Heavenly Sword
| Heavenly Sword | |
|---|---|
European box art showing protagonist Nariko.
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| Developer(s) | Ninja Theory |
| Publisher(s) | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| Director(s) | Andy Serkis |
| Producer(s) | Mat Hart |
| Designer(s) | Tameem Antoniades |
| Programmer(s) | Dan Calver |
| Artist(s) | Hugues Giboire |
| Writer(s) |
Tameem Antoniades Rhianna Pratchett Andy Serkis |
| Composer(s) | Nitin Sawhney |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 3 |
| Release date(s) |
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| Genre(s) | Action-adventure, hack and slash |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Aggregate score | |
|---|---|
| Aggregator | Score |
| Metacritic | 79/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| Edge | 6/10 |
| EGM | 8.33/10 |
| Eurogamer | 7/10 |
| Famitsu | 30/40 |
| Game Informer | 8.75/10 |
| GamePro |   |
| Game Revolution | B+ |
| GameSpot | 8/10 |
| GameSpy |  |
| GameTrailers | 7.9/10 |
| GameZone | 8.8/10 |
| IGN | 7/10 |
| PSM | 8/10 |
| The A.V. Club | C+ |
| USA Today |   |
| Awards | |
|---|---|
| Publication | Award |
| GamePro | Editor's Choice |
| OPM (AU) | Silver Award |
Heavenly Sword is a video game developed by Ninja Theory exclusively for the PlayStation 3 console and published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. The game was released in 2007.
The gameplay of Heavenly Sword resembles a martial arts title focused on melee combat while featuring opportunities for ranged attacks. The main character, Nariko, uses a weapon called the "Heavenly Sword" which changes into one of three forms depending on what attack stance the player uses as part of a unique fighting style. Speed Stance provides an even balance between damage and speed, where the sword takes the form of two separate blades. Range Stance allows fast, long-range, but weaker attacks, with the sword being two blades chained together. Power Stance is the most powerful, but slowest style, where attacks are made with the Sword in the shape of one large, two-handed blade.
For exploration and certain battles, the game also makes use of "quick time events" (QTE). During a QTE, a symbol for a certain button or for an action such as moving the analog stick to the right or left appears on screen and the player must match what is shown to successfully complete the scene.
In addition to Nariko, a secondary character, Kai, is controlled for some portions of the game. Many of Kai's stages take the form of sniping missions, using her crossbow to pick off enemies, in some cases to protect characters. While Kai cannot perform hand-to-hand combat, in stages that call for her to explore the level she is able to hop over objects and to free herself from an enemy's grasp by temporarily stunning them.
Projectiles can be maneuvered to their targets using the motion-sensing capabilities of the SIXAXIS controller through a feature known as Aftertouch. Such projectiles include guiding Kai's arrows after she has launched them, and for Nariko, guiding a cannon or rocket launcher, or picking up and throwing objects.
The 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 called the Raven Lord. After the battle was won and the Raven Lord defeated, the sword was left in the mortal world, becoming the center of wars over its power. The fighting made the sword lust after the life of its users, eventually killing them after a short time. 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 wielder would be reborn in the year of the "fire-horse", and that this figure would unite the world's scattered tribes and lead the world to peace.
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