Heavenly Sword is a PS3 exclusive released in 2007. It looks Amazing, it plays great and the story is superb. This game has gotten mixed reviews and I am here to set the score straight.
Graphics: To start of the review, let me just say that this games graphics in both the cutscenes and in the actual gameplay itself are so good that I often found myself forgetting to attack because I was looking at the scenery. For 2007 this game is mind blowing, for 2008 it is stunning, for 2009 its superb and so on and so forth. This game looked great then and still looks great today.
Gameplay: The gameplay resembles a god of war fill and adds in interesting counter attacks but for the most part doesn't do a lot of things that are new....until you get to shoot an arrow. Some games have done this before but Heavenly sword does it well. Even though it can take a while to get used to or be a little frustrating at times the game allows you to guide and control how arrows move and what the hit so if i want to circle around a building to hit an archer in the back of the head I actually can! It may be hard but it is satisfying to say the least.
Story: The story tells one of which a crazy man played by andy serces (spelled it wrong I'm sure) conquers a nearby tribe for an artifact called the Heavenly Sword. The main character, Nariko, uses the Heavenly Sword to defend her village and ultimately destroy the conquerors. The story deeply ties you to Nariko and her sister? (or something) Kai. Suffice it to say, when you reach the end, you truly care about the characters, even the bad guy and his son and are sad when some of the inevitably meet their demise. A great story that is pretty original in its presentation.
Overall a 4 out of 5 (preferably and 8.5 out of 10) from the guy who still doesn't understand why this game chose to call killing people with arrows "Twing Twang".