Enslaved: Odyssey to the West

If you’ve heard of the ancient Chinese novel, Journey to the West, you’ll know it deals with a character by the name of Monkey who goes on a pilgrimage to India during the Tang Dynasty to obtain religious scrolls. It’s seen as one of the four great classic works of Chinese literature and serves as the inspiration behind Ninja Theory’s action adventure, Enslaved: Odyssey to the West.

Don’t worry though, Enslaved doesn’t deal with Chinese monks walking to India, but rather transports the character of Monkey to a post-apocalyptic America where a young woman by the name of Trip needs Monkey's help to find her way home and escape the clutches of slavers and deadly war machines bent on human destruction (told you not to worry). Monkey doesn't have much choice when it comes to helping Trip either, because he's been fitted with a slaver headband by Trip that compels him to follow her every command and tasks him with keeping her alive, or die with her.

The most striking aspect of the world of Enslaved is its beautiful visuals, with cities of old overrun by lush and green vegetation. If you’ve ever seen Life After People on National Geographic you’ll know that a world after humans will look nothing like the desolate wastelands that have become a hallmark of many post-apocalyptic games. Nature will slowly reclaim mankind’s cities and rather than barren landscapes we’ll find that our concrete jungles will become a haven for nature. You’ll frequently walk past grazing animals in the middle of a highway of grass, or see frogs hopping across your path. It’s these sorts of touches that make the world seem more real and highlight the pathos and gravity of the story as Monkey and Trip traverse the landscape looking for a place of refuge.

Travelling through the environments will see Monkey having to jump, climb and overcome obstacles in his way. The platforming sections aren’t particularly difficult as Monkey’s ability to jump off platforms and grab onto handholds is context sensitive. So try to jump off a platform from the incorrect spot and Monkey will merely refuse to jump and it’s also impossible to miss a jump with Monkey automatically aiming and grabbing the nearest handhold. While some gamers might balk at the ease of the platforming I found it to be very similar to the style of play seen in 2008’s Prince of Persia, where the difficulty of the jumping and platforming was downplayed and a greater focus was placed on the story and characters. The platforming sections are also broken up with the use of Monkey’s hover-board called the Cloud, which is used to navigate over both land and water at speed.

When you’re not jumping around or hover-boarding in post-apocalyptic America you’ll usually find yourself battling it out with mechs that have been dormant since a global war ravaged the Earth. Like the platforming mechanics there is also simplicity inherent in the combat system with Monkey only having a light and heavy attack that can be combined to perform more complicated attacks. He can also use his staff to shoot plasma or stun bolts and can perform a sweep attack that repels multiple enemies when he's overwhelmed. Of course, as has become a staple part of most action adventures, you can also purchase character and combat upgrades. This is done through collecting tech orbs from defeated enemies, but for the most part, what you start out with is what you’ll be using for the vast majority of the game.

While you take care of business with Monkey, Trip will be doing what any good AI should be doing: staying out of your way, and out of trouble. When she does come under attack she can activate an EMP that stuns all enemies around her and allows you to wade in with your fists and staff and take care of them. She also proves a useful ally when you need to flank enemies and can provide a distraction using a decoy to allow you to creep up behind shielded or entrenched enemies.

While the combat and platforming might sound unimpressive, they complement the game as a whole, with Ninja Theory finding the right mixture throughout your journey. You’ll jump between gameplay sections that will see you scaling a building before fighting a group of mechs, then quickly doing some more gymnastics, before ending off a level with a boss fight. At no point did I find myself longing for the next section of platforming or combat, which shows how wonderfully paced Enslaved is.

Enslaved’s greatest asset is not in its gameplay mechanics but rather in its characters and story, with Monkey and Trip’s odyssey across America managing to hit all the right notes. You feel a form of empathy for both characters as they try to escape the clutches of the slavers and mechs and find refuge from the harsh outside world. The voice acting and motion capture performances lend a great deal of credibility to the story, with Andy Serkis performing brilliantly as Monkey. The plot is also well written and the evolution of Monkey and Trip’s relationship with each other as they fight and climb their way through the world manages to keep you constantly interested in the story and where it will take them.

While the combat and platforming is fairly simplistic you shouldn’t look past Enslaved’s box in your local game store when searching for your next purchase. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West manages to deliver a stunning post-apocalyptic world to explore, coupled with a story and group of characters that engender a sense of compassion and true concern for what happens to them. It's a rarity in games, and Ninja Theory should be heartily congratulated for a remarkable achievement.

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