“Okami.” “Resident Evil 4.” Both among the best games of the last decade. Both published by Capcom. Both released on last-generation consoles but ported to the Wii for their definitive versions. Both have had their creators leave Capcom, and now Capcom has released sequels to both despite their original authors’ absence. So, the sequels “Resident Evil 5” and “Okamiden” have arrived under remarkably similar circumstances. But while one game — “Resident Evil 5” — took its eye off the prize, today’s DS action-adventure “Okamiden” is like a posthumous symphony finished using the departed composer’s notes.
For those who missed out on “Okami,” it cast you as a wolf goddess freeing ancient Japan from demons by solving “Zelda”-esque puzzles. With one great twist: With the press of a button, the world was stilled and rendered in parchment so you could draw on it. This way, everything from a bomb to the sun could be summoned into the world with the strokes of your brush.
Following up on a game whose looks were so central to its appeal, “Okamiden’s” first task is to show a hand-held system can handle the visual demands. Which “Okamiden” does, ad nauseam. Before you can really get started, the game subjects you to a contrived tour of familiar locations and characters, spending way too long saying, “Look, Ma, no Wii processor.”
| ‘Okamiden’ |
| » System: DS |
| » Price: $29.99 |
| » Rating: 3 out of 5 stars |
When “Okamiden” finally finishes proving its pedigree, it nicely comes into its own. The game is set nine months (coincidence? do wolf goddess gestation periods mirror those of humans?) after “Okami,” and puts you in control of a wolf pup who just happens to also have magical drawing abilities.
Like its predecessor, “Okamiden” contains moments of great beauty whose superfluity makes them all the more special. How many games have you trace constellations to bring the creatures they depict to life?
Unlike its predecessor, “Okamiden” has you thinking way too much about the bits of plastic and metal in your hands. The DS, with its touch screen, is the ideal system for any game involving drawing. But most of the game — things like attacking enemies, talking to people or simply walking around — is controlled with the buttons and the direction pad, so switching to using the stylus when it’s time to draw — which is all the time — feels disruptive. I wonder why Capcom didn’t use a stylus-only control scheme, like in the two DS “Zelda” games, and let you simply hit a shoulder button to freeze the screen? As it is, “Okamiden’s” skill at pleasing your eyes and warming your heart just makes you wish it were released on the Wii.
