Spigot
09-20-2009, 06:51 PM
As fall draws near and the days grow short, why not take a trip to a surreal land where your closest companion is your own shadow?
Okage: Shadow King
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2650/3938303407_5418a75e18.jpg
Year: 2001
Platform: PS2
Rating: Burtonesque
# of Players: 1
Okage: Shadow King is an RPG from the earlier days of the Playstation 2 era that still holds a special place in my memory. It had a perfect mix of visual flair, witty dialogue and surreal plotlines which combined to make for an experience that stood out from your average Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest knock-off.
You play as Ari, a somewhat quiet and reserved teen who finds that his shadow has been possessed by the great evil shadow king, Stan. After getting bullied by Stan for the early part of the game, you soon discover that much of Stan's power has been siphoned off and given to a variety of pretenders to the Shadow King throne. Thus begins the meat of Okage's story as you will traipse across an incredibly odd world fighting a variety of strange enemies on your quest to retrieve all of Stan's evil power.
The game mechanics are rather standard JRPG fare with random turn-based battles galore. Your party members have several spells and weapons at their disposal and Ari can summon Stan to unleash havoc upon the enemy. It's nothing revolutionary but the battles don't drag on too long, which is a blessing.
The tone of Okage is delighfully tongue-in-cheek and never takes itself too seriously. This is something seen altogether too rarely in the JRPG genre and is probably a large part of the reason that the game still resonates today.
Another big plus for Okage is the interesting visual style that it has. It has been compared to Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" in the way that none of the architecture is built at right angles. The characters are often misshapen and strange but this helps every person you meet in your travels stand out.
0mNXtEt_dlk
Okage: Shadow King (http://www.amazon.com/OKAGE-Shadow-King-Playstation-2/dp/B00005NYZ7/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1253494099&sr=8-1) can be found for anywhere between $5 and $50 on Amazon.com. You can probably find it used at your local game store if you look hard enough.
Okage: Shadow King
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2650/3938303407_5418a75e18.jpg
Year: 2001
Platform: PS2
Rating: Burtonesque
# of Players: 1
Okage: Shadow King is an RPG from the earlier days of the Playstation 2 era that still holds a special place in my memory. It had a perfect mix of visual flair, witty dialogue and surreal plotlines which combined to make for an experience that stood out from your average Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest knock-off.
You play as Ari, a somewhat quiet and reserved teen who finds that his shadow has been possessed by the great evil shadow king, Stan. After getting bullied by Stan for the early part of the game, you soon discover that much of Stan's power has been siphoned off and given to a variety of pretenders to the Shadow King throne. Thus begins the meat of Okage's story as you will traipse across an incredibly odd world fighting a variety of strange enemies on your quest to retrieve all of Stan's evil power.
The game mechanics are rather standard JRPG fare with random turn-based battles galore. Your party members have several spells and weapons at their disposal and Ari can summon Stan to unleash havoc upon the enemy. It's nothing revolutionary but the battles don't drag on too long, which is a blessing.
The tone of Okage is delighfully tongue-in-cheek and never takes itself too seriously. This is something seen altogether too rarely in the JRPG genre and is probably a large part of the reason that the game still resonates today.
Another big plus for Okage is the interesting visual style that it has. It has been compared to Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" in the way that none of the architecture is built at right angles. The characters are often misshapen and strange but this helps every person you meet in your travels stand out.
0mNXtEt_dlk
Okage: Shadow King (http://www.amazon.com/OKAGE-Shadow-King-Playstation-2/dp/B00005NYZ7/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1253494099&sr=8-1) can be found for anywhere between $5 and $50 on Amazon.com. You can probably find it used at your local game store if you look hard enough.