Kena Bridge of Spirits Review: A Game You’ve Played Before

Kena: Bridge of Spirits — out now on PC, PS4, and PS5 — is the primary sport for California-based studio Ember Lab, which was beforehand within the enterprise of constructing animated shorts and commercials. No marvel then that probably the most profitable factor about Kena: Bridge of Spirits is its character designs and animations. The titular protagonist Kena (voiced by Dewa Ayu Dewi Larassanti) looks like a Studio Ghibli heroine designed by the use of Disney, Pixar, and Laika. Kena is accompanied in every single place by tiny cute little creatures who could be finest described as furry black-coloured Minions (although they are not bumbling fools). Some aspect characters are actually cute too. And all of them are at their finest in Kena: Bridge of Spirits’ picture mode, the place they pose, say cheese, and are available alive.

That is all set in a world impressed by Asian cultures, primarily Japanese and Balinese. Inari fox statues dot the panorama, torii gates are pulled from Shinto, and the sport’s beautiful background gamelan orchestra rating (extra so when Kena is exploring) entails a collaboration with Baliense ensemble Gamelan Çudamani. However Kena: Bridge of Spirits by no means actually justifies its setting, in why its story must borrow from — a cynic may say “acceptable”, as an alternative of borrow — the cultures that it does. In any case, Ember Lab is blissful to stay with Western English accents in every single place, which does not sit nicely with its love for all issues visually Jap.

Talking of the story, Kena: Bridge of Spirits does not ever actually pull you in. That is largely as a result of its characters aren’t fleshed out, with Kena herself being short-changed, so you are not actually motivated to do what the sport desires you to. And although the sport has some robust thematic constructing blocks — it is about grief, therapeutic, and transferring on — Ember Labs is unable to provide you with mechanics which may illustrate that by gameplay on Kena: Bridge of Spirits. For probably the most half, it is a regular motion platformer counting on the identical instruments that energy Sony’s largest franchises (from God of War to Horizon Zero Dawn) meshed with its apparent Zelda inspirations. All merged in a single. The one good factor is that it is not bloated, coming in at eight to 9 hours.

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A few enemy sorts in Kena: Bridge of Spirits
Photograph Credit score: Ember Labs

Kena: Bridge of Spirits opens with a textual content crawl, telling us that it takes place in a world the place folks construct wood masks to honour those that’ve died and assist information their spirits to the subsequent world. However some spirits get caught at instances, manifesting into tree-like contortions and corrupting the world. That is the place Kena is available in. Like her father, Kena is a spirit information — she is bestowed with a magical employees handed down the household for generations. Kena heals the misplaced souls (learn: bash them repeatedly on the pinnacle) and clears out corruption. She is a bridge for spirits, figuratively. However she’s not doing the job alone.

The aforementioned furry black Minions often called Rot observe Kena round, they usually additionally assist her in a number of methods. Rot can unlock new areas — both by carrying objects one place to a different that in flip resolve environmental puzzles, or by reworking into a big sealion-like creature for a restricted time to clear away corruption. Rot can assist you in Kena: Bridge of Spirits’ fight too — by smashing into enemies, or distracting them that will let you get in some licks. However Rot want “braveness” to emerge in battle, which Kena should construct by attacking and choosing up golden spheres that enemies drop. (The one downside with Rot is that they’re referred to as Rot, which is objectively a horrible title. I suppose Ember Labs needed them to be a personification of decay, however “rot” is just not phrase.)

“Braveness” must be judiciously utilized in Kena: Bridge of Spirits although, because it has different assault and defensive functions too in fight. You need to use it to heal your self with the assistance of therapeutic areas activated by Rot inside each fight enviornment. “Braveness” will also be referred to as upon to have Rot destroy enemy spawn factors. And lastly, it additionally powers Kena’s superpowered skills — from a “Rot Infused Arrow” that offers mighty injury, to a powered “Rot Hammer” that does area-of-effect injury to all enemies round. Staying alive in Kena: Bridge of Spirits is about deciding one of the best use of the “braveness” obtainable to you. All of the extra necessary given Kena cannot take a number of injury.

The particular skills — Rot Hammer, Rot Infused Arrow, slo-mo archery, defend enhance, and dash assaults — obtainable within the ability tree all want that aforementioned “karma” forex which is earned by combating enemies and restoring the corrupted surroundings round you.

Kena deploys the Rot Hammer in Kena: Bridge of Spirits
Photograph Credit score: Ember Labs

That is all supplementary to Kena’s main combating expertise that do not want “karma” or “braveness”. You’ve got obtained a lightweight assault, a heavy assault, defend, dodge, block, parry, and bow and arrow. You will want to make use of a mixture of these, together with all of the particular expertise, to get by the enemies that Kena: Bridge of Spirits throws at you. As the issue scales up with new enemy sorts, Kena: Bridge of Spirits pushes you to adapt as nicely. Whereas I might get by with gentle assaults early on, in opposition to greater enemies, I discovered myself utilizing dodge extra typically, dispatching Rot to tie them up, after which capturing highly effective arrows from a distance. However since Kena: Bridge of Spirits’ arenas are usually on the small aspect, fight did find yourself being button mashing at instances — which isn’t enjoyable.

Exterior of that, fight is interspersed with bits of platforming and traversal puzzling. This principally entails on the lookout for switches that Rot or your bow can hit, big flowers that you may latch onto together with your bow (identical to a grappling hook), or climbing rocks and ledges which can be marked conveniently with white paint (is it fowl droppings?). Should you’re caught, you possibly can put on these aforementioned wood masks to see the world by the attitude of different spirits — it highlights objects of curiosity. However the options to sure Kena: Bridge of Spirits puzzles could be obtuse. I obtained caught at one sub-level for half an hour as soon as, solely to come across an answer that also does not make any logical sense to me.

Although Kena: Bridge of Spirits encourages you to discover, this isn’t an open world. Identical to the previous Zelda-type video games it is impressed by, its world is break up into zones that unlock one after the opposite. Every zone has the identical final aim: free a spirit. That normally entails buying a set quantity of some merchandise. Doing that in flip would require you to fulfil sure subtasks. It is all very easy. As you make your means by every zone, you will come throughout infestations that block your means. You’ll be able to clear these utilizing Rot after you defeat the enemies that may inevitably spawn. There will probably be mini bosses alongside the way in which, and a serious boss on the finish. Sport design 101 basically.

It’s also possible to select to take a seat down anyplace and play with the Rot. Kena will even do that on her personal when you let her be for some time.

Look how cute everyone seems to be!
Photograph Credit score: Ember Labs

That mentioned, the world of Kena: Bridge of Spirits is admittedly attractive and vibrant — at the same time as the sport is crammed with decay, being caught, and loneliness — from its darkish lantern-lit caves to shiny forest outdoor. And that is from my vantage level on the bottom PlayStation 4, the place clean efficiency comes at the price of graphical element and visual aliasing (extra so when Kena is operating). It isn’t as if the sport is pushing for realism although, with its cartoony textures. And regardless that I did not expertise Kena: Bridge of Spirits at its peak, that is how most console players will invariably play it, given Sony’s struggles with manufacturing sufficient PlayStation 5 models to go round. To not say something of the additional provide points in India. Should you’re on PC, you get a a lot better deal because of Epic’s regional pricing efforts.

In the end, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a by-the-numbers 3D action-adventure sport. It would seem like a contemporary Zelda sport however does not play like one. It is largely only a sequence of arena-based fight routines, stitched collectively by lengthy stretches of traversal, and cutscenes which can be well-designed however really feel like a forgotten Hollywood B-movie. Too typically, Kena: Bridge of Spirits reminds you of higher video games you’ve got performed and that it is borrowing from — which isn’t signal. There is no hurt in studying from others, it is definitely nicely made, however it’s missing in originality. There’s little persona to Kena: Bridge of Spirits, for it is adopting the sheen of others. For a debut title, that is undoubtedly effort — however I concern Ember Labs have performed it too secure.

Execs:

• Character design
• Beautiful world
• Brief and candy

Cons:

• By-the-numbers title
• Cultural dissonance
• Bland storytelling
• Missing originality
• Obtuse puzzles

Ranking (out of 10): 6

Kena: Bridge of Spirits launched September 21 on PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. It prices Rs. 939 on Epic Games Store, and Rs. 3,330 on PlayStation Store.