Hey, everyone!  I’ll bet you thought I was dead!

Well, almost.  But what happened is in the past, and now let’s delve into the future!  Over the few months I’ve missed here, I’ve been watching some Crunchyroll, and I also got some new consoles.  So, hopefully, after Friday’s work and/or classes, I’ll be able to do some hardcore reviews.  We have both an Xbox One and a PS4 now, so games from most consoles may be subject to reviews.  Games I have been playing and may review soon include: FFX-2 HD; Kingdom Heats II.5 Remix; Shadows of Mordor; Project Diva; and even some “demos” that have recieved a lot of hype.

As for anime, expect some of the genres that you would expect of me.  Anime I may end up reviewing include: Celestial Method; Your Lie In April; Plastic Nee-san; Highschool DxD; Girlfriend Beta; and Denki-Gai.

On a secondary note, I also recorded some videos of me playing horror games (if you’ve met me, I pussy out easily), fittingly titled “Let’s Die!”, so stay tuned for those to hit YouTube!

And now, onto the thing you’re actually here for:

Game Official Art

Game Review: Gravity Rush

Platform: PS Vita

ESRB: Teen

Price: $13.49 (Digital)

Genre: Open World Action-Adventure RPG

I’ll be completely honest: the only reason I didn’t get a Vita right off the bat was because this was the only game I wanted.  At the time, this game intrigued me with the unique combat system, plus the graphic were just beautiful.  But I repressed my urge for the game, and instead went for the 3DS, where Pokemon awaited another journey.

As soon as I started playing Gravity Rush, however, I realized my mistake.

Gravity Rush takes place in a fictional city / country / world / continent called Hekseville, which is being swallowed in parts by these strange rifts called Gravity Storms.  You play as a girl who has lost her name, waking up next to a cat you lovingly nickname Dusty.  as you play through the story, you gain the name Kat, and start to help the people of Hekseville by doing little chores, killing enemies (known as Nevi), and destroying the Gravity Storms, thereby returning parts of the city to normal.

By far, the most interesting mechanic that I have found in the game is the main focus of the game: the gravity shift.  There is a plethora of collectibles, enemies, and missions that require going under the city and not falling into the giant void below to gain – the fact that you can control which direction your gravity makes you fall can make these tasks much easier than if you were just flying.  You can also float in space and do a high-speed Gravity Kick, dealing extended damage to father enemies.  There are even three (maybe more) special moves that can help with those bigger Nevi, or the ones that like to spawn more.

The story is separated into different chapters, where in-between missions, you can wander the city, talk to some people about the next mission, and (if you pay a few extra bucks), go do some DLC missions for more stuff, including costumes.  Other than that, I have to also mention that the game has its own language that you may hear bits and pieces of during the cutscenes.  This language, as I have heard, is a “Japanese-French fusion that’s essentially just gibberish”, but still finds a way to be interesting and colorful.  Along with that, the soundtrack for the world is just beautiful – it is one of the few games that I can say, “This soundtrack has no bad moments, and fits the game perfectly!!!”

There is not much I can criticize about this game; the only thing I really dislike is the Gravity Slide mechanic, where you basically turn while sliding with the Vita itself.  There are no penalties for falling off of the world, and if you go farther that you are supposed to, the rift will teleport you back to the last populated area.  Not only that, but fall damage doesn’t exist, and there are no real penalties for accidentally tossing the people who get caught in your gravity field.

As always, this review is my opinion – I don’t mean to offend anyone with it, as it is what I believe, notice and/or have done in-game.  If you disagree with me, have comments, questions, or just want to bitch at me, my e-mail is on the About page.  Now then, to the Final Scoring.

My scoring for Gravity Rush (ESRB T, PSV) is as follows:

Story: 4/ 5

As much as I want to give this game a 5, I need to finish the game before I can honestly say the story is flawless.  However, playing through this huge world with these tiny secrets and multiple entryways keeps me (and maybe you) entertained for hours.

Art/ Acting: 3.5/ 5

Again, love the game, and its art, but I feel like they didn’t put enough effort into the acting portion.  There are many scenes that are partially-voiced, but they have no reason to do so.  Like I said, the game’s language is intriguing and colorful, but it would be fun to hear more of it.  The art, on the other hand, although a little old, is still swimmingly beautiful, cel-shaded in a form that reminds me of Musashi’s 3D-Manga style.

Character: 3/ 5

There seems to be something left to be desired with the characters, as many of them start to get fleshed out, then just drop out of the major story.  This may pick up later, but I’ve played through half of the game, and there are still character questions left unanswered: Gade is a creator who can’t do shit, Raven seems to be a bipolar rival (like Gary MF Oak), and we still haven’t seen anything about Kat’s background, or how she arrived “in this strange city”.  Worst of all, more and more questions keep popping up without being fully answered.

Playability: 5/ 5

I have never found a game that I can play for more than a couple of hours at a time (except for Ratchet & Clank UYA), and this game is no exception.  However, I still end up playing it first thing in the morning, during my work breaks, and right before bed.  Every free moment has been taken buy this game recently… and I love it so much.  It is probably the first game I have played day-by-day since N3 first came out.

Overall Rating: 93/ 100

A

There is very little I disliked about the game: the enemies are for the most part unique per level, and it appears that the game’s difficulty matches the way you play.  Not only that, but the unique control scheme easily becomes second nature after fooling with the world for a little bit.  I also like the upgrade mechanic, which you can also use to fix parts of the city that you regained.  Talk of a Gravity Rush 2 has me very excited for a sequel to this amazingly beautiful game.

I cannot recommend a game more than this one right now, and I am.  GO TO PSN AND BUY THIS GAME NAOW!

“Please buy my game! You won’t regret it!”

Anyway, that was all I have to say.  Expect more updates soon, hopefully less scattered.

Until then,

Marcosias Isif.