- Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom
-
Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom 
European box artDeveloper(s) Game Republic Publisher(s) Namco Bandai Games Director(s) Yoshiki Okamoto
Takashi ShonoProducer(s) Daisuke Uchiyama Designer(s) Sosuke Honda Writer(s) Ryo Suzukaze Composer(s) Toshihiko Sahashi Platform(s) PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 Release date(s) - EU November 26, 2010
- JP January 20, 2011
Genre(s) Action-adventure, Puzzle Mode(s) Single-player Rating(s) Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom (魔人と失われた王国 Majin to Ushinawareta Ōkoku) is an action-adventure puzzle video game with puzzle elements, developed by Game Republic and published by Namco Bandai Games. It was released on November 23, 2010 in North America.[1]
Contents
Plot
Majin's story is set in a once prosperous and fruitful kingdom, which is overtaken by a mysterious darkness and thrown into disarray. While many citizens attempted to explore and find out what's going on, they were never to be seen again, and the decay continued. To cleanse this forsaken kingdom of the darkness, a young thief, whom the Majin refers to as Tepeu, sets out to free the mythical Majin - an all-powerful and mystical beast, to reclaim its power and restore the land to its former glory.
Gameplay
The game is an action/platformer, with puzzle elements thrown in at different intervals. Players control Tepeu, while Majin is A.I. controlled. Though the player takes no direct control over Majin, they can give him commands, which are often used for solving puzzles or during combat.
As the game progresses, Majin will gain powers, such as the ability to produce electricity. These elements will be used both in combat and puzzle solving.
The game is intended to emphasize the differences in Majin and Tepeu. For example at certain points, the characters will be separated and Tepeu must dispatch enemies using stealth, as he does not have the strength Majin does.
Development
The game was first announced during Namco Bandai's press briefing in Gamescom 2009 trade show.[2] Takahiro Sasanoi, director for Tekken 6, also served as the director for this game.[3] The original title was Majin: The Fallen Realm however, this was later changed during development.[2] Although the game shares many conceptual similarities with Team Ico's The Last Guardian, Namco Bandai states that Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom "was in development long before [The] Last Guardian was announced."[4] In March 2010, Namco Bandai confirmed the game for a western release.[5]
Reception
Game Informer awarded the game an 8.0, stating that it was a fun game with an enjoyable story, but felt that it didn't accomplish anything different in the genre. The review also stated that the graphics were not as crisp as they could be, and was particularly critical of the game's voice acting. GameSpot awarded the game 7.0 out of ten and said "Simplistic combat and tedious backtracking don't fully diminish the pleasures of this attractive and festive fable."[1]
X-Play gave the game a 2/5 stating that while there were "clever puzzles and level design" and that the "companion system works well" it ultimately suffered from "dreadful dialogue", "sloppy controls", and a "cliched story". [2]
References
- ^ Clements, Ryan (April 14, 2010). "Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom: Befriending the Beast". IGN. http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/108/1083760p1.html. Retrieved 2010-06-05.
- ^ a b Wales, Matt (August 19, 2009). "GC 2009: Majin Incoming from Bandai Namco (X360)". IGN. http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/101/1015626p1.html. Retrieved 2011-07-31.
- ^ "Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom". AllGame. November 23, 2010. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=71926&tab=credits. Retrieved 2011-07-31.
- ^ Donlan, Christian (May 24, 2010). "Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom Hands-On". Eurogamer. http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/majin-and-the-forsaken-kingdom-hands-on. Retrieved 2010-06-05.
- ^ "Namco Bandai Games America Announces Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom". IGN. March 3, 2010. http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/101/1015629p1.html. Retrieved 2011-07-31.
External links
Categories:- 2010 video games
- Action-adventure games
- Fantasy video games
- Game Republic games
- Namco Bandai games
- PlayStation 3 games
- Puzzle video games
- Video games developed in Japan
- Xbox 360 games
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
