Pros: presentation, puzzles, gameplay

Cons: controls feel stiff and the frequent mini bosses are a chore

The Bottom Line:
While the unfortunate flaws prevent it from being this generations Jak And Daxter you could do worse than play this easy, but enjoyable little platformer




If there's one name in the gaming community that has become synonymous with quality it would have to be Rare. From <b>Killer Instinct</b> (<i>snes</i>) through to <b>Perfect Dark</b> (<i>Nintendo 64</i>) this is a company that has been breaking new ground in nearly every genre despite the technical limitations they have been facing. It is likely for this reason that Microsoft turned to rare for a killer launch title on their new Xbox360 console. Rare answered with not one, but two, eagerly anticipated titles in the forms of <b>Perfect Dark Zero</b> (<i>prequel to one of the best games ever designed</i>) and this game <b>Kameo: Elements Of Power</b> that has been teasing people with it's potential since it was first announced for the N64 nearly 6 years ago.

<b>Elements Of Power</b> tells the story of Kameo, a young elf princess who also happens to be the daughter of her kingdoms greatest champion. Years ago her father disappeared after defeating the evil troll king Thorn, and while Kameo has spent the years since living in relative peace her whole world is about to take a sinister turn. It seems Kameo's mother has passed on to her the power to transform into the elemental sprites, or guardians of her kingdom. It also seems Kameo has an older sister named Kalus who feels cheated out of her birth right. Needless to say this combination of spunky young heroine and jealous older sister takes a turn for the worse when Kalus kidnaps the rest of the family and attempts to subdue their elemental sprites so that Thorn (<i>yup, turns out the dude is still alive</i>) can destroy the Elvin kingdom and rule the world with his "technology".

Similarities to Lord Of The Rings aside I would have to say that the story is probably one of <b>Kameo</b>'s weaker elements. Given a little time this colorful adventure could easily have been a <b>Legend Of Zelda</b> rival, if only it didn't feel so incomplete. <b>Kameo</b> is a very linear game that progresses along the lines of 'travel to one village, solve a puzzle to reach a boss that unlocks an elemental, who is used to solve another puzzle to a second boss, who unlocks the elemental you need to solve the temple puzzles. This in turn get's you to the really big boss that you need to defeat in order to save a relative who provides you with the elemental you need to access the next village.' Unfortunately with limited cut scenes, and absolutely no interaction with your nemesis, then you never really feel as compelled to advance as you really should.

So then I find myself asking why I continued to push my way through the game, and the answer is simple. <b>Kameo</b> is actually surprisingly fun to play. At it's heart this is a classical platform game, but with the added twist of the elemental sprites. Each of these creatures have their own strengths. Some; such as the boxing house plant Pummel Weed, are useful in battle, some are better at platforming, others can traverse the water, and one particularly cool creature can freeze the very air to create new paths. Only by learning the strengths of each creature will you be able to successfully navigate the entire game world and solve the games fairly simple puzzles.

For the most part battle is a frequent, but unobtrusive part of each level. However when exceptions are made they are made well; well all except for the action heavy puzzle light, and decidedly tedious, level that Microsoft insisted on shoehorning in at the start. Largely these exceptions occur in the badlands between each village, and when you first witness this area you will lose any misconceptions you may have had about the 360's abilities. To give you an idea of the power on display here consider that the original X-box could handle maybe 20 or so characters onscreen at once without slowdown, but in the badlands you will witness literally thousands of trolls battling thousands of soldiers, and it can get very intense when you have to enter the battle in order to complete your objectives.

Still the battles honestly don't take up much of your time until you manage to reach the games various bosses. These fall into two categories. The first are the actually disappointing mid bosses that take up the majority of the battles. Every one of them is exactly the same; a giant shadow troll that can not be touched, but that sends out many light trolls to attack you. These can be hit, and once you've done that you simply pick them up and throw them at the Shadow Troll. As you progress their attacks and durability will increase, but otherwise they are all the same turgid and predictable boss battles that get in your way.

Once you reach the dungeons though you will find the real deal. Huge end of level bosses that require some serious thought to defeat. To beat any of these bosses you'll need to use 2 or more specific elementals, and figure out how to combine their attacks to get through the bosses defense. once you know this the fights can become pretty easy, but still, figuring it out yourself and then utilizing that tactic can be a very rewarding experience.

Sadly as much as I enjoyed playing through most of <b>Kameo</b>, I still found a very real problem rearing it's head. It feels like a side effect of the games cross platform development really, but I found the games controls to be a little unresponsive. The system itself works fine, having the 2 trigger buttons perform all of Kameo's moves, with the face buttons being used to switch between whichever Elementals you have assigned. It's just that when you try to move Kameo using the thumb stick there's a slight delay in her movement. Ordinarily you wont notice, but at times in the game a puzzle/battle will require you to push another item off a cliff, and when your character ends up moving around the object at critical moments you will find yourself shouting.

Still, despite a few gameplay hiccups I do believe Rare has provided a nicely presented game here. <b>Kameo</b>'s graphics are simply breathtaking. The locations may come down to the cliches, fire world, ice world ect... but each of them has been superbly rendered with more of those wonderful lighting effects the 360 knows how to handle. I did notice a few clipping issues during the sloppily designed first level, but after that the game had me well pleased, particularly with the draw distance over the badlands.

Oh, and the sound. The sound is just incredible. I loved the voice acting in this game, it was genuinely funny in the way few games can manage. I don't care whether it's the Oracle's whining, the Whatnot's (<i>your talking book</i>) sarcastic guidance, or the over the top battle cries of the mysterious lead soldier, I was laughing. Then when you combine that with some wonderfully cute tunes for each level and you have a game that is as fun to watch as any Disney movie released lately.

All in all I'd heartily recommend <b>Kameo</b> as a game you should enjoy playing. While the unfortunate flaws prevent it from being this generations <b>Jak And Daxter</b> you could do worse than play this easy, but enjoyable little platformer. Besides, if you happen to be a parent who wants to share their new console with the kids, then the game is really essential right now.
3.5/5

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