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Codemasters’ Rise of the Argonauts has been in the public eye
for some time now. Having been officially unveiled back in April
last year, a stream of clever publicity stunts and
 marketing
campaigns has lead to quite an awareness of the title amongst the
Mainstream Gamers. However, being aware of the game and the opening
of their wallets are two completely different things, and in the
early stages of a post-Christmas release schedule, Rise of the
Argonauts will have to be something special to perform
adequately in that gap between FallOut 3, Left 4 Dead
and LittleBigPlanet, and Halo Wars, KillZone 2
and Street Fighter IV.
Though gamers may be aware of the title, previous coverage has been
somewhat misleading. Those imagining a God of War-influenced
Scrolling Beat-‘Em-Up will find themselves moving at a considerably
slower pace than previously expected. The relation to Sony’s highly
respected series lies purely in the aesthetic, as Rise of the
Argonauts is less about the killing than the reasoning behind
it.
The game begins modestly, with the scene-setting Tutorial rather
confused about when and when not to allow the player control. An
on-screen prompt suggests the player should press the A Button to
jump, which then initiates a jumping Cut-Scene, and a later
Cut-Scene gives way to the players’ hand for an entirely
unsignposted and rather pointless blood-splattering moment. The
cleverly devised bloodlust of God of War is decidedly absent
here.
Wrapping the player in a genuinely worthwhile tale full of twists,
turns and modern re-imaginings of Greek mythology, the story is
 more
comprehensible than most and chock full of characters with their own
agendas adding to the believability of the world. A Royal Guard may
tell you that an underworld crime lord knows the way forward, but
while attempting to find this knowledgeable villain an encounter
with an orphan that may well bring out the best (or worst) in you.
The refinement that has been involved in creating minor quests
within each of the lands the player will visit is greater than many
Role-Playing Games could aspire to.
Rise of the Argonauts takes it’s time to get going. Many will
undoubtedly fall before the realisation that the game is less a
contender to the likes of Devil may Cry and Ninja Gaiden
and instead a proposition more easily compared to Mass Effect;
but such a realisation is needed to appreciate the intricacy of the
game’s design. Many of the Missions have an Animal Crossing-style
errand feel to them and the story unfolds with or without the player
choosing to gather such additional background information. It may
not as dynamic as Assassin’s Creed or Dead Space, but
Rise of the Argonauts certainly delivers more reason for its
distractions.
The combat is rather weary, and
 although
presenting what would be a worthwhile system of combos, dodges and
power strikes on-paper, has clearly taken a backseat to the
adventuring in actual gameplay. The X Button calls upon quick
attacks while the Y Button initiates heavier attacks, the L Trigger
Blocks, R Trigger commands Special Attacks and the player can switch
between any of the three available weapons – sword, spear and mace –
mid-combo by using the L Button or R Button. God Powers are assigned
to the D-Pad and called upon with a press of the selected direction.
A huge array of attacks is available through varying use of weaponry
and God Powers, and slow-motion effects come into play on powerful
finishing blows. There really is very little here to distinguish the
title from it’s peers; the combat is fluid and responsive, and
progression through the game will allow for some meaty effects.
However, for some reason, the pieces don’t seem to fit all that well
in this puzzle and most players will thank the shorter-than-typical
bursts of combat the game presents because of this.
Rise of the Argonauts presents a mixed bag graphically, with
tearing and sparsely detailed areas conflicting greatly with the
pleasantly drawn Character Models.
The lip-synching is fantastic (except, for some unknown reason, in
the opening stages), and the dialogue is more-often-than-not
fitting, without feeling artificially engineered to suit the
setting. The score is fantastic; delivered by Tyler Bates, of 300
fame, is suitably themed and balanced in tempo for moments of
action.
Rise of the Argonauts is very much a misunderstood game. A
experimentation within convention is evident, and Hardcore Gamers
will undoubtedly recognise the game as a title attempting to push
boundaries without alienating the Mainstream Gamer. Many evaluations
up til now have criticised the title for its mediocre combat and
lengthy journeys between areas with little to interest the player
prior to reaching the proposed destination, and while this may well
be the case, these elements are secondary to the adventure upon
which the player is embarking. Rise of the Argonauts will
inevitably fail when being compared to God of War or Fable
II in that of its combat and world structures, but taken as a
whole Rise of the Argonauts is clearly more than the sum of
its parts. |
