I’m sure most people have heard of this PS Vita exclusive. If not, here’s a trailer. While about 50% through the game, I was struggling with the controls and the story seemed to lack direction, after finishing the game my opinion has changed drastically. What was first frustration has now turned into admiration for the work that went into this game.
To put it simply, it’s the first game I’ve played since Panzer Dragoon that would make me want to play it again and go over the dialogue in detail to figure out all the mysteries behind the storyline. The game starts with Kat, waking up in somewhere in a city in the world of Hekseville with no memory of who she is or how she got there. Throughout the game, the story continues to become more complex as more and more characters are added each with their own plotlines. While the premise isn’t exactly original and the ending leaves plenty of room for a sequel, something about it reminds me of the storytelling in Panzer Dragoon more-so than any game I’ve played since, well, the Panzer Dragoon games.
Essentially, the story doesn’t take the player for an idiot and that’s something I can really appreciate. Plenty of events happen and you’re left to figure out what’s going. Much like the Panzer Dragoon games, you can finish Gravity Rush without really having a clue of what’s going on. That said, the world is certainly quite different from Panzer Dragoon. The story contains more humor and is generally far more upbeat, and the city is certainly more lively than Panzer Dragoon’s desolate areas.
Another fun fact is that the characters speak a made-up language that sounds really similar to the Panzerese from Panzer Dragoon Orta. I think this has a lot to do with the fact that, like PD Saga and Orta, the Japanese voice actors seem to read the lines without having a clue of what they’re saying Here’s the opening to the game in which you can hear that dialogue. It’s more than a bit reminiscent of Orta’s dialogue in PDO. Did I mention the soundtrack is equally awesome?
I haven’t even mentioned the gameplay yet. If I had to compare it to anything, I felt it was much like Gun Valkyrie. There’s a considerable learning curve, but once you master the controls and upgrade your abilities few games can match the sensation of altering gravity and “falling” through the skies. I’ll stop here, but basically if you own a Vita, definitely check this game out. It only costs ? 15 and is even free if you have PSN+.
For me, it was the other way round actually. I was gripped to begin with, but the controls got increasingly frustrating, and the plot didn’t seem to answer questions that I felt really needed to be answered more clearly. I actually reviewed the game before completing it though, which is why I gave it top marks.
I don’t regret buying. In fact, I keep meaning to play through again, but other games always deter me.
The sequel is on its way and I’ll defo be buying it.
That’s actually a great review, nice work. I did consider buying a Vita for it, for some reason I ended up waiting for Persona 4 Golden instead and only picked it up now. I regret not getting it sooner.
The controls only really got frustrating for me at some of the earlier chapters in my first playthrough. In my second one, I focused on collecting gems and upgrading Kat’s abilities, and at that point I didn’t really have any problem with them. For that matter, the following two videos were somewhat of an eye opener:
The story does open up a ton of plotlines and few of them are resolved. I’m not even sure if I have ever had that many questions regarding the plot after finishing a game. Even though they were clearly aiming for a sequel, they could have easily answered a few more questions. But at the same time, I find it really interesting to try and figure out the answers to those questions. I’m actually a bit surprised to find so little discussion about that. There’s some threads on the internet here and there, but there doesn’t seem to be a fansite like TWOTA for the game that really goes in-depth. But there is an amazingly detailed article from someone who figured out how to read the alphabet in the game:
The game sadly isn’t compatible with the PS Vita TV yet. I hope they add support for it though. I seriously need to get Gravity Rush: The Complete Guide (sadly there seems to be no English release, no doubt it contains a lot of information that’s not mentioned in the game…). The game has some amazing artwork.
I happen to reside in Japan, and I’ve seen the artbook. It is lovely, but I’m not the kind of person to buy artbooks when the great majority of it is stashed around the net for free.
Regarding the story, I’ve had a few conversations about it on vita forums I frequent. Not much really gets resolved though. I think the general consensus is that it was just very sloppy. It tries to be whimsical, and succeeds for the most part, but fails to realise that, when you make insinuations, if you fail to deliver an explanation to the audience, it will leave the audience very frustrated.
I like the look of those vids. It certain explains why I’m not so good on some of the tasks but, in all honestly, regardless whether using the touch screen or analog, navigating is just a confusing mess when the game get hectic, made even more frustrating when you’re faced with enemies shooting at you from all directions.
Also, some sections were just too long. The bit where you’re falling that massive cylinder. I get it. It’s a long way down to the bottom. Do I really need to waste what felt like forever falling down that damn thing?
Those puzzle sections when you’re without your flying ability annoyed the heck out of me too.
It’s mostly import taxes that make me think twice about importing them. For this artbook, I would probably end up paying over $100 just to get it here.
Well, it’s difficult to judge the story as of yet when the game obviously sets things up for a sequel. I actually liked the ending, but it remains to be seen whether or not they can actually wrap things up in the next game (assuming they’re not aiming for a trilogy). They certainly have a lot of questions left to answer.
I don’t disagree, there’s certainly room for improvement here. I thought the game became more fun as you max out Kat’s abilities. While combat was messy, the controls worked quite well when you’re just exploring.
Yeah, that seemed a bit of a waste of time. In my first playthrough, this was also the point where I started to think the game wasn’t all that good. My opinion started to change afterwards.
Here’s the opening to the game in which you can hear that dialogue. It’s more than a bit reminiscent of Orta’s dialogue in PDO. Did I mention the soundtrack is equally awesome?