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X-Blades (PS3/360)

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    X-Blades (PS3/360)

    Perhaps I should open the thread by saying that this is probably going to be the first and last message!

    It failed to debut in the top 40 (in the UK) videogames charts and if you pop over to Metacritic, you should find that this game has been getting above average reviews of 6/10?s across the board.

    But what do you know, I am really genuinely enjoying it.

    Just to briefly sum the game up first of all; it comes across as a light hearted version of Heavenly Sword - the attacks are more basic and easier to put off, the usual ?jump to the left/right? to avoid attacks and counter the enemies is implemented well, there is array of magic attacks to learn and earn and the whole game just feel, well? light weight but in a good kind of way.

    I?ve spent a good hour and a half on it so far and it is jolly good fun.

    The visuals and general art style is quite nice; it has a cel-shaded anime-like look to the whole experience and is at it's best when you are outside where the sun shines and presents a rather lovely filter that makes everything gleam and sparkle. The environments are nicely presented too with different structures and themes to each area you hack and slash your way through.



    The combat does have it's own system but it is usually a hack and slash affair when you have groups of enemies around you - sometimes up to 30, which is fairly cool - and the counter/combo feature works by chaining as many hits to each enemy and the heroine grows stronger as the number of chains rise. The combos are great and offers a breather when you are fighting against the occasional bosses whom are actually quite challenging if you don?t keep on your toes.

    The voice acting is dire, the music does the job and the sound effects are a standard affair compared to other games within the genre. I don?t know who did the voice-work for the heroine but she sounds like she isn't even trying or has arrived to work late every single time she was meant to read the dialogue - thankfully, the ability to turn the speech off in the options menu is available, and is very welcome too.

    As long as you don?t go expecting similarities to Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden (or even Heavenly Sword in the same regards), you may find yourself enjoying the game even if it feels fundamentally basic and light hearted. The best advice I can offer to you guys is to either rent it for a weekend or wait until the gaming craziness of the next few weeks has died down so you can possibly see the game going for ?20 or below.

    It?s good fun, light hearted and consistently delivers a high tempo when combat opportunities arise.

    Last edited by Extra Terrestrial; 25-02-2009, 21:00. Reason: Tiding up...

    #2
    They did pick the single worst day of the year so far to launch it though didn't they?

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      #3
      Originally posted by Flabio View Post
      They did pick the single worst day of the year so far to launch it though didn't they?
      Oh, no doubting about that mate!



      And the box-art cover is fairly awful and clich? to the point of being off-putting to potential buyers.
      Last edited by Extra Terrestrial; 24-02-2009, 21:30. Reason: Poor grammar...

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        #4
        Nice impressions, thanks. I've been quietly following it since I heard about it - never intended to pick it up on release, but will keep an eye out for it in the future.

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          #5
          It should be in the bad boxart thread

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            #6
            Did you see the post in Kotaku a few weeks ago about the Japanese box art? The PS3 version has her wearing a less skimpy outfit.

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              #7
              someone said to me they went out and bought this...but the games shop did not have it on display he had to go and ask for it and they brought a copy from out the back

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                #8
                I bought this a couple of weekends ago, for the PC, but didn't really do much other than install it until yesterday, now I'm a few hours in and dealing with seriously cramped hands. It's a real button masher, with a little bit of strategy involved; you need to figure out what elements work best in which situations and such, and sometimes it's much better to use guns over swords and vice versa.

                It's flat-out gorgeous, I'm running it on a 9800GT at 1920x1200 and the effects are stunning, especially the elemental attacks, fire and lightning and such. Mind you, I'm not always up on the latest trends in PC games, so I may be being easily impressed.

                I don't think much more can be said about the main character than has probably already been said; I did find it very amusing that I stumbled across a hidden costume and it was more concealing than the outfit you start with.

                My only complaint is that I'm sometimes not sure of where to go. I just wound up in the

                Great Rift, which I've been told is optional

                and after several deaths to falling - there are some right tricky platform bits - backed out of the area with no clear idea of where to go next.

                Oh, and the PC game does have online activation, but once you've done that you can put the disc away, unlike certain - Bioshock, I'm looking at you - titles that combined online activation WITH needing to have the disc in.

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                  #9
                  GAME had this at 19.99. Decided to get it at that price. Enjoying it so far. I was in trouble on one level until I realised that I now had a Healing spell... doh!! After a couple of starts I found I had to pretty much attack everything, scenery included to gaurantee picking up all the items.

                  I would agree with the first reply here on everything. The game seems to be aimed at my level!!

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                    #10
                    I stopped playing this at level 3 i just could not take it anymore...

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