It is easy to make and sell a platformer to me. Give it beautiful graphics that look like an animated movie, fun platforming, and a story to tug at my heartstrings. Well Ember Lab, you sold me on Kena: Bridge of Spirits.

The sweet story we need right now

In a beautiful land Kena is a spirit guide. Spirits that are lost and need help moving on to the next land become dangerous, Kena helps them move on by kicking their asses. Well sometimes that’s how she does it, it is a video game after all.

The story has Kena headed towards the Sacred Mountain Shrine … for reasons. She comes across the cheeky spirits Beni and Saiya who she wins over by being Kena and discovers their older sibling Taro needs her help. As the story unfolds she helps a few people, and discovers a little more about the mysterious darkness around the land. This darkness is causing a lot of havoc including blocking pathways and creating enemies to be beaten, because again… it’s a video game.

To help her with this mysterious darkness she enlists the help of the rot. If that is throwing you off, it threw me off too. Even now the name ‘rot’ keeps feeling like it should be the name for the darkness. Instead they are cutesy little black spirit creatures that can be adorned with hats…because cute. But also they can be used to destroy the decay, baddies, and help with puzzles.

All of this cutesyness is rounded out thanks to the sweet and caring personality that Kena exudes.

A simple but fun game

In a lot of ways Kena: Bridge of Spirits reminded me of a PS2 era game. The world is connected through a lot of connected corridors. Jumping is limited as you can’t jump through the bushes or anything. Sometimes you can’t jump on scenery even when it looks smaller than something you can jump on.

Despite this, I actually didn’t dislike it. The gameplay was relatively simple and the funneled areas to explore help the game flow. This results in a relatively short game where you can backtrack and complete puzzles but it helps cut down some of the faf. This would also help some younger gamers because despite some more adult themes, the presentation is built so that adults and kids will both be able to enjoy this beautiful story.

Combat is limited to dodging, swinging with a light or heavy attack, firing a bow and eventually throwing bombs. There isn’t too much depth to it, and in game the responses to trying to defend can be a little clunky. Outside of these specific situations the gameplay is simple but fun, and that helps enhance the feel of the game.

A treat to the heart and the eyes

Kena has an amazingly sweet story to enjoy. There is nothing overly new here, but it has been rearranged to feel new enough. In this way it is a cracking story that has been wrapped up in one fantastic looking wrapper. The graphics department of this studio has made it look so much like a movie and with Kenas sweetness she feels like it should be.

On top of the world looking like a treat, it sounds like one too. There is some solid voice acting work that helps set the tone, but also an utterly beautiful soundtrack. Sometimes you don’t notice a soundtrack as it has been blended beautifully into the surroundings, other times you notice it because it is out of place. Every so often a soundtrack will stand out for doing something right, and I adored the soundtrack behind Kena.  

Short and sweet

Kena: Bridge of Spirits is an absolute banger of a game. If you aren’t going to hunt down every collectible and rot in the world, you can easily bang it out in a week. The game’s length absolutely serves to make it better by not losing the tension with too much faff. It is easy enough that the family can enjoy it, and sweet enough that… the family can enjoy it.

Seriously go play Kena: Bridge of Spirits.

The post Kena: Bridge of Spirits Review appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

This morning at the future of gamin conference the PS5 and a lot of games have been announced including a new Spiderman, a new Horizon Zero Dawn, and a hole lot more.

Check out the box, some highlights, and the full press conference below:

You can see the whole press conference here: (starts at 59 minutes)

More Info:

PS5’s exclusive game lineup includes blockbuster series such as Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales, Gran Turismo 7, and Horizon Forbidden West, along with brand new titles from the industry’s top game creatorsEnhanced and expanded version of Grand Theft Auto V coming to PS5; New standalone version of Grand Theft Auto Online will be free to all PS5 owners within first three months of the title’s launch in 2021

NEW ZEALAND, Auckland., June 12, 2020 – Innovation and creativity collide this holiday season, as Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) revealed new details for PlayStation®5, including the next-generation console’s design and a deep lineup of brand new games coming to the platform. In a livestream event today reaching millions of gaming fans, SIE showed the PS5 hardware for the first time, with its bold, two-tone design marking a radical departure from previous PlayStation consoles. PS5 will launch in two options: a standard model with an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive, and a digital model without a disc drive, offering unprecedented choice at launch to gamers.

Today’s livestream also provided fans with a first look at the new games that will define the next generation of gaming on PlayStation 5. Across dozens of titles, most of which are launching as console exclusives or full exclusives on PS5, the world’s most talented developers showcased the potential of the hardware, which will unlock rich experiences for gamers, bringing them deeper into extraordinary game worlds than ever before.  

“With PlayStation 5, we are making a significant leap to deliver a truly new generation of transformative play experiences that will redefine expectations for what games can be,” said Jim Ryan, President and CEO of SIE. “Worlds will be richer and more beautiful, they’ll captivate your senses in ways you didn’t think possible, and you’ll be able to experience them much more seamlessly, with lightning fast loading. Today’s showcase is just a glimpse of what’s to come in the next generation, and we want to thank our community for taking this journey to PS5’s launch with us.”

One of the biggest series of all time, Grand Theft Auto, will be coming to PS5, thanks to the close partnership between SIE and Rockstar Games. Enhanced and expanded versions of Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online will launch on PS5 in the second half of 2021. With a range of technical improvements, visual upgrades and performance enhancements, GTAV & GTA Online will take full advantage of the PS5 hardware and its new features, making the game more beautiful and more responsive than ever. In addition, a new standalone version of Grand Theft Auto Online will also be made available, with access to all PS5 owners for free within the first three months of the title launching. Once the entitlement is claimed, the game is theirs to keep, and with a PlayStation Plus membership, PS5 owners will be able to play GTA Online as much as they want. Finally, starting today, all GTAV PS4 owners will get GTA$1,000,000 every month until the PS5 version of the game launches in 2021.

Additionally SIE Worldwide Studios and the industry’s top publishers and developers unveiled a lineup of PS5 titles that demonstrate a depth and breadth of unique experiences. Some of the first-party PlayStation Studios exclusives included: Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales (Insomniac Games), Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital), and Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games).

Reveals from third-party publishers included blockbuster franchises such as NBA 2K21 (2K, Visual Concepts) and Resident Evil Village (Capcom), as well as brand new IP launching on PS5 as console exclusives, such as DEATHLOOP (Bethesda) and Project Athia* (Square Enix/Luminous Productions). New titles from independent developers, such as Stray (Annapurna/ Blue Twelve Studio) and Bugsnax (Young Horses), demonstrated the diversity of content coming to the platform.

SIE also announced a slate of new PS5 accessories to enhance the gaming experience, including:

• PULSE 3D wireless headset – offering 3D audio support and dual noise-cancelling microphones;
• HD Camera – featuring dual 1080p lenses for gamers to broadcast themselves along with their epic gameplay moments;
• Media Remote – a remote control with built-in microphone to navigate movies and streaming services with ease; and
• DualSense Charging Station – for convenient charging of two DualSense Wireless Controllers.

SIE will announce pricing and additional details for PlayStation 5 at a later date.

PS5 Games from SIE Worldwide Studios and second-party partners

• Astro’s Playroom (Japan Studio)
• Demon’s Souls (Bluepoint Games / Japan Studio)
• Destruction All Stars (Lucid Games / XDEV)
• Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games)
• Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales (Insomniac Games)
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Insomniac Games)
• Returnal (Housemarque / XDEV)
• Sackboy A Big Adventure (Sumo Digital / XDEV)

PS5 Games from third-party publishers and developers

• Bugsnax (Young Horses)
• DEATHLOOP (Bethesda)
• Ghostwire: Tokyo (Bethesda)
• Godfall (Gearbox Publishing / Counterplay Games)  
• Goodbye Volcano High (KO-OP)
• Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online (Rockstar Games)
• HITMAN 3 (IO Interactive)
• JETT : The Far Shore® (Superbrothers)
• Kena: Bridge of the Spirits (Ember Lab)
• Little Devil Inside (Neostream Interactive)
• NBA 2K21 (2K, Visual Concepts)
• Oddworld Soulstorm (Oddworld Inhabitants)
• Pragmata (Capcom)
• Project Athia* (Square Enix/Luminous Productions)
• Resident Evil Village (Capcom)
• Solar Ash (Annapurna Interactive / Heart Machine)
• Stray (Annapurna / Blue Twelve Studio)
• Tribes of Midgard (Gearbox Publishing / Norsfell)
• The Pathless (Annapurna Interactive / Giant Squid)

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