Skryter
Well-Known Member
Before I get into this, I purposely avoided mimicking a review style similar to that of Professional Games Media (IGN, Gamespot, Etc). Don’t get me wrong, it certainly makes for an entertaining read, however in my eyes it tends to lead to reviews that lack actual substance, ignoring game mechanics and other facets necessary for the consumer to construct an informed opinion on a title before committing to a purchase. I’ve never attempted to review anything before, with the exception of Halo CE: Anniversary and Assassins Creed 3 which I removed in a bout of stupidity. Thus I’d appreciate any constructive feedback whatsoever, regardless if it’s positive or negative in nature.
Asura’s Wrath is bloody brilliant, there’s no denying that. It’s blend of Buddhist and Hindu mythology, anime-inspired art style, and beautiful cinematics ultimately make for a stunning thematic experience. However, is there enough content to justify Asura’s Wrath status as a Video Game, or is it simply just a piece of interactive media along the lines of The Stanley Parable. Find out in just a moment as we take A Look At: Asura’s Wrath.
Story:
[collapse= Minor Spoilers]Gaea, a land ripe with destruction and death. The impure Ghoma roam the land, a “demonic” race fixated with mercilessly slaughtering the human inhabitants of the planet. However, humanity is protected by Emperor Strada and its Eight Guardian Generals, a group of immensely powerful figures hailing from a race of Demi-Gods. Aided by technology vastly superior to humanity’s, Strada and the Eight Guardian Generals seek to purify the Ghoma, leading a fleet of spacecraft against the source of the corruption, a gargantuan beast known as Vlitra. The Eight Guardian Generals, aided by the power of Mantra (in-universe name for Ki, Chakra, or any other mystical energy source), manage to subdue the beast temporarily at the cost of hundreds of thousands of lives. After the battles passing, Asura is betrayed by the Eight Guardian Generals, framing him for the assassination of Emperor Strada. His wife Durga is killed, and his daughter Mithra is kidnapped due to her control over Mantra. Swearing revenge, Asura confronts the Eight Guardian Generals, in the process being killed and finding himself in the underworld of Naraka. Reviving himself with only his immense wrath, and the aid of a mysterious golden spider, Asura finds himself in Gaea once again. 10,000 years have passed, and the world has dramatically changed since Asura was last in the land of the living. The Eight Guardian Generals have obtained dominion over Gaea. Styling themselves as The Seven Deities and indoctrinating the inhabitants of the planet, they harvest the souls of humanity for their own gain. Fuelled by his rage, Asura seeks vengeance for the murder of his wife and the abduction of his daughter.[/collapse]
Asura’s Wrath is clearly inspired by Hindu and Buddhist Mythology, with a heavy dose of science fiction spruced along the way. The opening cutscene/gameplay sequence is not only a testament to its roots in eastern mythology and science fiction, but its sheer scale as well. Large fleets of spacecraft engage in a battle against the Ghoma above the power, meanwhile a colossal titan styled after Brahma’s weapon of destruction, The Brahmastra, fires beams of energy that obliterate Ghoma. Vlitra, one of the resident “big bad’s”, arrives by literally tearing the planet apart.
Tropes commonly found in Anime and Manga are riddled all throughout Asura’s Wrath. Characters spout one liner’s without considering the situation they've found themselves placed in. The 8 Guardian Generals and ultimately their identities, are based of the 7 Deadly Sins akin to that of the homunculi from Full Metal Alchemist. Asura is driven only by his immense wrath; Deus is the very personification of vanity. The game is split into 3 acts, each act comprised of 6 episodes a piece. Episodes generally last 6-10 minutes, halfway throughout the episode the story is brought to a halt through the use of a bumper. At the episodes conclusion, a preview for the next episode is played followed by an interlude that provides backstory on events that transpire between episodes, or additional information on the mythos itself, further driving in that Anime feel home. That’s not to say that this is necessarily a bad thing. While the setting, plot, and characters are cliché to a boot, they definitely make for one hell of a spectacle.
Gameplay:
Gameplay, or rather the lack of Gameplay, is a whole different matter in itself. One moment you’ll find yourself in a 3rd person brawler, the next you’re neck deep in an on the rails shooter. The mechanics aren’t particularly complex, an absence of depth is apparent from the get-go, but they get the job done. Enemy variety is also lacking, Shinkoku and Ghoma forces are for the most part reskins of each other. 3 difficulty options (Easy, Normal, Hard) are present, although there’s no point in bothering with the first 2 as none of the difficulty levels offer any semblance of challenge. Enemies are pushovers regardless of whatever difficulty faced on, so you may as well play on hard to snag achievements impossible to collect on easier levels.
However, the majority of the time spent “playing” the game is in interactive cutscene's - in the loosest sense of the term. In reality cut scenes are boggled down with quicktime events which can quickly become an annoyance for those with disdain for the mechanic. For the most part the QTE prompts correlate to the actions on the screen, allowing the player to feel that they’re part of the action. On the other hand, they can quickly intrude on the player’s enjoyment of the title, drawing away the players gaze from the stunning cutscenes and to the next QTE prompt. Luckily, there’s no real consequence for not engaging in QTE’s aside from mission score, although the rare game over screen will appear in instances where QTE prompts are mandatory in order to advance the story.
Replayability is another aspect that Asura’s Wrath is sorely lacking in. Aside from experiencing the game with another audio track (Japanese, English), unlocking Gauges that change gameplay slightly (Less Health), and achievements/trophy's, there’s nothing else on offer to bring the player back for another playthrough. Only the most hardcore of fans will find a reason to experience Asura’s Wrath multiple times.
Sound Design:
Asura’s Wrath’s soundtrack is simply breathtaking. Blending Western, Classical, and for the most part Eastern tracks, the OST is one of the most impressive soundtracks I’ve had the pleasure of listening to. Not only does each track set the tone for the portion of game it’s attached to, the game itself influences the emotions brought forth by the musical score. Fureru Kokoro (In Your Belief) brought me to the verge of tears in one instance, and fleeting happiness in the next. Standouts tracks among the OST include the aforementioned “In Your Belief” and its variations, "Orphan Wolf Legend" (Yasha’s Theme) and its variations, "One Who Spins Ideas", "A Change of Fortune and Unruined Reason". It should also be noted that the score contains movements originating from “Symphony No. 9 from “The New World”. The quality of the score was at a level where I took the initiative to purchase the CD, a rare occurrence if I do say so myself.
Impressive sound design is not only found within the games score, lending itself to the superb voice cast. Each VA provides an impressive performance; their voices fit their respective characters almost to a tee, although Olga rubs me the wrong way. Special mention must be given to Liam O’ Brien (Asura, Caius Ballad, Gaara, War), Steve Blum (Sergei, Spike Spiegel, Amon, Orochimaru), and Imari Williams (Augus). The voice cast may be fantastic in of itself, but the 3 aforementioned performances far surpassed those of their fellow Voice Actors, which is ultimately unsurprising given the first two’s track record.
Other:
[collapse= Minor Spoilers]
Aside from the lack of actual Gameplay and Replayability, the DLC present within the title is the only other real complaint I have. Players are able to purchase a gimmicky two-dimensional fighter featuring two characters from the street fighter universe; Ryu and Akuma; along with two additional episodes comprised solely of cell-shaded animation and QTE’s that bridge the gap between episodes 11-12 and 15-16. These certainly may be nice additions for hardcore fans that wish to experience more of the Asura’s Wrath mythos; however the next piece of DLC content was specifically designed in order to suck more money out of the consumer’s wallet. Dubbing itself Nirvana, this last Act consists of 4 episodes that picks up from the games “True” final chapter, serving as an extension of the game’s story and acting as the definite conclusion for the title. Although the spectacle, scale, and sheer awesomeness present in the titles previous 3 acts are present ten-fold here, the actual practice itself is what annoys me. It’s clear to the consumer that Nirvana was developed in tangent with the game and originally supposed to be included with the retail version; however it was separated in order for Capcom and CyberConnect 2 to supplement their revenue streams. Whether this decision was made due to poor fiscal years on the publisher or developers sides, it is undoubtedly infuriating and only serves to alienate the consumer.[/collapse]
Final Thoughts:
Asura’s Wrath is a mixed bag. On one hand the title is host to a gripping story, spectacular cutscenes, and a fantastic voice cast, on the other the lack of gameplay, Replayability and questionable DLC practices detract from the experience. Regardless of its various shortcomings, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Asura’s Wrath. It’s more Interactive Anime than Video Game; however that’s not to say it’s not a worthwhile experience. During its launch phase, I wouldn’t have recommended purchasing Asura’s Wrath at its retail price. However, now that it’s dropped down to approximately $20 AUD, I’d definitely recommend purchasing the title, if only for the spectacle that is Asura’s Wrath. Stay tuned until next time as we take A Look At: Super Meat Boy (Also known as that one game that’s really fucking excruciating).
Pros:
+ Interesting mythos and characters
+ Impressive scale
+ Eye-Candy in the form of cutscenes
+ Stunning OST and Voice Cast
Cons:
- Lack of enemy variety and gameplay
- Minimum amount of replayability
- Questionable DLC practices
Asura’s Wrath is bloody brilliant, there’s no denying that. It’s blend of Buddhist and Hindu mythology, anime-inspired art style, and beautiful cinematics ultimately make for a stunning thematic experience. However, is there enough content to justify Asura’s Wrath status as a Video Game, or is it simply just a piece of interactive media along the lines of The Stanley Parable. Find out in just a moment as we take A Look At: Asura’s Wrath.
Story:
[collapse= Minor Spoilers]Gaea, a land ripe with destruction and death. The impure Ghoma roam the land, a “demonic” race fixated with mercilessly slaughtering the human inhabitants of the planet. However, humanity is protected by Emperor Strada and its Eight Guardian Generals, a group of immensely powerful figures hailing from a race of Demi-Gods. Aided by technology vastly superior to humanity’s, Strada and the Eight Guardian Generals seek to purify the Ghoma, leading a fleet of spacecraft against the source of the corruption, a gargantuan beast known as Vlitra. The Eight Guardian Generals, aided by the power of Mantra (in-universe name for Ki, Chakra, or any other mystical energy source), manage to subdue the beast temporarily at the cost of hundreds of thousands of lives. After the battles passing, Asura is betrayed by the Eight Guardian Generals, framing him for the assassination of Emperor Strada. His wife Durga is killed, and his daughter Mithra is kidnapped due to her control over Mantra. Swearing revenge, Asura confronts the Eight Guardian Generals, in the process being killed and finding himself in the underworld of Naraka. Reviving himself with only his immense wrath, and the aid of a mysterious golden spider, Asura finds himself in Gaea once again. 10,000 years have passed, and the world has dramatically changed since Asura was last in the land of the living. The Eight Guardian Generals have obtained dominion over Gaea. Styling themselves as The Seven Deities and indoctrinating the inhabitants of the planet, they harvest the souls of humanity for their own gain. Fuelled by his rage, Asura seeks vengeance for the murder of his wife and the abduction of his daughter.[/collapse]
Asura’s Wrath is clearly inspired by Hindu and Buddhist Mythology, with a heavy dose of science fiction spruced along the way. The opening cutscene/gameplay sequence is not only a testament to its roots in eastern mythology and science fiction, but its sheer scale as well. Large fleets of spacecraft engage in a battle against the Ghoma above the power, meanwhile a colossal titan styled after Brahma’s weapon of destruction, The Brahmastra, fires beams of energy that obliterate Ghoma. Vlitra, one of the resident “big bad’s”, arrives by literally tearing the planet apart.
Tropes commonly found in Anime and Manga are riddled all throughout Asura’s Wrath. Characters spout one liner’s without considering the situation they've found themselves placed in. The 8 Guardian Generals and ultimately their identities, are based of the 7 Deadly Sins akin to that of the homunculi from Full Metal Alchemist. Asura is driven only by his immense wrath; Deus is the very personification of vanity. The game is split into 3 acts, each act comprised of 6 episodes a piece. Episodes generally last 6-10 minutes, halfway throughout the episode the story is brought to a halt through the use of a bumper. At the episodes conclusion, a preview for the next episode is played followed by an interlude that provides backstory on events that transpire between episodes, or additional information on the mythos itself, further driving in that Anime feel home. That’s not to say that this is necessarily a bad thing. While the setting, plot, and characters are cliché to a boot, they definitely make for one hell of a spectacle.
Gameplay:
Gameplay, or rather the lack of Gameplay, is a whole different matter in itself. One moment you’ll find yourself in a 3rd person brawler, the next you’re neck deep in an on the rails shooter. The mechanics aren’t particularly complex, an absence of depth is apparent from the get-go, but they get the job done. Enemy variety is also lacking, Shinkoku and Ghoma forces are for the most part reskins of each other. 3 difficulty options (Easy, Normal, Hard) are present, although there’s no point in bothering with the first 2 as none of the difficulty levels offer any semblance of challenge. Enemies are pushovers regardless of whatever difficulty faced on, so you may as well play on hard to snag achievements impossible to collect on easier levels.
However, the majority of the time spent “playing” the game is in interactive cutscene's - in the loosest sense of the term. In reality cut scenes are boggled down with quicktime events which can quickly become an annoyance for those with disdain for the mechanic. For the most part the QTE prompts correlate to the actions on the screen, allowing the player to feel that they’re part of the action. On the other hand, they can quickly intrude on the player’s enjoyment of the title, drawing away the players gaze from the stunning cutscenes and to the next QTE prompt. Luckily, there’s no real consequence for not engaging in QTE’s aside from mission score, although the rare game over screen will appear in instances where QTE prompts are mandatory in order to advance the story.
Replayability is another aspect that Asura’s Wrath is sorely lacking in. Aside from experiencing the game with another audio track (Japanese, English), unlocking Gauges that change gameplay slightly (Less Health), and achievements/trophy's, there’s nothing else on offer to bring the player back for another playthrough. Only the most hardcore of fans will find a reason to experience Asura’s Wrath multiple times.
Sound Design:
Asura’s Wrath’s soundtrack is simply breathtaking. Blending Western, Classical, and for the most part Eastern tracks, the OST is one of the most impressive soundtracks I’ve had the pleasure of listening to. Not only does each track set the tone for the portion of game it’s attached to, the game itself influences the emotions brought forth by the musical score. Fureru Kokoro (In Your Belief) brought me to the verge of tears in one instance, and fleeting happiness in the next. Standouts tracks among the OST include the aforementioned “In Your Belief” and its variations, "Orphan Wolf Legend" (Yasha’s Theme) and its variations, "One Who Spins Ideas", "A Change of Fortune and Unruined Reason". It should also be noted that the score contains movements originating from “Symphony No. 9 from “The New World”. The quality of the score was at a level where I took the initiative to purchase the CD, a rare occurrence if I do say so myself.
Impressive sound design is not only found within the games score, lending itself to the superb voice cast. Each VA provides an impressive performance; their voices fit their respective characters almost to a tee, although Olga rubs me the wrong way. Special mention must be given to Liam O’ Brien (Asura, Caius Ballad, Gaara, War), Steve Blum (Sergei, Spike Spiegel, Amon, Orochimaru), and Imari Williams (Augus). The voice cast may be fantastic in of itself, but the 3 aforementioned performances far surpassed those of their fellow Voice Actors, which is ultimately unsurprising given the first two’s track record.
Other:
[collapse= Minor Spoilers]
Aside from the lack of actual Gameplay and Replayability, the DLC present within the title is the only other real complaint I have. Players are able to purchase a gimmicky two-dimensional fighter featuring two characters from the street fighter universe; Ryu and Akuma; along with two additional episodes comprised solely of cell-shaded animation and QTE’s that bridge the gap between episodes 11-12 and 15-16. These certainly may be nice additions for hardcore fans that wish to experience more of the Asura’s Wrath mythos; however the next piece of DLC content was specifically designed in order to suck more money out of the consumer’s wallet. Dubbing itself Nirvana, this last Act consists of 4 episodes that picks up from the games “True” final chapter, serving as an extension of the game’s story and acting as the definite conclusion for the title. Although the spectacle, scale, and sheer awesomeness present in the titles previous 3 acts are present ten-fold here, the actual practice itself is what annoys me. It’s clear to the consumer that Nirvana was developed in tangent with the game and originally supposed to be included with the retail version; however it was separated in order for Capcom and CyberConnect 2 to supplement their revenue streams. Whether this decision was made due to poor fiscal years on the publisher or developers sides, it is undoubtedly infuriating and only serves to alienate the consumer.[/collapse]
Final Thoughts:
Asura’s Wrath is a mixed bag. On one hand the title is host to a gripping story, spectacular cutscenes, and a fantastic voice cast, on the other the lack of gameplay, Replayability and questionable DLC practices detract from the experience. Regardless of its various shortcomings, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Asura’s Wrath. It’s more Interactive Anime than Video Game; however that’s not to say it’s not a worthwhile experience. During its launch phase, I wouldn’t have recommended purchasing Asura’s Wrath at its retail price. However, now that it’s dropped down to approximately $20 AUD, I’d definitely recommend purchasing the title, if only for the spectacle that is Asura’s Wrath. Stay tuned until next time as we take A Look At: Super Meat Boy (Also known as that one game that’s really fucking excruciating).
Pros:
+ Interesting mythos and characters
+ Impressive scale
+ Eye-Candy in the form of cutscenes
+ Stunning OST and Voice Cast
Cons:
- Lack of enemy variety and gameplay
- Minimum amount of replayability
- Questionable DLC practices
