Demo roundup on the PSN

The PSN store has been updated last night, due to a maintenance scheduled for today. However, BlazBlue’s latest addition to the fighter roster, gentleman werewolf Valkenhayn (and actually one of the Six Heroes and Rachel Alucard’s very own butler!), was not added, despite the availability of the patch and the fact that the Japanese PSN apparently got it already. Oh well, it left me enough time to try Blade Kitten and Enslaved demos.

Blade Kitten is an action platformer pitting you as a cute catgirl fighting with a flying sword. The game is straightforward. You simply jump, crawl and climb your way around in 2D (in a 3D environment, with 3D models) and slice enemies on your way, avoiding traps and collecting points. Despite a charming look, the game’s cutscenes so far have proven uninteresting and will likely prove way too girly for macho Halo veterans who prefer bald, stout and muscular heroes. I skipped those, as the voice acting made me cringe. The controls feel a bit off, as the character seems slippery, but the mechanics are otherwise fun; peering through the How to Play guide allowed me to glimpse that the game may have some interesting depth, as there were a lot of things covered, from unlockables (costumes and weapons) to mounts. It seems mostly like an enjoyable game, nothing more.

Enslaved is an action platformer, but this one is more reminiscent of Prince of Persia: climb along poles, jump from platform to platform, hang in there, and fight mobs with style. The graphics are great, there is a nice use of color (when you get to see the blue sky for the first time, it’s amazing, despite being, you know, a simple blue sky – the color use is that good) that set it apart from gray and brown games like Killzone and Gears of War. The story seem uninteresting, you play an escaped slave… who escapes five minutes after being captured.

My biggest gripe with the game is that when I saw the first enemy, a wicked looking mech, I thought "this game is going to be awesome, I'll probably have to avoid that guy", thinking it would meld some stealth in there, but once I got my hands on my weapon, I realized that was not going to be the case: I quickly and easily dispatched the mob. Despite the lack of danger, the combat was satisfying. I noticed pieces of the robots were hanging in mid-air for no reason, a slight bug that made me cringe as it was detracting from the otherwise great art.
All in all, definitely try both these demos, they're free after all. I was not interested in Enslaved before that, but now I might see how it turns out. As for Blade Kitten, maybe if I want a cute and retro 2D platformer I'll pick this one.