Title: Killer7
Description: Cube and PS2
Description: Cube and PS2
Gamer122 - September 3, 2005 02:55 PM (GMT)
Killer7 (GameCube and PS2)
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom/ Grasshopper Manufacture
Released: July 5, 2005
ESRB: M
Action
Master. We’re in a tight spot. This game is not known by many gamers. It’s different compare to many games now days. Is it that bad? Or is it good? In the name of Harman…
Story- In 1998, peace was brought world wide when all international disputes were resolved when a new global community was formed. By 2000, all air transporters were shut down in order to cut back terrorism. Two years after that, a bridge was built to connect the Americas to Europe. All seemed well by 2003. The world thought it was safe since all nuclear energy was banned, all radio active material was disposed, and all missiles were eliminated. However…during a signing for the U.N World Security Treaty, terrorism showed its ugly face once again. A group of suicide bombers called Smiling Faces attacked the ceremony and stunned the world.
The world turned to Harman Smith and his elite group of assassins known as the Killer7. The team is made up of seven deadly members (Gracian Smith, Dan Smith, Kaede Smith, Con Smith, Coyote Smith, KevinSmith , and Mask de Smith) and each contain a special ability (described later in the review). They are the only ones who can stop Kun Lan and his killer creations known as Heaven Smile.
Graphics- Killer7 contains cell-shaded graphics. If you loved the art style of Wind Waker, you’ll love Killer7’s. It’s a beautiful mixture of coloring and lighting with a smooth, cream texture. Even though the cell-shading works well, the over all character animation is a bit blocky. It does rent to look like an early PS2 or GameCube game which isn’t too bad. However, this also means that details are limited. Take the environments for example. Large, important rooms (like battle areas) are colorful but hallways might be different shades of one or two solid colors. This does give the game a comic book feeling but it does grow boring after you travel through the same area a number of times.
Most cut scenes are in this cell-shaded look but occasionally, important scenes will be shown in some of the most gorgeous anime scenes I’ve seen in any game.
Sound- The soundtrack is very difficult to describe. You could say that most of the music is a fast paced, techno beat with some oriental music mixed in it at times. Most of the time, however, the music is so soft that you can’t hear it. The sound effects are quite realistic even though you can’t really tell what type of surface you’re walking on. The sound of the Heaven Smile’s laugh is the most important sound in the game since the enemies are invisible. The laughing indicates that at least one enemy is after you.
The voice acting is well done. Each voice seems to fit with the character perfectly but the characters do repeat their catch phrases far too often. It would be nice to have a variety of phrases instead of only one.
Gameplay- Killer7 is very linear. The whole game is set on a “rail” system and will send you through a three dimensional maze. This sounds bad on paper but works well in action. While running on the rails, you don’t miss any items, doors, or switches. The camera switches angles as you run. Since you’re on a set path, you don’t really need to see where you’re going so the camera isn’t that big of a problem. A menu like screen appears when you get to doors, hallways, and items. To fight you enter a first person mode. You can’t move while in the attack mode though.
Killer7 is actually rather easy compared to it‘s confusing story. There are plenty of puzzles but none are mind numbingly hard. The answers are practically given to you in the form of riddles, confusing statements from Travis who was the first person killed by the Killer7, and your surroundings. You can solve each puzzle either by guessing or by memorizing certain patterns, words, or numbers. A good fifty percent of the puzzles just require you to go to different locations and collect items in order to open a door or to advance to the next step in the main puzzle. The boss battles aren’t hard too. All you have to do is figure our the weak point or the idea of the battle. You might have to shoot a vulnerable body part one battle. Then shoot the boss more than he/she shoots you the next.
Controls (GameCube):
L: Scan for Enemies (While Holding Down R)
R: Aim Mode
Analog Stick: Junctions/Aim
D-Pad: Switch Targets
C-Stick: Reload( Either in or our of Aim Mode)
Z: Change Camera
A: Confirm, Run, and Fire
B: Cancel and Quick turn
X: Map
Y: Use Special Skill/ Select Charge Level
As I said before, each Smith has their own weapon and special ability. Dan has a revolver and can use blood (explained later in review) to send a powerful blast at an enemy. Kaede, the only female member, carries a sniper rifle and can slit her wrists to call upon Mizaru to use her blood to break down barriers. (Yes, this game is disturbing…) Con uses dual automatics and was born blind. He has extremely good hearing good hearing which he can use to find hidden passages and rooms. Coyote, like Dan, can use a powerful blast with his modified revolver. He can unpick locks and jump high into the air to reach areas that other Smiths can’t. Kevin throws knives and can turn invisible. Mask de carries two grenade launchers. He can suffer a large amount of damage and can break through any obstacle that Kaede’s blood doesn’t. Garcian isn’t a fighter, he’s a cleaner. He does carry a silenced handgun in case he needs it but his job is to gather information from the middle man, named Christopher Mills, and to collect the Killer7’s dead bodies when they are killed. Whenever you die, you take on the role of Gracian. You must collect the body and bring it back to life.
Killer7 starts you off with two difficult settings. One is normal and the other is deadly. In Normal mode, you’re given plenty of hints from Iwazaru who is a messanger for the Killer7. There’s plenty of blood for you to gather and enemies aren’t too hard to kill. In Deadly Mode, hints are hard to find. Blood isn’t shed as much and enemies’ weak spots aren’t shown.
Innovation- Killer7 has a blood collecting system. Whenever you kill an enemy, blood is collected and saved for you to use. There are two types of blood: thick and thin. Thick blood is stored and used for the RPG element of the game. You can power up each member using the serum you create with the blood. You can upgrade the power of the weapon (so attacks do more damage), the speed of the weapon (so it fires fasters), the waver (increase accuracy), and criticals (which affect one hit kills). You can also increase the amount of time Kevin is invisible and the radius of Mask de’s launchers.
Thin blood is your recovery item. It is also used by Coyote and Dan to power up they shots.
Replay Value- Med. Killer7 has some unlockables. There’s an extra difficulty mode and an extra character but you need to find that out who on your own. *wink* The game itself doesn’t have much replay value since it is on a set rail. The only reason why you’d play through it again is to try to understand the story better, try a hard difficulty, test the new character, or just because you liked it so much. Other than that, it’s one you’ll beat then leave sitting on your shelf for a
few months before you pick it up again.
The Good- Killer7 is a unique title. It contains many plot twists and has many interesting concepts. If the story line is the most important element of game for you, then you defiantly will like this game. Most important, you’re not gambling your money as much as you were before. Killer7’s price tag has dropped to thirty dollars instead of fifty.
The Bad- Some of the gameplay elements and graphics might make people turn this game down but that’s all that is really against the game. However, the PS2 version isn’t as good as the Cube. The PS2 version’s graphics aren’t as clear and as sharp as the Cube’s, the controls aren’t very tight, and it suffers from slow downs and long load times. If you have the choice between the Cube version and PS2 version…go with the Cube version.
Master. We’re in a tight spot. This game is an under hyped game. It’s good but sadly, not played. It’s defiantly worth a rental if you can find it and it’s worth the thirty dollars if it has caught any interest in you. In the name of Harman…
8.5 out of 10
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom/ Grasshopper Manufacture
Released: July 5, 2005
ESRB: M
Action
Master. We’re in a tight spot. This game is not known by many gamers. It’s different compare to many games now days. Is it that bad? Or is it good? In the name of Harman…
Story- In 1998, peace was brought world wide when all international disputes were resolved when a new global community was formed. By 2000, all air transporters were shut down in order to cut back terrorism. Two years after that, a bridge was built to connect the Americas to Europe. All seemed well by 2003. The world thought it was safe since all nuclear energy was banned, all radio active material was disposed, and all missiles were eliminated. However…during a signing for the U.N World Security Treaty, terrorism showed its ugly face once again. A group of suicide bombers called Smiling Faces attacked the ceremony and stunned the world.
The world turned to Harman Smith and his elite group of assassins known as the Killer7. The team is made up of seven deadly members (Gracian Smith, Dan Smith, Kaede Smith, Con Smith, Coyote Smith, KevinSmith , and Mask de Smith) and each contain a special ability (described later in the review). They are the only ones who can stop Kun Lan and his killer creations known as Heaven Smile.
Graphics- Killer7 contains cell-shaded graphics. If you loved the art style of Wind Waker, you’ll love Killer7’s. It’s a beautiful mixture of coloring and lighting with a smooth, cream texture. Even though the cell-shading works well, the over all character animation is a bit blocky. It does rent to look like an early PS2 or GameCube game which isn’t too bad. However, this also means that details are limited. Take the environments for example. Large, important rooms (like battle areas) are colorful but hallways might be different shades of one or two solid colors. This does give the game a comic book feeling but it does grow boring after you travel through the same area a number of times.
Most cut scenes are in this cell-shaded look but occasionally, important scenes will be shown in some of the most gorgeous anime scenes I’ve seen in any game.
Sound- The soundtrack is very difficult to describe. You could say that most of the music is a fast paced, techno beat with some oriental music mixed in it at times. Most of the time, however, the music is so soft that you can’t hear it. The sound effects are quite realistic even though you can’t really tell what type of surface you’re walking on. The sound of the Heaven Smile’s laugh is the most important sound in the game since the enemies are invisible. The laughing indicates that at least one enemy is after you.
The voice acting is well done. Each voice seems to fit with the character perfectly but the characters do repeat their catch phrases far too often. It would be nice to have a variety of phrases instead of only one.
Gameplay- Killer7 is very linear. The whole game is set on a “rail” system and will send you through a three dimensional maze. This sounds bad on paper but works well in action. While running on the rails, you don’t miss any items, doors, or switches. The camera switches angles as you run. Since you’re on a set path, you don’t really need to see where you’re going so the camera isn’t that big of a problem. A menu like screen appears when you get to doors, hallways, and items. To fight you enter a first person mode. You can’t move while in the attack mode though.
Killer7 is actually rather easy compared to it‘s confusing story. There are plenty of puzzles but none are mind numbingly hard. The answers are practically given to you in the form of riddles, confusing statements from Travis who was the first person killed by the Killer7, and your surroundings. You can solve each puzzle either by guessing or by memorizing certain patterns, words, or numbers. A good fifty percent of the puzzles just require you to go to different locations and collect items in order to open a door or to advance to the next step in the main puzzle. The boss battles aren’t hard too. All you have to do is figure our the weak point or the idea of the battle. You might have to shoot a vulnerable body part one battle. Then shoot the boss more than he/she shoots you the next.
Controls (GameCube):
L: Scan for Enemies (While Holding Down R)
R: Aim Mode
Analog Stick: Junctions/Aim
D-Pad: Switch Targets
C-Stick: Reload( Either in or our of Aim Mode)
Z: Change Camera
A: Confirm, Run, and Fire
B: Cancel and Quick turn
X: Map
Y: Use Special Skill/ Select Charge Level
As I said before, each Smith has their own weapon and special ability. Dan has a revolver and can use blood (explained later in review) to send a powerful blast at an enemy. Kaede, the only female member, carries a sniper rifle and can slit her wrists to call upon Mizaru to use her blood to break down barriers. (Yes, this game is disturbing…) Con uses dual automatics and was born blind. He has extremely good hearing good hearing which he can use to find hidden passages and rooms. Coyote, like Dan, can use a powerful blast with his modified revolver. He can unpick locks and jump high into the air to reach areas that other Smiths can’t. Kevin throws knives and can turn invisible. Mask de carries two grenade launchers. He can suffer a large amount of damage and can break through any obstacle that Kaede’s blood doesn’t. Garcian isn’t a fighter, he’s a cleaner. He does carry a silenced handgun in case he needs it but his job is to gather information from the middle man, named Christopher Mills, and to collect the Killer7’s dead bodies when they are killed. Whenever you die, you take on the role of Gracian. You must collect the body and bring it back to life.
Killer7 starts you off with two difficult settings. One is normal and the other is deadly. In Normal mode, you’re given plenty of hints from Iwazaru who is a messanger for the Killer7. There’s plenty of blood for you to gather and enemies aren’t too hard to kill. In Deadly Mode, hints are hard to find. Blood isn’t shed as much and enemies’ weak spots aren’t shown.
Innovation- Killer7 has a blood collecting system. Whenever you kill an enemy, blood is collected and saved for you to use. There are two types of blood: thick and thin. Thick blood is stored and used for the RPG element of the game. You can power up each member using the serum you create with the blood. You can upgrade the power of the weapon (so attacks do more damage), the speed of the weapon (so it fires fasters), the waver (increase accuracy), and criticals (which affect one hit kills). You can also increase the amount of time Kevin is invisible and the radius of Mask de’s launchers.
Thin blood is your recovery item. It is also used by Coyote and Dan to power up they shots.
Replay Value- Med. Killer7 has some unlockables. There’s an extra difficulty mode and an extra character but you need to find that out who on your own. *wink* The game itself doesn’t have much replay value since it is on a set rail. The only reason why you’d play through it again is to try to understand the story better, try a hard difficulty, test the new character, or just because you liked it so much. Other than that, it’s one you’ll beat then leave sitting on your shelf for a
few months before you pick it up again.
The Good- Killer7 is a unique title. It contains many plot twists and has many interesting concepts. If the story line is the most important element of game for you, then you defiantly will like this game. Most important, you’re not gambling your money as much as you were before. Killer7’s price tag has dropped to thirty dollars instead of fifty.
The Bad- Some of the gameplay elements and graphics might make people turn this game down but that’s all that is really against the game. However, the PS2 version isn’t as good as the Cube. The PS2 version’s graphics aren’t as clear and as sharp as the Cube’s, the controls aren’t very tight, and it suffers from slow downs and long load times. If you have the choice between the Cube version and PS2 version…go with the Cube version.
Master. We’re in a tight spot. This game is an under hyped game. It’s good but sadly, not played. It’s defiantly worth a rental if you can find it and it’s worth the thirty dollars if it has caught any interest in you. In the name of Harman…
8.5 out of 10
jedimasterchief9 - September 4, 2005 10:30 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Gamer122 @ Sep 3 2005, 09:55 AM) |
| Kevin throws knives and can turn invisible. |
Sweet invisble, and knife throwing. Nice review Gamer122.
lastelite - September 4, 2005 11:33 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (jedimasterchief9 @ Sep 4 2005, 05:30 PM) | ||
Sweet invisble, and knife throwing. Nice review Gamer122. |
Your just saying that because it has your name on it. :P
When is there going to be a Video game character with my name :(
Seriously, nice review.
GuardianVR - September 5, 2005 05:42 PM (GMT)
Nice review, but the game doesn't look like my cup of tea.