Aug 25, 2007 Heavenly Sword's on-paper design is great, but unfortunately it just misses greatness in a number of areas. The game's biggest strength is its combat system, which in large part works very well. Jun 17, 2015 Heavenly Sword is a dramatic tale of revenge that sees Nariko (Anna Torv), a fiery red-haired heroine, embark on a quest for vengeance against the invading King Bohan (Alfred Molina). See full summary ».
Contents PlotThe game's story and mythos revolves around the titular Heavenly Sword, a blade said to have been wielded by an unnamed Heavenly deity against a demonic warlord known as the Raven Lord. After the battle was won and the Raven Lord defeated, the sword was left in the mortal realm, becoming the center of wars over its power. The fighting made the sword lust after the life of its wielders, eventually killing them after a few days. A warrior tribe finally took charge of the sword, ending the wars and pledging to keep it safe and unused for the world's own good.
Among the tribe, a legend said that the sword's original owner would be reborn in the year of the 'fire-horse', and that this figure would reunite the world's scattered tribes and lead them to the 'Promised Land'.In that year is when the main character, Nariko, is born. Soon after her mother dies, she's immediately reviled by her clanmates as a mockery of the prophecy and a portent of doom. Fast forward 23 years, a tyrannical ruler named King Bohan is determined to bring the world's tribes to heel and pave the way for a new golden age and, for that, he seeks the Heavenly Sword. Nariko, now a highly skilled young warrior, is shouldered with the task of protecting the sword from him.
However, she eventually decides to wield the Heavenly Sword and exact vengeance for all those who died in its name. Can she end Bohan's invasion and fulfil the prophecy before the sword drains her life?Looking back over the last few days of her life, Nariko begins to share her story.GameplayThe gameplay of Heavenly Sword resembles a martial arts title focused on melee combat while featuring plenty of opportunities for ranged attacks. The main character, Nariko, uses the eponymous 'Heavenly Sword' which changes between three forms (Speed, Range or Power) depending on the attack style the player favours, while also offering challenges revolving around these forms.In addition to Nariko, a secondary character, named Kai, is controlled for some portions of the game. She's more focused on sniping missions, using her crossbow to pick off enemies or to protect characters.For exploration and certain battles, the game sometimes uses quick time events (QTE), which must be matched correctly to successfully complete the scene. The game also made extensive use of the motion-sensing capabilities of the PS3's SIXAXIS controller for projectiles through a feature known as Aftertouch.
Such projectiles include guiding Kai's arrows after firing, Nariko's cannon launcher or other throwing objects.There's also a form of upgrade for Nariko's swordsmanship in the game by obtaining glyphs, which are rewarded to the player at the end of a level based on their performance. Normally, avoiding damage and getting high combos are good ways of achieving all 129 glyphs.DevelopmentHeavenly Sword began development in 2002 with footage of the original PC version published on TeamXbox.com in 2004. It had, at one time, been up and running on an early Xbox 360 prototype, but this was abandoned in favor of the PlayStation 3 when the title was picked up by SCEE. The game was developed using Havok Complete, a combination of Havok Physics and Havok Animation.Actor Andy Serkis, who is best known for his motion capture and voice work for the character Gollum in the The Lord of the Rings movies, performed as the voice and motion capture actor for King Bohan, one of the major characters in Heavenly Sword; he also acted as Dramatic Director for the game and was one of the writers of the story of the game. Serkis is not the only familiar name attached to the game as main character Nariko was voiced by Australian actress Anna Torv, who played Agent Olivia Dunham in the television series Fringe. Nariko's facial features were also based on Torv's, who participated in motion capture for the game in March 2007.A demo was released to the PlayStation Store on July 26, 2007 featuring a short, cinematic clip at the beginning and two brief enemy battles, lasting approximately five to ten minutes. An eight-second clip of the game was seen in an episode of the TV series Heroes entitled 'Parasite', ostensibly being played by Jessica Sanders and her son, Micah.
It featured Nariko running across ropes as they were cut by Bohan's soldiers, before landing on the platform to face them. While the episode was broadcast over four months before the actual release of the game, the level displayed remained in the released build, including the rope sequence shown.Sony and Ninja Theory also made five 'making of' videos about the production of Heavenly Sword, with each one detailing a certain aspect of the games production, from music to motion capture.
The videos can either be unlocked while playing the game or downloaded from the PlayStation Store.SoundtrackNitin Sawhney composed the music for the soundtrack. It was performed by the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Stephen Hussey. Tameem Antoniades of Ninja Theory said 'we have our big orchestral soundtrack but we wanted to add a more ethnic element and marry those two together. There are actually very few musicians in the world who are experts in both areas.
Nitin Sawhney is one of them'. Sawhney stated that his creation of 'musical textures take in everything from Hollywood, European and Chinese cinema to Indian and middle eastern instrumentation through the orchestras and soloists hovering between sonic tidal waves and reflective moments of intimate grace'.Animated seriesA series of Heavenly Sword animated episodes were released prior to the launch of the game itself, acting as a prequel to the events of the game. The series, which consists of five episodes, was produced by London production company Blinkink and animated by CHASE animation studios. The videos were made available both online and through the PlayStation Store. The first two videos were also included on the retail version of the game; the latter three videos were not ready in time to be included. The style of the animated series differs from the graphics of the game itself. The animated series relies on a simple and stylized 2D look, which allowed director Ben Hibon to 'create a complete visual re-interpretation of Heavenly Sword's world and its inhabitants'.
ReceptionHeavenly Sword sold over one million copies by May 2008. The game has been praised for its graphics and combat system, while criticism stemmed from the short length of the game and lack of online capabilities. It received an aggregated score of 79/100 on Metacritic. GamesRadar featured Kai in the article 'Freakish Fashion' in 2007, and Nariko as a 'game babe' sex symbol also in 2007. In 2009, MSN featured Nariko in the article 'Gaming's Hottest Babes'.
In 2013, she was ranked as the 18th greatest heroine in video game history by Complex. TrailerHeavenly Sword TrailerReferences. Blinkink (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword prequel series: Episode 1: Legend of the Sword. ' Narrator: I curse the Raven Lord who lit the torch for terror in these lands.
Some say he was mortal, a warlord thirsting for power. But I say he rose from Hell. Our salvation, our hope, it came from the Heavens. A soldier, furious and magnificent to behold. Mighty enough to challenge even the Raven Lord.' . Blinkink (2007-09-12).
Heavenly Sword prequel series: Episode 2: Guardian of the Sword. ' Narrator: Men tore each other's flesh apart to wield the sword's Heavenly power. They murdered for it, butchered with it, and in turn were murdered for clutching it.' . Ninja Theory (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword prequel series: Episode 2: Guardian of the Sword.
' Narrator: The sword itself began to feed on the blood lust of its masters. It hungered for the souls of men, and those who wielded it would soon be consumed by it.' . Ninja Theory (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword.
PlayStation 3. ' Nariko: My clan believe this sword was forged in Heaven for a deity. No mortal may wield it without its power draining their life.' . Ninja Theory (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword. PlayStation 3.
' Nariko: The clan's duty is to protect the sacred weapon. Even in our darkest moments the sword was never to be used!' .
Ninja Theory (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword. PlayStation 3. ' Nariko: It was written that twenty-three years ago, in the year of the fire-horse, a deity would be reborn, in the body of a mortal man. A savior, destined to unite our people and lead us to the Promised Land.' .
Ninja Theory (2007-09-12). Heavenly Sword. PlayStation 3. ' Nariko: I was born from my mother's dying body.
And my people wept. They said I was a portent of doom. Maybe they were right.' . Ninja Theory (2007-09-12).
Heavenly Sword. PlayStation 3. ' Bohan: With every age that comes to pass, there is one, born to greatness, sent from Heaven to shape the world to a divine vision. Wondered Why Fringe's Anna Torv Looks Familiar?. Anna Torv's IMDB Biography. New Heavenly Sword footage to premiere tonight.
The Making of Heavenly Sword; Creating the Music. Heavenly Sword: The Animated Series. Heavenly Sword Prequel. Interview with Ben Hibon. Heavenly Sword Metacritic Page. Ten examples of what not to wear, even in a video game. Game Babes: A history.
Gaming's Hottest Babes - Nariko. The 50 Greatest Heroines in Video Game History.
Heavenly Sword is a dramatic tale of revenge that sees Nariko (Anna Torv), a fiery red-haired heroine, embark on a quest for vengeance against the invading King Bohan (Alfred Molina) and his army. Once considered the failure of a legendary prophecy, Nariko must wield a sword that was ultimately meant for another. This ancient Heavenly Sword, once belonging to a powerful deity, can never be wielded by a mortal without it slowly and inevitably killing them. For Nariko, it is a race against time to avenge her clan before her life is irreparably overtaken by the omnipotent Heavenly Sword. The movie is great and graphics are really amazing.See it in FULL HD blu-ray on the best TV led are very impressive.I don't know how others saw this movie and saw bad graphics.the texture and expression or modeling was amazing,stunning.Only one thing was bad.the physics of the animation,speed-movement of characters was fast with bad accomplished but.still, it's a movie made it after a game, so what? I never play it Heavenly Sword and now i really want to play this game.The story are strong and dramatic and memorable prime character, Nariko.Of course, Kay are second and maybe forthcoming heroine. I strongly recommend this movie, without great expectations but with some powerful pleasures.
Goodbye Nariko, peace be with with you!