Review for Okami HD. Game for PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, the video game was released on 30/10/2012 The version for PC came out on 13/12/2017 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 09/08/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 21/12/2017 The version for Xbox One came out on 21/12/2017
Those who lived through the golden years of the PlayStation 2 will almost certainly remember Okami, that brave little milestone that adorned the Sony console's playground with a new and unforgettable aesthetic. For the uninitiated, the title was released in 2006 under the signature of Clover Studio, Capcom team founded by Shinji Mikami and Atsushi Inaba who also created Viewtiful Joe and God Hand, and which later would become the PlatinumGames we know well today for quality titles from Bayonetta to Nier: Automata. In particular, Okami was written and directed by a Hideki Kamiya in great shape that he wanted to create a title in which to instill all his love for The Legend of Zelda series, while creating something extremely unique.
Despite the praise of the critics, it was perhaps precisely this being one of the first titles to focus on an out-of-the-box visual artistic sector (which was followed by several titles, especially indie) that precluded him from the sales success he deserved. More than ten years after its first release, followed by a port on Wii and a remaster on PS3, with Okami HD this little pearl is back in a sparkling new version for Playstation 4, and for the first time also on Xbox One and PC. Not taking this last opportunity to recover it would be a grave mistake.
The title takes us directly to a world that seems to come out of an animated book on Japanese mythology, a setting inspired by the folklore and fairy tales of the Rising Sun. In the past of this world, the white wolf Shiranui and the warrior Nagi defeated and sealed the eight-headed demon Orochi, warding off chaos in the lands of Nippon. After countless years of peace, the company becomes myth, and the seal that kept Orochi imprisoned is inadvertently broken, leaving him free again. The priestess Sakuya of the village of Kamiki therefore prays to the statue of Shiranui so that it will once again cancel the curse of the demon. The player will impersonate the white wolf, who is nothing more than the animal manifestation of the sun goddess Amaterasu. Accompanied by the tiny Issun, we will then begin our journey to restore the land of Nippon to its natural peaceful state.
Okami's story isn't exactly casual friendly. After a phlegmatic departure it takes a few hours for the plot to mesh and really involve. In line with the courtly tone of this story of divine and supernatural creatures, even the dialogues are intentionally theatrical and often wordy. Beyond this not very accommodating form, it is still a good story with a palpable narrative charm, in which epic, poetic and irony coexist.
The attention to the artistic aspect is, however, immediately recognizable by the unique graphic style used to outline the game world and its inhabitants. Through a particular use of cel-shading, in fact, the game visually immerses us in an animated sumi-e, the typical Japanese ink painting. Strong black outlines and bright brushstrokes of soft colors outline a dreamlike and colorful world.
In this version for PS4 the masterful art direction shines with new life thanks to resolution at 4K and a stable frame rate at 30 fps. Despite better cleaning of the edges and the possibility of eliminating the filter that gave the effect of parchment, it was understandably not possible to update the textures that much, especially for a game that already originally focused on a minimal look.
The accent on the Japanese style is also perceived in the musical accompaniment, performed with traditional instruments. Net of some lack of synchrony of the acoustic effects, the sound sector effectively contributes to immerse us in the archaic and mystical atmosphere of the fairy tale Nippon. Even in this remaster the voices that replace the dubbing of the characters obviously return, but if you really can't digest them, they can be deactivated from the options.
But Okami isn't just a Japanese salsa adventure game, just like Shiranui isn't just a wolf. Hideki Kamiya has in fact created a game with a basic structure that harks back to The Legend of Zelda, but with gameplay mechanics that connect directly to sumi-e. The four-legged incarnation of the goddess Amaterasu is in fact equipped with the Celestial Brush, with which she is able to operate on reality itself. At any time during exploration or combat, you can block the game action and use the brush in various ways: create a bridge between two banks, summon the wind, hit enemies and much more. The abilities of the Celestial Brush correspond to 13 symbols of as many deities, which we will have to obtain during the game in order to unlock new areas to proceed towards, with new dungeons and new enemies. Some skills will also be upgradeable through a certain number of Prayers, obtainable as a reward from various secondary characters who will ask us for help in secondary missions.
The game gives its best in the occasion of the fights against the bosses, in which we will not have to rely so much on physical violence, but on the analysis of their weaknesses and the surrounding area. It should be noted, however, that Okami is more focused on exploring and solving puzzles than on fighting. And if on the one hand the game does not pose a high level of challenge, on the other it does not even accompany the player by the hand through the adventure, leaving him rather free to find the way forward for himself, which will result in many hours of exploration.
The game design gimmick of the Celestial Brush that combines gameplay and aesthetics has aged very well and is still valid and creative today. Among the aspects that instead continue to weigh on the title we find a camera that does not always manage to keep up, and the frequent uploads to move from one area to another of the environment.
When evaluating a game like Okami HD it is good to keep in mind that it is still a title conceived more than ten years ago, with all the limits of the case. It is therefore normal to find some anachronistic aspects, but despite this the title of the then Clover Studio still shows today an out of the ordinary quality and beauty. If you know how to postpone its somewhat long-winded dialogues, it will give you the experience of one of the best and most original action-adventures released for PS2, an immortal pearl of the genre, a must especially for lovers of Japan and its traditional aesthetics.
► Okami HD is an Adventure type game developed and published by Capcom for PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, the video game was released on 30/10/2012 The version for PC came out on 13/12/2017 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 09/08/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 21/12/2017 The version for Xbox One came out on 21/12/2017
