Thor: God of Thunder
Preview
His very first own game
by Josh Butler
previewed on WII
Kratos? (cont.)
Smaller foes will also see Thor resembling Kratos, as these brawls largely consist of weighty combos and over-the-top powers. Unfortunately, in its current state, God of Thunder lacks the flow of that game’s combat, as truly satisfying move sequences are difficult to build in the distance between enemies. The flexible camera also jars, and you may find yourself longing for God of War’s restrictive but functional, fixed viewpoint. Valor points can be attained while fighting and these can be utilised to upgrade Thor’s skills and powers, adding not only thunder, but wind and lightning to your arsenal.
For continuity, Chris Helmsworth and Tom Hiddleston reprise their roles as Thor and Loki in voice-acting. But given the exclamations and snippets of dialogue on show, one hopes the standard of acting is higher in the upcoming film. Nevertheless, their likenesses are uncanny and the level of fidelity to the source will please die-hard fans, as the worlds featured consist of Asgard, Morpelheim, Nilheim and Vanaheim. Thor’s rogues gallery is well represented by showdowns with the likes of Surtur, Ulik and Ymir.
Simple controls
The Wii version, while originally also slated for PSP release, could ultimately end up being a Nintendo exclusive as Sega have announced they are backing out of Sony’s handheld in favour of the 3DS. Platform politics aside, Red Fly Studios are developing, fresh from also handling the Wii release of Star Wars Force Unleashed II with under-appreciated proficiency.
Encouragingly, the Wii version looks and plays much like Spiderman 2 or Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction of Marvel’s short-lived hayday. Sadly that hayday was 6 years and a whole console generation ago, and the undetailed environments and blocky effects does even the Wii’s understated capabilities a disservice. The controls are suitably simple, with a liberal tapping of the A button for attacks, D-pad to switch between elemental powers and some judicious use of waggle – which Red Fly assure us is used sparingly – to bring Thor’s hammer, Mjölnir, into play. From such humble mechanics comes much opportunity for juggling and linking combos, and building a sequence of over 40 hits allows for even greater elemental finishes. Keeping with the God of War influence, valor emanates from defeated enemies copiously which can similarly be used for levelling. Unique to the Wii version are runes, which will allow greater customisation to Thor’s attacks.
Finally, the DS version; likely fated to be the overlooked version as the 3DS hits shelves. This would be a shame, when the minds behind it are WayForward, responsible for the side-scrolling Wii sleeper-hit, Batman: The Brave and the Bold. The studio will apparently be playing to their strengths with another 2D brawler. From what we have seen the graphics are underwhelming, but with WayForward’s pedigree there is a chance they might be able to work the same magic with Thor’s simple hammer and lightning mechanics in one last heroic effort on the aged platform.
Short but sweet?
The game will take 8 to 10 hours to finish asserts producer Stephen Frost. This game-life will be slightly extended by additional costumes and play modes, but with a lack of online play the experience may well fall short of the immortality befitting the subject matter.
Thor: God of Thunder hits consoles on May 3rd, the same day as the US cinema release.
