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RATING: (weak) 1 2 3 4 5 (awesome) (No Rating Assigned)
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IN BRIEF
Pros: Solid gameplay and storyline. Cons: Simple graphics. Too brief (at 20 hours). In a nutshell: A fun game, but one that is clearly targeted to the new, non-traditional, sophisticated gaming audience of PSX2. *ESRB rating: T |
FACTS
Game Title: Shadow of Destiny Platform: Playstation 2 Developer: Konami Publisher: Konami Release Date: March 6, 2001 Price: 49.99 |
THE REVIEW by Steven Kent for Gamers Today
Konami is coming out in full force this March with three ambitious PlayStation 2 games: Shadow of Destiny, Ring of Red, and Zone of the Enders. The latter two are giant robot games being released on a system that is becoming dominated by giant robots. Shadow of Destiny, on the other hand, is more original -- an adventure game in which a player helps a fairly innocuous fellow survive his own murder by traveling through time.
In some ways Shadow of Destiny is a throwback to early PC adventure games such as It Came From the Desert. Instead of placing players in a completely interactive world, Shadow of Destiny switches freely between easy to explore city maps and non-interactive computer graphic animations.
An episode may begin with Eike Kusch, the time traveling hero, who is murdered by poison or stabbing. He is given clues to learn how to avoid being killed and then sent to travel through time to save himself.
For example, when Eike is stabbed he can travel back in time, find a frying pan, and stick it under his jacket as a shield. But why doesn't Eike simply avoid the alley where he's stabbed or the bar where he's poisoned? In the world of Shadow of Destiny, each death creates a point of destiny; and while Eike can change his destiny, he cannot avoid it.
Eike's stabbing in the summer of 2001 cannot be avoided if he stays in 1902 because the clock keeps ticking and he will die if he does not return to 2001 to correct the situation. This creates an interesting dynamic as the fabric of time suddenly works in two directions. Eike's actions in the past change the look and direction of the future, and his future can come back to haunt him in the past.
As heroes go, Eike Kusch is no man of action. He reads more than he fights to uncover the secrets of alchemy. He is soft-spoken with a long blond ponytail.
For a game that is largely played through CG animations, Shadow of Destiny has surprisingly simple graphics. Konami has not tried to make photo-realistic towns or characters. It may not be the prettiest game, but there are no disappointing changes in graphic quality as the game goes from interactive to non-interactive sequences.
According to Konami, most players will solve Shadow of Destiny in less than 20 hours. So, though it is highly cinematic, it is brief. This is clearly a game that's targeted to the new, non-traditional, sophisticated gaming audience of PlayStation 2.
*For a complete explanation of ESRB ratings, check out the official ESRB Web site.
