Heavenly Sword
So I had planned on blogging about female game characters and how they’re always scantily clad, but I’ve successfully been diverted from the subject. This rant was spurred on by fanart done by one of my favorite Deviantart artists. It was a picture of the heroine of the new game for PS3, Heavenly Sword. Now, I like to know a little bit about what I’m gonna complain about before I go and open my mouth—you know, to make sure I don’t make an ass out of myself when someone brings up something I wasn’t aware of (ignorant is not something I like to be tagged as)—so I took a look at the official website. Needless to say, I was blown away.
I ended up watching the videos for the making of the game, because I’m a nerd like that. (I’ve always enjoyed the behind-the-scenes stuff just as much as the actual work.) The first thing that knocked me off guard was the fact that Andy Serkis was the dramatic director and that Weta was involved in the development. For those who don’t know, Andy Serkis was Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Weta did the special effects for the movies. And for those who don’t know, I am such a massive LotR fangirl. It’s what got me into digital media in the first place.
Anyway, from the moment I discovered that they had worked on the project, I was intrigued. I spent the next hour watching the complete making-of series and the animated intro sequence. Honestly, this is the first game that I’ve been really excited about in a long time…besides Bleach: Shattered Blade…but that hardly counts because it’s only because I have a crush on Ichigo. All that aside, though, this game kinda makes me want a PS3.
First of all, the main character is a girl and she kicks ass. ^__^ But besides that, the graphics for this game are intense. So much work went into the making of it. If you watched the production videos without knowing what it was for, you might think it was all for a movie, and that itself is a thrilling prospect…well, for me at least.
I want to work for movie production and special effects/animation. The fact that that sort of production is bleeding into the gaming industry is really exciting because it’s a combination of two things that I love. I know that this sort of work has been going into games for years, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it. This is the first time that I’ve been aware of the time and effort that’s gone into a game. It’s also the first time that I’ve seen an extensive use of actors, and that’s exciting in a different way. This shows that the gaming industry is on the rise. It shows just how serious it is as a new form of media. It proves that the gaming industry is a forced to be reckoned with. And if that’s not exciting, I don’t know what is.
I do agree that it’s really unfortunate that gameplay took a backseat to graphics, especially because gameplay is what video games are all about—hell, GAME is in the word and game implies playability. However, I’m an optimist. I believe that this is just the first step in a new generation of gaming that incorporates this sort of graphic intensity, and usually first attempts are lacking. I’m sure that with time and more work, future games will better incorporate and improve upon all the aspects that make a game an incredible source of media.
PotM: Portrait of Nariko done by Shiramune. You should check out his amazing gallery. He’s also done fanart from World of Warcraft and Starcraft, just to name a few.
