I’m sure that almost every PS3 owner gave the demo a try (due to the severe lack of good games available I might add). And I wouldn’t be surprised if many thought the game was just a button masher where pressing random combinations of the square and triangle buttons in conjecture with the left and right shoulder buttons was all it took to bring down the hordes of enemies. Well, at least at first that is pretty much the case. With no dedicated block buttons and enemies only hitting you with the standard (speed) attacks, your best chance of survival is mashing the buttons, hoping that no enemy manages to hit you in between two of your moves.
As the game progresses and you acquire the heavenly sword things change however. The first (and most obvious) difference is Nariko’s ability to perform far reaching, but relatively weak attacks (this chain wielding stance borrows heavily from another Sony action game, which I won’t name), the standard speed attacks and very slow, but extremely powerful sword swings. Each stance has its advantages, but you’ll probably end up using the speed stance most of the time. It’s not that this particular stance is more effective at dealing damage or anything. In fact, you’ll be using it primarily because of its defensive characteristics.
“Defensive characteristics? But didn’t you just say there was no blocking in this game?” Well, I said there was no manual blocking. This does not include Nariko fending off attacks on her own, does it? That doesn’t mean she won’t need your help though. As seen in the demo, enemies can attack you with 4 different kinds of attacks. And each kind of attack requires you to be in a specific stance to block. Ranged attacks will have you using your range stance (green), swinging your chains wildly around yourself, while regular attacks (blue) only require you to be in the neutral speed stance. Heavy yellow colored attacks follow the same logic and require Nariko to be standing in the power stance whereas the red attacks can’t be blocked and your only way to avoid damage is to roll out of the way (either via right analog stick or motion controls). A simple enough, yet incredibly deep system. The colored trails the enemies leave behind themselves as they lunge for you give you only mere moments to react, so even fighting a single opponent becomes a dance-like sequence.
As for the button mashing attacks, they only work at the start of the game. The demo sequence takes place pretty early in the game, so obviously the opponents aren’t the most challenging lot. Later on foes will block more or less every attack you perform, so your only chance to inflict serious damage will be to counter-attack them. Pressing the triangle button just as an enemy strikes you (provided you are in the right stance) will result in Nariko blocking the attack and then turning it to her advantage, throwing the foe a few feet away. This usually won’t kill him, but you’ll get the chance to finish him off as he tries to get up. Timing your counter attack perfectly will result in a finishing move, which more often than not involves kicks to the groins of your opponents (which are obviously all male, save for one boss character). Dealing with your opposition charges your Superstyle attack meter. As the name suggests, these attacks deal a tremendous amount of damage, and depending on how charged the attack is (3 different levels) they may have the results of a small tactical missile. Since they are obviously incredibly powerful they take a rather long time to charge, so using the strongest attacks usually requires a few dozen kills.
The various combat sequences in the game will pit you against a various number of enemies. Not counting the one-on- one boss battles (where the color attack system still applies) you’ll mostly have to deal with 5-10 enemies at the same time, often several groups of them in close succession. There are parts of the game where you’ll be literally wiping out hundreds of enemies, taking down dozens of them in mere seconds, but the enemies aren’t as prone to blocking in these sequences. Regardless of that, every single encounter does have a certain magic to it. Some of it is due to the incredible animation of the fighters, but there is also a certain artistic beauty to a redheaded woman fighting 10 guys in a quiet cherry garden, with waterfalls in the background and cherry petals flying around in the wind. Watching somebody else play the game is a real delight, especially if they know what they are doing. If you watched movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or Hero, you probably noticed that the combat scenes were about more than just trading sword blows. Well, in Heavenly Sword the combat encounters can have this same quality, but only if the player is willing to put the time into killing off the enemies with short and lethal combos.
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