If you played through Mark of Kri and at the end of the game thought to yourself, “Gee, that was fun. I really wish it continued for another 10 hours, though.”, then Rise of the Kasai was made specifically for you. It’s not a bad game, by any means, but it differs very little from the original, and just ends up feeling stale. It’s safe to say that most gamers can skip this one without a second thought, but big fans of the original should definitely give it a go.

At the time of its release, Mark of Kri’s combat system felt fresh and unique. Players could point the analog stick in the direction of a foe, automatically assigning a face button to them. Pressing that button caused the player character to attack that enemy, regardless of what direction he was facing. You could lock onto multiple enemies in this way, effectively striking at a variety of foes even when surrounded. Rise of the Kasai uses this same system, pretty much to the letter.

The scouting system is back, as well, with the hero’s spirit ally taking up specific perches to give the player a view of what’s coming up. This assists with the heavy stealth elements of the game. It’s important to take out the whistle-blowing enemies before they notice you, or you’ll have quite a few extra foes to tangle with. The flow of the game is pretty simple; players sneak through each level, moving stealthily when possible, but also just hack and slashing when the need arises. It’s simple and fun, but it was more fun several years ago in Mark of Kri.

There are multiple characters to play with now, but they don’t differ all that much from one another. The only real difference among the characters is Tati’s poison shrooms. These function like mines, and detonate when an enemy gets near. The real focus on the multiple characters is that you’re always playing with two. The AI handles your partner, and sometimes you’ll be working together, but other times you’ll explore different parts of the level at the same time. Having a computer-controlled ally brings little to the table, unfortunately, and I’d just assume be alone if I can’t have a human companion.

Visually, Rise of the Kasai is overwhelmingly bland. The environments are generally sparse and a tad unexciting, and while I dig the art style for the characters, they’re just not technically very impressive. What does impressive, however, and the almost painting-like cut scenes. Many scenes consist of these wonderfully animated and highly stylized cinemas, and they’re definitely a highlight of the game.



Article By: Joe