An amazing 3D action platformer that's most enjoyable when it hits its strides.
It's a good game. That much is sure. Perhaps it could even be considered a great game...that's very flawed. It has all the trappings of a 3D action platformer of that era, plus a little more. Combat was a surprising take, as it borders on the realm of the fighting/beat'em up genre, giving you an assortment of combos, evasive maneuvers, and throws. Platforming for the most part is pretty tame and ordinary, but there's a bit of adventuring to be done as you're tasked with finding switches to unlock doors, sneaking past dangerous (armed) guards, snowboarding across the landscape, riding animals, solving basic puzzles, soaring on the wind. It's all very engaging stuff and controls fairly well for the most part, and some situations are trickier than others, giving a decent challenge in some spots. I've even been surprised by a few of the situations they put you in. Some of the segments are truly creative and unique, as shallow as they might be. But it's these little bite-sized moments of brilliance that rounds out the package.
But it's not perfect. I have noticed some glitches and bugs. The camera can be finicky at times. And some of the sections were more frustrating than it should've been. But overall, gameplay wise, I'd say Kya (pronounced Kaya apparently) is solid.
Graphics are also quite a treat. The setting is full of color, fantasy and whimsy. Giant trees. Islands floating in the sky. I doubt anyone would be wowed in this day and age, but comparing it to the likes of other popular cartoonish 3D platformers (Jak and Daxter/Ratchet and Clank) the game is no slouch. For an unknown IP it's impressive. But it does come at a cost. Glimpses of screen tearing and bouts of sloppy framerate will occasionally happen, putting a damper on the experience.
Aside from the gameplay and graphical issues, my main issue with the game would have to be the story, script and characters. The story is fine (even if it is a bit cliche), but the writing and voice acting is a bit shoddy. Once I noticed a character pronouncing the name of a character two different ways...in the same scene. And sometimes the voices don't seem to emote the way you'd expect. They'll say a random "Whaaaat?" that just comes out all wrong. On top of that, things in the story seem odd and out of place. So, don't expect much from that department.
And on the music side of things...well, let's just say I only remember one song, and not in a good way.
The more I play Kya: Dark Lineage, the more I enjoy it. I was initially bummed out by the terrible presentation of the story. But it's truly great game...buried beneath a lack of polish. It's packed full of cool ideas and solid, diverse gameplay. It has a good length (maybe 10-20 hours?). And I've found it's buggy and glitchy, but these bugs and glitches can be fun and funny as I've found stupid things like being able to see through walls and wall jump/climb areas that I shouldn't be able to(which is great for totally breaking the game in a fun way).
Really, this game feels like a sweet mix of stealthy 3D platforming and Zelda-lite adventuring with beat'em up combat.
Due to some of the frustrations I've had with the choppy framerate (really sluggish in a few places, like 10 fps or so), bad camera angles, and control issues (climbing mostly), I wouldn't feel right giving this game a 10. But in my opinion this game is a solid 9.
Some things in the presentation falter, but if you're looking for an extra title to go with your aging PS2 library, I'd fully recommend it.