June 11th, 2007 by Dynamo
Splatter
This game exhibits graphics that are exceptionally well done compared to other PS2 games. Battlefields are large but there isn't much in the way of detail, which is not that surprising when the engine also has to be able to render up to 65000 units on your TV screen. It could be argued that the enemy and soldier models are fairly simple but it is still quite a feat to display such an enormous number of enemies at the same and rarely -if ever- a noticeable drop in framerate.
Particle effects, especially around battles where Inugami is equipped with a blade, are very well done. There is something immensely satisfying seeing a glowing sword slice through the air, kill a demon and have green blood splattering the screen. This doesn't happen all the time but occurs when the kill is made close to the in-game camera. The chaos is complete when the throngs of human soldiers let thousands of their arrows fly across the screen at the same time. It is truly a sight to behold. The only real downside to the graphics is the blur effect, known as the PS2 shimmer, that shows up regularly.
The roar of men
While this game may be exceptional visually, it doesn't really do much to stand out in the audio department. There certainly are some nice tunes included in the game but they are repeated over and over.
On the upside, there is a noticeable link between the music and the on-screen action. Calming music is played when there isn't much happening and tunes with a much higher tempo take the stage when the field is littered with demons.
When Inugami is absent from a particular battle, all that can be heard is the background music. As he approaches a warring throng of men and demons, the background music loses precedence and is drowned out by the roar of men, the slashing of weapons and the cries of demons. A very clever way to use sound to get you in the right mood for the action at hand.
The voice acting and FMVs are all in Japanese, which is minutely disappointing as it would have been nice to understand what is being said. Still, it is a game set in feudal Japan and it is admittedly much more appropriate for the voices to be in Japanese so the developers can be forgiven for this small oversight.
Balancing score
Sadly Demon Chaos' difficultly level is lacking any form of balance. The first batch of missions don't exhibit much of a challenge at all while the difficultly level of some of the later stages proves to be rather erratic. Some of the missions are nothing short of a joke while others will require a few attempts and changes in strategy. The story doesn't really offer anything you can do after your first time through and the game lacks incentive to continue after completing it the first time.
Yet despite these flaws, Demon Chaos is a fun and good-looking game. Calling it a mindless button-masher would be too easy as it is crucial that you are constantly aware of the positions of your allies, rushing to their positions if they hit a spot of trouble. The thousands of dumb enemies prove to be more effective than a hundred smart ones sometimes and what is wrong with killing hordes of brainless demons after a long, frustrating day at school or at work?
|
