Okami for the Wii

Okami
System: Wii (it can also be gotten on the PS2)
Genre: Adventure
Style: The Ledgend of Zelda, with a different combat system and more platforming based puzzles
Intro:
Yes. I finally got it and finished it. After sixty hours of playing. This is not unusual though, as I looked around and tried to familiarize myself with the mythology that the game is based on (more on that later) I found other people took quite a while on their first run (50 hours) and approx. 23 hours on their second run. (one person's stats) So, in case you missed it, this game is long.
The condensed version of the game is you are wolf Jesus who kicks demon butt, lots of it. And yes, you can walk on water (eventually, at the end, if you have enough demon fangs).
Although the game is long, it doesn't fell repetitive at all, a constantly expanding world coupled with varying demons and weapons with witch to defeat them keeps it all fresh until the end, and then it has replay value to boot.
Plot:
You are the reincarnation of the mother of all things, the sun god Ameratsu (or Ammy for short) who must save the world from evil darkness (think twilight curtain in TP but this came first...and it kills you). You start out saving a village from an evil dragon and it just keeps going from there. Wouldn't want to spoil the whole thing for you, now would I?
From what I can tell from bestiary entries, it is based off a legend in Japanese mythology. I couldn't find the original legend, but I did find another one that explains the use of mirrors for save points (See: Ameratsu) It's kind of like Monty Python and the holy grail, if you get it, great, but if you don't, you can still enjoy it.
Storyline:
Excellent. A well written story that plays a huge part in the game. You can't expect to run along paying no attention to the game as you go through, you need to do that to understand where you are supposed to go.
World:
It is really big, fortunately, their are two transportation networks that you can make use of, so the sheer size shouldn't be too much of a problem, but sometimes it is nice just to run around the world at high speeds since it is so pretty. Four speeds:walk, run, run faster, move like the f***ing wind whooooo!!!!!!!
Art direction:
The world, aside from being well made, is beautiful. the entire thing is made to be like a Japanese watercolor painting, while the parchment filter on the Wii version is less apparent than on the PS2 version, it still looks amazing. The look adds to the comical elements of the storyline while maintaining the sadder parts (sniffle....)
Gameplay:
First of all, the battle system is different from other adventure games, it puts you in a stadium with randomly spawning enemies, depending on where you are. you can use your basic weapons, which are often sufficient, but you can also use your brush. Yes, I said brush. Being a god comes in handy as you use your reality bending brush (which looks suspiciously like your tail) to repair bridges, destroy lots of pottery and chop enemies to bits (to name a few). This battle system allows for the chaos of combat, unlike many games which depend entirely on duel styled combat.
The weapons also serve to expand the game as each takes a completely different style to master. I still cant use the swords as a primary, but I can kill with a reflector. oh, and rosaries are nice (really they are prayer beads, but the Japanese call them rosaries).
The brush is another thing that helps set this game apart, while other games (like Kirby) have explored the use of the stylus and wiimote to draw lines, never to the extent that this game does it. The brush is the key game element which sets this game apart.
Conclusion:
I give it an 93
Inventive, long, worth every penny you pay for it. However, at times it is not at all challenging and the puzzles take little brain power to figure out. Furthermore, if you want to collect all the sray bead you have to beat the game first then go through again and get them all. Godspeed, and wish me luck.
If you see it, but it.
Note: This game will also leave you with the impression that the ancient Japanese were visited by aliens. Which would explain a lot.
Peace out, and forgive any typos, I did the best I could to keep them out.