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Developer: Neon Studios
Publisher: Capcom
Genre: Shooter
Region: NTSC
Format:
Release Date: 20 Sep 05
User Rating
9 (78 votes) -
- Capcom's free-flowing Zelda-esque adventure title is a surprisingly decent blend of action, platforming and puzzle-solving.
More Screens (10 total)
Overview
I am always excited when I see a game that I haven't heard much about arrive at my doorstep. It are these sort of games that you can just sit back in a very laid back fashion, not knowing what to expect. One such game released in 2005 is from developers Neon Studios, The Legend of Kay for the Playstation 2. So is there a reason we haven't hear much about this game? Read our full review to find out!
Gameplay
Alright well let's just jump into this review with starting out talking with the storyline which is a strong element of the Legend of Kay format. First I should say that you have to go into this game with an open mind as things are a bit weird at first and the whole idea will end up growing on you. The story is basically about you playing as Kay, who is basically trying to restore peace to the world. Basically the world of this game follows a certain standard and they have sort of fallen away from the path and it is your job to help bring them back. It is an interesting idea that was put together in an interesting fashion that I found enjoyable. Different, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Well let's now take a second and talk about our buddy Kay, who most will be thinking right away "wow this feel's a lot like Zelda. You can see the guys and gals over at Neon Studio spent a lot of time in Zelda checking out what worked and then bringing that over to this game. You will see this right away as Kay has a good slew of action maneuvers, but then again the game consists of a lot of puzzles and platforming elements. It is pretty obvious that the developers tried hard to keep this sort of theme prevalent throughout the game.
When playing this game I have to say that I was very impressed with how well the game preformed at all levels. When I got done playing my first session of this game I have to say that I liked what I saw. I did see some slight camera issues at times throughout the experience, but these problems weren't huge enough to detract from the gameplay. My initial feel of the game also felt like the developers did a fantastic job of mixing up the action with platforming and puzzles.
As the game progresses however it doesn't hold up as perfectly, although things don't get necessarily bad either. Legend of Kay ends up just going with the flow, bringing in some nice platforming and action, but never trying to do much at all. The games just was good all the way around, but as you progress through it you just hope the game just start offering more, but it doesn't really do that. In the end Legend of Kay is just a good game. It doesn't have anything great, the camera does at times feel a bit rough around the edges but everything in the game just feels good. If you compare it to a game like Zelda, then it doesn't have all the goods it needs to compete, but on its own merits it is a very capable and enjoyable.
Graphics
Moving on now to the visuals in Legends of Kay for the PS2, which are actually pretty good. But once again they just can't live up the standards that were set by Zelda in previous years. The visuals have some very nice colors set in them, and I really enjoyed how much character was found in Kay. The environments on the other hand are not that great as there are some serious lacking of detail in the environments. In the end the visuals are good, but nothing that are going to make this game stand out over other games of this class.
Fun Factor
I am a huge fan of these types of games; in fact the Zelda series is my favorite series that I have had the privilege to play. I have to say that I was actually very impressed with this game, in the fact that it ended up being so solid all the way around the bases. I have to say that the gameplay itself was very smooth and had plenty of variety. The only real problems that I had was that it sort of lost its flair in the second half, and had some minor camera issues throughout as well. But if you like the Zelda style gameplay, then you will really enjoy this game.
Overall
The Legend of Kay should get some recognition for being a very solid game. It is a shame that they couldn't take this game to the next level, as it had the potential. In the end this is just an average game that brought an entertaining experience to the table. If you like the free-flowing adventure gameplay, then definitely go out and rent this game as it is definitely worth a shot.
- Gameplay
7.0 - Graphics
7.0 - Fun Factor
7.0 - Overall
7.0
