan. These are:
ØThe Reflector
ØThe Rosaries
ØThe Glaive
During fighting stages, the gamer is on a
timer that asses how well the person has fought the enemies. This also follows
on how much Okami has been wounded, skills used during the battle and the
dependency on your Celestial Brush which will be mentioned later. At the end of
the fight with numerous and different foes, a screen will appear showing how
well you’ve done in the vision of a Sakura tree’s (Cherry tree) growth. A full
blossomed tree being exceptionally brilliant and a seedling being poor, going
on how well you’ve competed depends on how much money and ink replacements you
can achieve once the enemy’s dead. Sometimes the opponent drops valuable
objects during the skirmish; this can be later used upon a market person who
happily allows people to trade their precious relics and pottery for other
useful objects. This can be holy bones to keep Okami alive, mermaid coins to
transport the player from one place to another, bags of food to feed animals
gaining praise or Exorcism Slips that can harm the opposition tenfold.
Okami feeding a fox (animals are found in most places
during the game) a fox can be fed with a meat or fish bag. Other bags of
food are herbs and seeds.
The greatest gimmick in Okami is the
fact players can draw their‘advantages’
to defeat the enemy further or use the special moves to progress further into
the game. Celestial techniques drawn by the Celestial brush Okami uses allows
people to do this.
However as the game goes on the player meets each one of the
Celestial Brush Gods who teach the gamer
a new technique to use during the game, on the other hand the brush can’t
continuously be used as the ink supply runs out and takes time to re-fill-
making sure the player doesn’t become dependent on the brush and instead learns
how to use combos in combat, giving more of a gaming pleasure to the player.
When characters are talking it’s easy enough to read and
takes the time for all people of different abilities to read as well, meaning
once you’ve finished one version of the person’s speech all you have to do is
click for the next. The font itself seems to be something like Serif with a
size of maybe 14-18 in the colour black; tips of what to do next are in
crimson.
However one downside to the gameplay is sometimes loading
can take incredibly long or during battles things can become incredibly
confusing, due to some of the foes maybe being a little ‘over-designed’ so it
naturally makes it harder for the gamer to see. Other than that it is an
unusual game that kind of ‘caters’ for a lot of people’s wants in a game
earning the public’s eye ever more. A
lot of people refer Okami to The Legend Of Zelda series, basically because
there’s little references to that game. Kamiya, the director, explains “I’m a
fan of the Zelda series and during the development of Okami I’ve gained an
enormous amount of inspiration from my favourite game series, whilst using
little bits during the design of this one”
The foe above is first found in the woods and has taken
over an old man and woman’s body turning them mad. Here Okami is using the
Rosaries to destroy the victim.
Graphics and Music
Okami’s graphics was
first planned out as realistic 3D. This however
couldn’t happen because of the Play Station 2’s limitations that
would make it harder for the developers if they were to
render the game later on in life. Another drawback was down to the fact the
protagonist, is very close to nature and helping the folk who are in danger to
bring peace to ‘Nippon’. Kamiya and Inaba thought of different Medias they
could desing the characters that would make them more in tune with their
personalities and the actual game itself. The biggest inspiration was the
Chinese/ Japanese watercolour art known as Sumi-e and a wood carving art called
Ukiyo-e style. Once the graphics had been decided this is where the idea of the
Celestial Brush became real. Inaba quoted:
‘I didn’t want people just watch the fight like almost every
other game. If we can use something that allows them to play a bigger role in
the actual game it could draw more attention’
When
designing the characters the biggest problem for Okami stood the fact he looked
like someone’s pet dressed in clothes, so the designs for the hero became
numerous. Other characters (female) like Sakuya became the problem of making
them too ‘naked’ as the game goes on through to the end.
To the right is the Sumi-e style of Okami and the rest
of the crew, on the left was the initial graphics design (realistic 3D) for
the game.Comparing between the two,
the Sumi-e style had a better resolution than the other due to limitations
of the Play Station 2
design
now throughout the game.
Identical to the game itself,
composers:
·Masami Ueda
·Hiroshi Yamaguchi
·Hiroyuki Hamada
·Rei Kondo
·Akira Groves
Indented
for music to suit the same theme as the rest of the game, a Japanese style with
a naturist twist made the idea of making the soundtrack using authentic
Japanese ‘charms’ . Finally at the end of the game during credits, Ayaka
Hirahara sand one of the game’s best debuts : Reset which has won awards for
‘Best Score’ A soundtrack released amongst Japanese markets as a 5 disked set
which is now available to order online anywhere. Each piece of music relates to
the certain place or person it’s used for and at. Personal favourites are:
1.More Digging Here Bow Wow
2.Kamiki Festival
3.Reset
Okami’s Story and Characters
There are many people or creatures in the game that all play
an important role- some more than others. Most of the cast is based around
Shinto beliefs and legends like Orochi being the 8- headed serpent and Okami
being Amaterasu in wolf form protecting the people.
vOkami
Okami or known as Amaterasu/ Ammy is based off a Shinto
belief of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu. She has the power to give life and take it
away. Being the hero of the game, Okami comes across many foes and in order to
defeat them she/ he has to find 13 Celestial Gods who each grant the main
character a brush technique to use sometime during the game. A lot of people
think Okami is next generation of Shiranui who’s described as a mundane wolf
that defeated and sealed away Orochione
hundred years ago before Okami/ Ammy ever appeared on the scene. Okami is
always followed by his friend Issun- a comedy breaker.
vIssun
Issun is greatly mistaken to be a bug of
some sort when in fact he’s actually a creature called a Poncle.Poncle’s are tiny people used as Celestial
envoys and usually live in tree stumps. Issun follows Ammy around throughout
the whole of the game give little hints and tips of what to do and where to go.
He also is used for the comedy of the game giving wise cracks and having a soft
spot for beautiful women. He refers to a lot of characters through nick-names,
Ammy’s being furball.
vWaka
At the start of the game, Waka seems to
be another antagonist in Okami usually appearing where trouble about to be
caused. However Waka is another person who slightly guides Ammy through is
quest through a lot of sarcastic comments that are very useful. He does also
like to tease Issun during combat battles. Waka is Tao Master and knows another
character (Queen Himiko ) from a group called the Moon Tribe who escaped from
Orochi’s abuse. It’s later known that Waka accompanied Shiranui to the
Celestial Plains and returns there with Ammy.
vSakuya
Sakuya is a wood sprite known to be the
mother spirit of Konohana and protector of Kamiki village. She’s the one who
summons Ammy after the revival of Orochi, she needs Ammy to revive and rescue
as many other sprites as she can in order for Sakuya to reach her full power.
vCelestial Brush Gods
Altogether there is 13 Gods (including
Amaterasu) that each grants Ammy a brush technique. Amaterasu already has the
brush technique ‘Sunrise’
1.Yomigami
Master of Rejuvenation
2.Tachigami
Master of Power Slash
3.Hanagami
These are 3 masters who grant techniques:
Water lily, Vine and Bloom
4.Bakugami
Master of Cherry Bomb
5.Nuregami
Master of Water Sprout
6.Yumigami
Master of Crescent
7.Kazegami
Master of Galestorm
8.Moegami
Master of Inferno
9.Kasugami
Master of Veil of Mist
10.Kabegami
Master of Catwalk
11.Gekigami
Master of Thunderstorm
12.Itegami
Master of Blizzard
Okami starts in a place, well a
world called Nippon, where flashbacks tell of a mundane ashen wolf and a
Swordsman fight for justice, against an evil eight-headed serpent called
Orochi. Neither Shiranui nor Nagi are able to defeat Orochi during their battle
in Kamiki Village and instead seal the beast away. This however is a hundred
years before the game actually takes place. Nagi’s descendant, Susano, doesn’t
believe in ‘old legends’ and tries to prove to fellow villagers of Kamiki
Village it’s all a lie, so he breaks the demon’s seal and Orochi is allowed to
release his destruction across Nippon, by taking away life from nature and
letting his minions roam and curse the land.
Having heard this Sakuya, a wood sprite,
mother of Konohana and guardian of Kamiki Village, summons Amaterasu (known
from Shinto beliefs as a sun goddess) a reincarnation of Shiranui, asks for her
help in reviving the cursed lands and bringing forth other wood sprites so that
Sakuya’s power may grow for the greater good. Amaterasu befriends a Poncle
going by the name Issun. Issun proclaims he’s an artist and will help Ammy find
twelve other brush techniques in order for her power to grow. Soon enough Nippon
is restored to its natural surroundings.
During
the resurrection of Agata Forest, the pair meets a Tao Master called Waka, who
later hounds them into battles; Waka justifies this as testing their abilities.
First thoughts on Waka is that he’s an antagonist as he’s usually seen or
appears when something bad is about to happen, or makes sarcastic comments in
order to tease Issun when in fact they contain useful hints.
Kazegami’s star constellation
The
first Celestial Brush God Amaterasu meets is Yomigami, a master of
Rejuvenation. However in order to meet any of the Gods they appear as star
constellations, your job is to draw in the missing stars in order for them to
appear and grant Ammy their brush techniques. Towards the end of the first arc,
Ammy and Susano must rescue Susuano’s beloved Kushi, who’s Orochi’s sacrifice
or blood pact; recreating the events that started a hundred years ago. Luckily
the pair was able to defeat Orochi, on the other hand it released a blackened
spirit that carried on north across Nippon. After that Ammy and Issun voyaged
across the rest of Nippon, restoring cursed lands and helping many people who
needed their help.
Towards the end of the game Amaterasu
conquers on to find where these dark, haunting spirits are coming from only to
be brought to a wrecked ship that once travelled through stars. The vessel
resides in a frozen tundra wasteland known as Kamui where Waka reveals his past
of being in the Moon Tribe. He explains it’s a race that used the ‘Ark Of
Yamato’ (the ship) to escape from Orochi’s assult on the Celestial Plains and
tried to sail away. However unbeknown to everyone on the liner, sinister
spirits were imprisoned and destroyed all but Waka himself. This meant the boat
couldn’t carry on and instead crashed upon Nippon land.
Amaterasu on the Ark Of Yamato in Kamui
Finally
Amaterasu and Issun stumble upon the final boss known to be the vilest, twisted
and evil being in the game called Yamu. The demon shreds Ammy of her Celestial
powers making her engage in combat at a disadvantage. Issun by then takes on
his job as a Celestial Envoy and persuades all those that the duo have
befriended, pray and think of Amaterasu allowing her to regain her brush
techniques and powers defeating Yami and any other evil spirits both in Nippon
and on the Ark. At alas Issun and Ammy depart ways unwillingly, where Amaterasu
and Waka depart to the Celestial Plains together on the Ark and Issun returns
as an envoy for the next person.
Yami’s final stage when in combat with Ammy
Features In Okami
Unlike most Wii games you can’t connect
with anyone else across the internet or go into a multiplayer mode, reason
being it’s a solo game. There are not many special features apart from using
the Celestial Brush to draw killing off foes, or progressing further through
the plot. What makes it stand out is it’s graphics and a different concept of
gaming altogether by having some gruesome violence, yet containing cute or
loving clips of maybe feeding animals in order to game praise. This means Inaba
and Kamiya tried very hard to keep the target audience very open; in the hope
loads of people will play this game.
Awards
Okami won many awards over the years and is still classed as
one of the best games to have been brought out on both Play Station 2 and Wii.
National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers
üGame of the Year (2006)
üBest Animation in a Game Engine
üArt Direction in a Game Engine
üOutstanding Original Adventure Game
PlayStation Magazine
üBest Game of the Year 2006
Game Developer's Choice Awards
üBest Character Design
üInnovation Award (1 of 3 recipients)
Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association (CESA)
üAward for Excellence (Japan Game Awards 2007)
2007 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards
üArtistic Achievement
üBest Original Score
GameTrailers
üBest PS2 Game of 2006
Personal Opinion
I started playing Okami not long after I got the Wii console
for Christmas and I instantly fell in love with the whole thing. I personally
feel as though there are no flaws in the actual game but I do admit during
battles, it can get a little confusing due to a lot of detail and emphasis
placed on the foes so depending on whom you’re facing it can be hard to see
where you are. The plot itself has had me in tears due to it being very moving
and showing a lot of relationships throughout the game, plus the music fitted
very well with every aspect ok the game. I mentioned my personal favourites
above but even I like to use the audio for speed paints and my own animations.
Overall I would give this game 10/10!
Disclaimer
I do not own any of the images and found them on various
sites using Google Images. Below are websites I’ve used to find out information
as well as using experience from my gaming time on Okami (53+ hours)
