Enslaved: Odyssey to the West - Demo Preview

It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything out of UK-based developer, Ninja Theory. You know, the people who brought you the PS3-exclusive action/adventure title, Heavenly Sword? Ring a bell? While I never played much of--and know almost nothing about it, the reception for Heavenly Sword seemed well-received at the time of its release. Now that they’re back in the saddle, I suddenly have an interest in how well Ninja Theory makes games - though they've stirred quite a ruckus lately. The latest news of the newly ‘rebooted’ DMC series being entrusted to them may prove divisive for some, but don’t let that stray you from their other new project. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West is their latest action/adventure title, and it’s actually pretty good.
 

 

Enslaved takes place about 150 years into the future, in which a massive world war has extinguished majority of human life on Earth. Robots roam the land endlessly, looking for more humans to eradicate. After his brief capture and eventual escape  with a woman named Trip (crash landing via escape pod), the protagonist Monkey finds out she has installed a slaver’s headband on his forehead whilst unconscious. The headband not only lets Trip inflict painful jolts towards Monkey whenever she wants, it is also vitally connected to her; if Trip dies, so does Monkey. This leaves him with no other choice but to fulfill her request in accompanying her home.
 

The demo immediately puts you in the heart of the action, with Monkey attempting to escape the slave ship before it crashes. As you traverse the rusting, collapsing halls of the ship, Monkey eventually finds his weapons; bits and pieces of tutorial then appear as you progress onward. Upon encountering your first enemy robot, you’re finally enabled to battle. The combat mechanics consist of you performing light and heavy attacks, stringing them together to execute combos, evading, and deflecting incoming hits from enemies. It’s a fine introduction to the gameplay, though I expect Monkey to learn more abilities in the full game.

 

 

As you make your way to the escape pods, more pieces of the ship explode and crumble away forcing you to find an alternative route. In other words, you’ll be climbing broken pipes and ledges, smoothly platforming your way towards the objective. For the most part, Enslaved is responsive and felt like I had good control of the action. Whenever I got confused on where to go next, the game was extremely helpful in pointing you to the right direction. Additionally, I felt comfortable navigating through the featured level, even doing so with relative ease.

 

Visually, Enslaved has got great looking environments and intense set pieces, featuring fragments of decaying, derelict cities with plant life occupying the empty spaces. Frame rate can be dodgy and some textures can be a little dull at times, but the game ultimately gives you a decent feel of what a post-apocalyptic world would look like.

 

 

I initially came into the demo with a lackluster view of the game. But now I think it’s safe to say the game has exceeded those expectations. Playing through the demo, the narrative is the best thing Enslaved has got going for it. It’ll be interesting to know how Monkey’s and Trip’s relationship develops throughout their journey, and has me willing to find out more. From the looks of it, Ninja theory has successfully created a pretty compelling world worth venturing into, and I’m eager to jump in at anytime.
 

Check out the demo for yourself if you’re interested, which is available on the Playstation Network in all regions as we speak. It is currently unknown when it will hit Xbox Live, though they say it will be available “soon.” Enslaved: Odyssey to the West is slated for release on October 5^th for North America and October 8^th in Europe for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

 

David Gabriel, NoobFeed