El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron has been a game I’ve been meaning to play for quite some time. It first caught my eye with its arresting visual flair, though the mixed reviews kept me at bay until I could grab it on the cheap. A few months back, it hit rock bottom on Xbox Live, as it was on sale for a paltry $3. Having played a little bit of it now, I’m not sure if the game was worth the wait.
From what I’d seen and heard going into this, El Shaddai is a game with fiction loosely based on the apocryphal Book of Enoch. You play as Enoch, as you try and stop seven fallen angels from destroying mankind. From the outset, you’re led along by a dapper-looking guy named Lucifel, who for whatever reason, is constantly on his cellphone talking to God.
The biggest draw to the game are its aesthetic qualities. It looks like a painting come to life thanks to its gorgeous art style and beautiful music. Even during the times when I had no idea what the heck was going on, it was at least a treat for the eyes and ears.
As for how it plays, it takes no shortage of cues from Devil May Cry and God of War. You walk from one battle arena to the next, slashing down foes as they arise. This is where the game stumbles a bit. From the little I’ve played, the enemies you fight aren’t all that interesting, nor are the moves you have at your disposal. It all works as intended, though it’s just not very fun. There was one platforming section I played through as well that was needlessly difficult. Even when the game gives you a double jump and the ability to float down, I had issues landing on the right platforms due to the poor camera angle that framed up the sequence. Had the camera been better positioned, I wouldn’t have needed the ability to double jump or float down.
Serious Otaku fans will probably appreciate it more, though it didn’t make much of a first impression for me. El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron seems like a pretty face with not much interesting to say from a gameplay perspective. Not sure if I’ll be going back to this one.
In Third Person 