Okami

Zelda meets paint-by-numbers visuals in the most glorious way, in one of PS2's must-have titles.

	Version PS2	Developer Clover	Publisher Capcom	Genre Adventure

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By Alex Wollenschlaeger

Considering how successful the Legend Of Zelda series has been for Nintendo, it's a wonder that there haven't been more games that try to ape Link's world-saving ways. Those that have tried to do so somehow failed to include that extra something that turns a decent game into a great one, but that's not a flaw with Okami, Capcom's new PlayStation 2 game, which might just be one of the best games on the system yet.

The trademark look of the game was a side effect of the PS2's inability to create the realistic world Atsushi Inaba and his team at now-defunct Clover Studios originally wanted for the game. Unable to gather enough power to render a picture-perfect world, the developers went to the other end of the spectrum, creating a stylized, beautiful one that looks like nothing you've seen before.

From the thick lines that border lead characters Amaterasu and Issun and the rest of the affable and interesting cast to the watercolours that bring them all to life, Okami oozes style. If this is what happens in the absence of brute processing strength, the next-generation can stay in the future for a while still. And the best part: Okami's looks are only the beginning.

The overall game design will be more than a little familiar to Zelda fans but at the same time it does wonderful things with the formula. Take Amaterasu's magic paintbrush for a start. As you play through the game you'll find gods who bequeath new powers to you that are used to directly change the world you're in. Paint a simple circle and you can turn night into day (or vice versa), encourage flowers to bloom over devastated swathes of land or create lily pads to cross expanses of water. There are more than a dozen magical powers to learn on your way to the final showdown with Orochi, a powerful force that has returned to besiege Japan.

P L E A S E   V I S I T   O U R   S P O N S O R :

While Okami does borrow a lot from Link - there are even dark and light regions in Clover's game - it improves on the elfin hero's latest too, most notably in its pacing. Almost from the start you're able to start flexing Amaterasu's godly abilities, and that makes for a more endearing experiences. You're rewarded with regularity and that only helps to get you more excited about doing more to save the land from the noxious influences that have returned from the past.

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Video Coverage (See Latest Videos & Video FAQ Here)
PLEASE DO NOT DIRECT LINK TO ANY MEDIA FILE ON KIKIZO
Description	Dur.	Size	Details
Atsushi Inaba Interview Capcom development guru interview	12:30	120MB	CAM, ED, 16:9 856x480/30p 5Mbps
Okami Direct feed trailer   (PS2 - Capcom)	03:43	55MB	DF, SD, 4:3 640x480p30 2.1Mbps
Okami Trailer   (Capcom)	3.10m	31MB	DF, SD, 30 640x480 1.5Mbps