Enslaved: Odyssey to the West

Continuing the trend of old classic stories being recycled into modern entertainment, last month saw the release of Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, a video game remake of the 16th Century Chinese story Journey to the West, transplanting the story to a post-apocalyptic New York City. Three of the characters from the story made the jump to the new version.

And while the new version borrows from the original, there aren't too many similarities.Monkey, Tripitaka and Pigsy are all present, but Sandy and the Dragon don't appear. Monkey's staff, his "cloud somersault" and especially his golden headband all make an appearance. It's quite well done - it stands as a story on it's own as well as being a successful re-imagining of the original. No surprise, given it's story line is written by Alex Garland of 28 Days Later and The Beach fame.

Visually, it's stunning. The post apocalyptic New York is my favourite, as nature has reclaimed the city and there's a fantastic mix of rotting urban scenery mixed with the lush greens and golds of the forest that's slowly taking over Manhattan. Though I wish it had lasted longer, and shown us more of what was left of the city, the game hits the road and literally heads for the hill soon enough, and the scenery there is just as wonderfully done. Where the game drops the ball a little is the wrecking yard / swamp where Pigsy lives. That environment just seemed dull and repetitive to me, but thankfully you move beyond it quickly to another visually impressive set of levels leading up to the end of the game.

And as a game, it's... well no one part of it is exceptional really. The platforming is good and tightly executed but it's so intuitive to control it begins to feel unchallenging. You can't really make a mistake unless you try. The combat is basic, but works well. When you're under attack from all front it's does get stressful and exciting but most of the time you don't really feel in danger. The puzzle-type aspects to the levels are the best aspect of it all, working out how you need to proceed or how to bypass enemies and/or obstacles, but other games have done this better.

Where Enslaved really shines though is that it's whole is far more than the sum of it's parts. All these uninspired but well executed aspects of the game come together so seamlessly to make for a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Coupled with a pretty engaging storyline and it's a game that'll keep you eagerly playing right through to the end. I can thoroughly recommend this game to anyone.