Good ol' fashioned Hack n Slash with some minor problems that could be fixed easily with patches. Story may be lacking.
1) Target locking is very jumpy. One second you will be locked onto one target, then suddenly onto another while the first one is now free to attack you while you are now forced to attack the new target. There is no button to switch targets. Instead, the computer chooses targets automatically depending on (not certain) what target is closest to you.
This causes some frustration during battles (especially boss battles) because it becomes very difficult; impossible at times; to concentrate your attacks on the boss only.
Good news is that after about an hour of playing, you get used to the targeting system and you learn to adapt your playing to revolve around the system.
2) There IS a storyline, but it seems to come and go. What I mean is that you will see a cutscene and then go off and play 2 hours' worth of action before you get to see what happens next.
**So far, I havent seen enough of the story to say whether or not it is actually a good or bad story. I will try to remember to update this information later.
B) Secondly, the minor problems that may be an issue to SOME people, but may not be an issue to others:
1) The voice acting is bad during the cutscenes. Either they are pausing in weird moments, like the stereotypes of Captain Kirk from Star Trek, or they will sound like a bad actor in a home-made movie where they will say random words loudly for no reason. EX: "WHY are WE going this WAY?"
This doesnt seem to ruin the story, but actually makes it quite humorous!
2) Movements seem EXTREMELY unnatural and exaggerated!
When Ayumi walks, she looks like a sassy supermodel walking down the runway in fast forward.
When she runs, her legs spread out so far that she looks like she is leaping hurdles.
When she jumps.... SHE FLIES!
All of this makes the game unique though. It seems to fit with the whole 'anime' theme.
3) The game seems like it was rendered in fast forward. Everything, from Ayumi's movements to the movements of the enemies, seems to move VERY quickly during fights. This, again, makes the game more interesting. It kind of emphasises the fast-paced combat in the game.
4) If you like subtitles during your cutscenes (I do), then you will need a magnifying glass. No matter what resolution you put the PS3 on, the subtitles turn out microscopic! There are no options in the game to correct this neither, so you will either need to turn the volume up on the game so that you can hear the voices, sit REAL close to the screen, or do without subs.
The on-screen hints that sometimes appear are also microscopic, as well as the main menu options.
A + B NOTE:
The targeting system and the subtitles could easily be corrected with a patch if the developers decide to support this game post-release.
C) Now for a general breakdown of the game:
1) Graphics:
Simply put, the graphics are not what is considered "next-gen" (if you can even call things next-gen anymore). They appear as PS2 graphics, but with a LITTLE more OOmpf in the brightness/sharpness area. Not bad, but not really PS3 graphics and completely acceptable if you arent anal about graphics.
2) Sound:
Music is pretty cool, if you like music that gets your blood pumping while being swamped by enemies! :)
SFX on the other hand are mediocre... They arent great, but not sucky.
3) Story:
Like I said in part A, it is there... at times. I will have to update this later.
4) Controls:
Button arrangement is pretty comfortable. You have easy access to all the commands.
In terms of functionality, they need some work. To dodge, you must use '2x tap direction + jump'. It is pretty troublesome and after a while, most people wilI begin to give up on dodging altogether. Personally, I only accomplished it (ON PURPOSE) a total of 2 times within 4 hours of play!
HINT: Buy Teleport ASAP and use it instead. It consumes a tiny bit of Rage, but MUCH easier to use than dodge.
There is also the responsiveness of the controls that can be an issue to some. For example, with the dodge, you may tell the character to execute the command, but she just steps in the direction you tell her to go 2x and then jumps! Then, later on, when you arent even trying, she will dodge by accident, screwing you up somehow!
5) Gameplay:
This IS a hack n slash style game, which proceeds as follows:
'enter a room; doors lock up so that there is no escape; you kill everything that spawns until the enemy count (a meter in this case) reaches zero; WIN! = Doors unlock and you proceed to next room; LOSE! = You start the ROOM all over from very beginning.'
Also, you have infinite tries of a room and get to keep any souls collected during previous tries. So, if you find that you need a certain skill to beat the level, but cant afford it, keep collecting souls until you die, then retry the room and collect more souls until you reach enough to get the skill. (Another small hint.)
Also, the boss battles seem to vary in how to win. Some bosses can be killed in any way you choose, while some are not even scratched by your swrords and must be defeated using strategic means.
A great example that is still fresh in my mind is the Spider Queen. Melee attacks have NO effect on her (she WILL kill you if you try... it is HARD to escape if you get too close to her). She has these little bug things that fly around her and you must shoot them all down while ALSO killing dozens of swarming spider minions. Once the flying bugs are all killed, you can hit her with ranged magic (I used Fireball) until she respawns the flying bugs. Repeat until she is dead.
So yeah, not just hacking and slashing, but also strategy involved with this game.
6) Game Length:
Length of the game is seeming pretty good so far. I have only played ~4 hours of the game and STILL (about half way through) on the first map. The developers advertise that there will be 20 maps, so 20 * multiple hours per map = decent length of play time in the game.
7) Replay Value:
I havent completed the game yet, but there are 2 endings to this game and according to a hint that appeared on an in-game loading screen, there is a PRO MODE available after beating any difficulty. There are also 3 difficulties available (not including PRO) from the beginning.
8) Customization of Character:
The developers said that you would be able to change outfits and (I think) swords. So far, I havent seen anything, but I am still on the first map and will update this information once this option becomes available.
9) FINAL CONCLUSION:
This game is DEFINITELY NOT the best game of the year, but it is very entertaining, fun, and easy to play.
In short, it is definitely something worth playing in order to entertain yourself when you are bored or feel like killing an onslaught of monsters, but not worth it if you are expecting a high-quality game like, for example, Metal Gear Solid 4 or something like that.
The game DOES get better as you play, so do not play just the first few rooms and give up on it. When I first started playing, I was like, "Maybe I should return this," but, after a few hours of playing, I started to get into it and the action picked up dramatically!
Simply put, give this game a chance, but it isnt for every taste. It is a good game, considering that it came from a small development team (Gaijin).