Okami is a work of art come alive, but it's the incredible adventure gameplay and remarkable puzzles that truly shine.
Okami takes place in the wondrous and beautiful world of Nippon, a region of Japan where the world is bathed in color. The region follows a legend of a warrior named Nagi and a white wolf named Shiranui, two heroes who defeated the great evil beast, Orochi, and prevented the world from being covered in darkness. One hundred years later, the world is once again threatened by a creeping darkness. Called down from the heavens by the wood sprite Sakuya, the motherly deity Amaterasu (who takes the form of a white wolf, similar to Shiranui) is decidedly chosen to heal the world and banish the darkness once more. Amaterasu must purify the world by seeking out the Guardian Saplings, giant trees that protect the world's color. Along the way, Amaterasu is led along by the tiny artist Issun, and meets a plethora of characters, some who have more significance to the legend than expected. Although the story can feel a bit too by-the-book at times, it's excellent that the game manages to add in such clever characters to such brilliant and inventive storytelling. Watching the story unfold is beyond simple fairy tale, instead producing an epic narrative that will keep players hooked.
Presenting such a story is no easy task. Creating a world that could emulate the design of feudal Japan is once thing, but the developers took the world of Okami one step further. While the now-disbanded Clover Studios' former cel-shaded wonder Viewtiful Joe showed off a world that could mimic a comic book's appearance, Okami is much different. Instead, Okami presents itself like an ancient Japanese piece of art. The beautiful, seemingly hand-drawn aesthetic is so unique and is absolutely stunning. Characters are whimsically designed, Japanese emotion effects and all, magnifying their charm and creativity. There are many, many moments in Okami when the game manages to show off its graphics and you'll no doubt be in awe at how great the game looks. To boot, the current developers Ready at Dawn made the Wii version of Okami 480p and widescreen compatible, making the world of Okami even better looking. Okami doesn't pride itself on technical achievements and instead parallels the industry by producing an artistic and vibrant world. Graphically, there are few games that surpass Okami when it comes to creating a wondrous world to explore.
Amaterasu's method of searching out the Guardian Saplings and purifying the world lies in the Celestial Brush, a mystical paintbrush that lets Amaterasu alter the environment. The abilities can range from drawing a circle in the sky to make the sun rise, slash across an enemy as an attack, or even draw a bomb to break through a wall. This adds a unique degree to solving puzzles. You need daytime? Draw the sun. Want to cross a bridge? Draw one. The abilities are all performed by Amaterasu; no need to equip these powers. To earn these abilities, Amaterasu must find constellations that let her communicate with other deities. The deities command different powers and it can be really fun drawing and performing these abilities.
Combat follows an interesting set of rules. Upon encountering a Demon Scroll in different areas, Amaterasu is thrown into battle against a slew of disturbing demons. Facing down some strange Japanese folklore demons can be fun. Amaterasu can attack using either by simple tackles and bites, use equipment to defend against specific attacks, or use the Celestial Brush to slash, bomb, or earn treasure. At the end of each battle, you're graded by how fast you defeated the demons and how much damage you took. The grade lets you earn more treasure and pick-ups. Although I didn't find the combat to reach the caliber of Zelda, Okami performs battle well by introducing new techniques frequently and without hassle. It's not flawless, but it is beautifully rendered and ingeniously performed.
But you'll need to stay sharp; Amaterasu must travel across Nippon, exploring dungeons, learning new abilities, and perform many, many side-quests. There are a slew of things to do in Nippon, but a major one is Praise. By performing good-hearted tasks like feeding animals or revitalizing sakura blossoms, Amaterasu can earn Praise, which can be spent on increased Solar Energy health, ink, or even the size of your currency purse. Earning praise is just one of the many side-quests that can be accomplished. Searching for treasure, fishing, upgrading your skills and learning new skills are just a few of the things available while exploring the world of Okami. If you loved Zelda and its many side-quests, Okami at its 30+ hours of gameplay will have you hooked instantly. It's that cool.
Being that this is a port from the PS2 to the Wii, it is to be expected that the developers at Ready at Dawn mix in some Wii controls to spice up the port. Attacking and tackling can be performed by swinging the Wii Remote rhythmically, and holding the B-trigger brings up the Celestial Brush, with drawing occurring by moving the Wii Remote. This seems like a no-brainer; using the Wii Remote to gesture writing with a calligraphy brush seems like the perfect idea for Okami's concept. Is it really? Well, yes and no. There are times when drawing with the Wii Remote works brilliantly. One example is drawing circles, which surpasses the PS2 controls in every way. On the other hand, there are also times when the drawing aspect can be very frustrating. This mostly occurs when drawing straight lines; the Power Slash technique is Amaterasu's cutting attack. It only works with a straight, quickly-ascribed line, something that takes practice to get under control (though is made slightly easier thanks to the Z button, which can be held down to keep a line straighter). Something as simple as drawing a curved line can be difficult to grasp. Fortunately, the game offers plenty of opportunities to practice and get a handle on the ink abilities. The Wii controls also work well in some of the minigames (to be expected, considering all the Wii minigame collections these days). At the end of the day, the Wii controls get the job done and work well after significant practice. They have their moments of frustration, but they do add a new dimension to Okami's famed gameplay.
Pros
+ Stunning graphics present a beautiful and flourished world
+ Zelda-esque gameplay is full of great puzzles and challenges
+ Story is engaging and well-presented
+ Wii controls make gameplay feel natural and unique
+ Plenty of side-quests to complete
Cons
- Wii controls can be tricky to master
- No extra content
Okami is a work of art. Its presentation is beyond any other Wii game to date and doesn't ever hesitate in showing off its stellar art design and lush, beautiful world. There's rarely a moment where Okami's phenomenal cel-shaded, calligraphy-based world will not leave you in awe. Even better is that the gameplay is remarkable as well. Its familiarity to Zelda is a gift, but the game manages to mix in the excellent art design into the gameplay thanks to the Celestial Brush. The puzzles, combat, and side-quests are all extremely clever uses of the Celestial Brush and its mechanics. The Wii controls are also very well implemented; drawing with the Wii Remote has its frustrations, but those who played the PS2 Okami will find it to be more fluid than before and newcomers (with practice) will be drawing Celestial markings in no time. Despite the lack of extra content for the Wii, Okami remains to be one of the most enjoyable adventure titles of recent memory. It's incredibly well-designed, both in art and gameplay, and manages to take what the Wii offers and integrate it into an already brilliantly-designed game. If you didn't play the first Okami, this is an absolute must-play, and even if you did, there's still something interesting to check out in the Wii version.