Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
Enslaved Review
There is a moment in Enslaved: Odyssey to the West when the two main characters simply exchange a look that said everything another game would have used paragraphs of dialog to convey. This is achieved by the simple fact that Monkey and Trip are real people, who act like real people, and speak like real people. And despite solid exciting gameplay and stellar production values, it’s Trip and Monkey relationship that make the game something special.
Our main hero, Monkey. Always willing to lend a hand.
Hollywood meets games in an excellent adaptation of a great story.
Ninja Theory’s Enslaved brings the great Chinese novel Journey to the West 150 years into our future, where a great war has destroyed the world, mechs overrun civilization, and slavers kill and round up the last bits of humanity for seemingly no reason. Hollywood writer, Alex Garland, sidesteps much of the cliche inherent in the genre because he knows how to play on expectations, and construct a compelling, humorous, character driven story.
If there is any game that shows the industry needs to hire better writers, its Enslaved. Alex Garland wrote the vastly underappreciated Sunshine, as well as two other Danny Boyle films 28 Days Later and The Beach – based on his novel. The story is structured with the sophistication and knowledge of narrative that surpasses even Uncharted 2. The game shows, instead of tells. And glances, acting, and environmental details are used instead of expositional dialog and scan-able objects to great effect.
A compelling story is enhanced by a colorful apocalyptic world.
Luckily for us, this somber setting is splashed with color, character, romance and humor. You won’t find a more pleasant and exciting apocalypse anywhere. Ninja Theory refuses to adhere to the grey color palettes of today’s games, and even finds ways to make sewers and factories open into fantastic color vistas. The art surpasses the tech, as occasional texture pop-up and other graphical oddities can distract from the stunning environments.
A linear roller coaster ride
Linearity is not necessarily a bad word. It allows developers to construct set pieces and control pacing in ways that cannot be done otherwise. The danger is that if those elements don’t work, there is nothing else for the player to amuse them self with – so it damn well better work. Ninja Theory is up to the challenge, creating a lush world, and having an eye for platforming set pieces that sit right alongside with Uncharted.
This is clear from the opening set piece on top of a crashing prison ship. The real moment of genius in that opening is the reveal of the location by using an iconic monument. That sort of visual surprise and pacing between gameplay and cutscene rarely lets up. While it does sag a bit in the middle, Ninja Theory is wise to save much of the best stuff for last.
Cinematic flair is present everywhere.
Like Uncharted, the elements of the game are glued together by unobtrusive cutscenes. They are everywhere, and often lasting only a few seconds. Ninja Theory exhibits the skill to know how to place them, and how to transition in and out of them. The feel is seamless, and for the entire 8 or so hours, the game felt like a movie.
The camera in both combat and platforming is rather cinematic, zooming in for final kills, and long jumps. While occasionally it’s a bit too wild for its own good, it mostly enhances the game. More developers should take risks like this with their camera, and it only bodes well for Ninja Theories take on Devil May Cry. A series sorely needing solid story telling and cinematic flair to enhances the wild combat.
While simple, fighting is incredible cinematic. Unlike the platforming, the animation is smooth through out.
Everything matters because the characters matter
Nice graphics, a solid story, and exciting set pieces can make a good game. What separates Enslaved from the rest are its two endearing main characters and their relationship that is the heart of the game.
At first glance, Monkey evokes the action game cliché disproportionately large muscle man; a criminal on a crashing prison ship, angry and ready to kick ass – and a motorcycle to boot. Trip (but still attractive) looking red head, is no helpless princess. And uses her cunning to Enslave Monkey to help her. Trip is regretful, but still acting out selfishness, and Monkey is helping, but not out of free will and spends most of the beginning of the game spouting death threats to our heroine. There hasn’t quite been a dynamic like this, and the game takes full advantage of its humor, tension and romance.
The characters are brought to life by impeccable voice work and directing.
Andy Serkis – Gollum/Sméagol himself – acts as a creative director to the game, as well as a mocap artist and voice actor for Monkey. He is a true gift to this game as he deeply understands the tough guy with a marshmallow center, and acts with a precision and subtlety.
Humor and compassion are present through out. The progression from bitter and angry conflict to the two of them arguing like an old married couple about how to fix a computer is a delight to watch unfold. Equally so are the surprisingly touching moments of tragedy and loss handled with finesse. If there is any complaint, it’s that the characters are so likable and their connection so obvious that their eventual romance is not much of a surprise.
The interactions between Monkey and Trip are enhanced by subtle facial movements and acting.
Dynamic combat is balanced with a sense of puzzle solving and cooperation.
This relationship permeates the game’s mechanics, even if not quite to sublime level as Ico. Combat is fast and cinematic, and straightforward. Simple weak and strong attacks are spiced up only with the occasional counter and evade. But the agency and excitement comes from the fact that you are defending Trip from certain death. In return, Trip is one of the least annoying companions in games. She rarely gets in the way, stays mostly death-free and actually helps a great deal.
Trip can distract enemies, heal you and serves as the upgrade system for Monkey’s abilities. Most importantly, she scans almost every room in the game revealing the enemies and obstacles. Because there are unique enemies that can be used as weapons after being taken down, or can call for reinforcements, these rooms take on a bit of a puzzle solving element, feeling similar to a Metal Gear VR mission.
Puzzles of all kind require cooperation between the two characters, and are usually set against stunning backdrops.
A flat difficulty curve can dull the experience and there is no reason for stealth
The biggest gripe is that while the story itself is paced expertly, the gameplay and difficulty curve doesn’t quite follow the same forward momentum. The difficulty curve is flat until the last hour. It’s especially odd that when timing and dangerous platforms are in the first 20 minutes of the game, but aren’t seen again until the last 2 levels.
Also, a quick gripe with the glowing orbs that act as currency. Firstly, they are often placed lazily in corners. This is not exploring, but simply covering ground. However, the main issue is that enemies release them when the die, and being that most enemies are easy to kill, there is never any reason to sneak around enemies. If you are going to implement an alternative path there has to be some clear incentive to do so. The orbs act as a very clear disincentive to ever experiment with stealth.
The Lowdown
Enslaved is a special game. It gives me the same feeling Beyond Good and Evil did. An original IP brought to life by a developer who is deeply in love with their characters and story. While it doesn’t push any ground in the gameplay department, it adheres to the formula with flair and polish. Ninja Theory has taken much care in making sure that every moment you spend with Monkey and Trip is special, and you will be equal parts pleased and sad when you reach the tremendous finale.
Buy It If: You are in need of an action game with tremendous production value, and don’t mind a relatively low difficult, or if you are fan of tremendous story-telling and memorable compelling characters.
Random Thoughts
- Pigsy is well acted, and is from the original story. But I can’t help but feel he tainted the game just a little bit. That said, he grows on you and he has an awesome ending.
- The ending may not be universally loved, but rarely does a game address morality with the same sophistication as Enslaved. Rather than some sort of binary choose your adventure that associates the moral choose with an in game reward or power up, Enslaved simply asks the player if the characters decisions were right or wrong. What did you think of the ending?
- The name is fitting for the theme of the story. One that compares love to enslavement, and looks at the thin line between the two. In the end, love is about choice, and one can choose to be “enslaved” to another.
- Hover board is super rad. Wish there was more to do with it. Also probably the coolest animation ever for calling a vehicle out of thin air.
- Serkis’ mocap animation is great, and individual animations look fluid and interesting. However the transition is often jerky. We need more procedural animation ASAP.
Special Note
Just want to see how this goes. Obviously the road trip means I have beaten one 8 hour game in the course of 20 days. But I figured I would spread the word about this game, and hopefully these reviews will be a more regular thing.
Let me know what you think of the review structure. I am trying to categorize with bold sentences that allow for a quick scan, and you can still get the gist of article.
I am also not a fan of numbers or quantifying a review. I want you to read it, not to see a number. Also, everyone who is looking at the number is really just asking “should I buy it”. If it is above X number, than someone will buy it.
So I rather simply recommend the game in one of 4 ways.
Must Buy: Doesn’t matter who you are, you need to own this game
Buy it if: I will explain who will probably like the game
Try it: Probably worth a rental, or a buy if you are a major fan of the genre
Don’t Bother: Don’t waste your time.
All feedback is welcome. Thanks, and keep rocking.
One could say the game is more like a movie than a game. The platforming practically plays itself.
I want to talk about Sunshine. Vastly underrated. Although I start to lose it at the end. I don’t know what the hell happened.
That’s a solid review, Matt!
If anything, I would suggest simply compartmentalizing a bit more, actually. An example would be:
The Plot: Here’s the story basis of the game
The Gameplay: Here’s the overview of the mechanics, and my thoughts on the execution
The Visuals: Your thoughts, pros and cons.
The Acting/Voice Acting: (as appropriate to game situation)
Overall: Summation
What This Game Reminds Me Of: (as appropriate to situation) This might be more useful earlier in the structure at times, as this will allow review readers to see if it’s a game-type/style they want to engage in, in the first place.
or, if it’s a sequel/franchise:
How it Compares To The Last One: “Well, RV Hero: Facerocker ’10 was a solid debut, but left out some states. RV Hero: Facerocker ’11 builds on available levels, and upped the ante on gameplay with a new “Toll Booth” physics-based mini-game that tests your accuracy with bags of change and awards points for using smaller denominations of coins to annoy the booth operator more.”
Then finish with your final recommendation opinion.
Great writing overall though! I love how thorough you worked over the piece so the reader gets a really solid idea of what to expect before checking out demo-vids, etc.
Nice work, Matt!
P.S. Definitely keep in the random thoughts part of reviews. I really like the dynamic of the little things the reviewer notices from their experience playing the game, like the morality question on its ending.
Thanks for the feedback. I am glad you like the random thoughts, as I think its a good way to get some thoughts out there that may not necessarily fit the review.
I think my goal is to have the review read in the similar sort of flow “graphics, story, gameplay” etc. However, instead of simply listing them out, have top line headings that refer to them, while also say something about them. So instead of “Graphics: 9, than a paragraph” Its “The stunning landscapes and character animations are brought to life thanks to impressive tech – and then a paragraph”
Similar to Kotaku’s new review layout, but still organized closer to what you are talking about.
Alright, I see what you’re doing. I would only suggest on that point then trying to keep the ‘sections’ a little closer together structure-wise so you don’t risk a narrative back-track, which can throw off tempo.
Based on how well this was thought out, I highly (re)suggest a ‘What other game this is like’ piece toward the back end, only because I have enough confidence in the way you’ve written the review to trust your instincts on what other game it’s like for you. For me personally, anyway, it helps to get a feel for the game when I have something to compare it to.
Just don’t talk really fast in a English accent. That gimmicks been taken already.
Yeah, I liked that idea. Thanks a ton for the feedback.
It’s all good, thanks for sharing!
I agree with James, solid review! I will definitely read more if you supply them. I already watch all your videos, might as well read all your game reviews also!
Maybe eventually you could do some video reviews. You guys could probably come up with some really interesting ways to approach a video game review on camera!
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