Aragami (video game)
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| Developer(s) | Lince Works |
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| Engine | Unity |
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Linux Microsoft Windows OS X PlayStation 4 |
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| Genre(s) | Action-adventure, stealth |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Aragami is an action-adventure stealth video game developed and published by Lince Works for Linux, Microsoft Windows, OS X and PlayStation 4.[1] The game was originally titled Twin Souls: The Path of Shadows.[2] The players take the role of Aragami, an assassin with supernatural abilities.[3] The player can teleport between shadows and will face an enemy army that goes by the name of 'Kaiho'. This opposing army is formed by warriors with the power to control the light.
Gameplay
The player controls a shadow spirit, Aragami, attempting to reach the end of all thirteen open-world chapters in order. To complete a chapter, the player must go to certain areas to collect items or destroy obstacles and reach the level's exit. Aragami can teleport to any part of the map in a certain radius where a shadow is cast, but doing so expends "Shadow Essence", displayed as a meter on his cape. Shadow Essence is replenished by standing in the shadows, and drained by standing near intense light sources such as lanterns. Later in the game, the player gains a raven that will show the player the location of objectives through walls, and a set of bells that can be rung to lure enemies elsewhere.
Each chapter is patrolled by many guards. Basic sword-wielding guards are the most common enemy. There are also archers that patrol elevated areas and can spot the player at a longer distance while aiming, and swordsmen circled by a torch that kills the player on contact. A guard can be killed instantly by attacking him within a certain range, but the only enemy that must be killed to complete a chapter is the boss (if present). Observing evidence of the player's presence (such as the sound of their comrades dying or spotting the player in the distance) will make guards suspicious, causing them to draw their swords and investigate. If they find a corpse or see the player clearly, they will blow a horn, temporarily making all the guards actively search for Aragami, and causing them to become more suspicious if the player evades detection. Any successful hit by a guard will kill Aragami instantly, returning the player to the last checkpoint to try again. The player can also die by falling into water.
As the player explores the levels, they may find several hidden scrolls. Scrolls can be spent to unlock various useful skills, such as the ability to become temporarily invisible or to make corpses vanish. "Abilities" either rely upon Aragami's Shadow Essence or have infinite uses. "Techniques" are more powerful, but have only two uses, cannot harm bosses, and can only be equipped one at a time (though the player can switch among them at any time). Shrines placed sparsely throughout the level will refill all of the player's equipped techniques.
Plot
Aragami is summoned into existence one night by Yamiko, a girl who identifies herself as a captive of the Kaiho, an army of light adepts. She describes them as oppressors who conquered the land from the Shadow Empress and imprisoned the Empress, herself, and others. She requests Aragami's help in freeing them, for which she needs six talismans to unlock the prison. This must be done before the night's end, for Aragami will dissolve if sunlight touches him.
As Aragami searches for the talismans, they trigger strange memories in him, of Yamiko's former life hiding out in the mountains, and of her being trained alongside the Kaiho. He encounters Hikaru, the last captain of the Kaiho, the others captains having died in the war where the Kaiho conquered the land. Aragami battles and defeats Hikaru. Before dying, Hikaru makes a remark implicating Yamiko as the Shadow Empress, before killing himself in an explosion of light in an attempt to kill Aragami. Aragami survives, and Yamiko admits that she is the Shadow Empress, but was ashamed to tell him because of her helplessness.
After finding the last talisman, Aragami travels to the temple where Yamiko is held. Sora, general of the Kaiho, impedes his progress, but he fights his way to the temple and mortally wounds her. As she lies dying, Sora recognizes him by his demeanour: he is the spirit of Ryo, the first general of the Kaiho. He and the other leaders of the Kaiho, including Hikaru, fought to purge the evil shadow army from the land many years before, but Ryo was killed while imprisoning the Shadow Empress.
After Sora expires, Yamiko frees herself with the talismans and reveals her true form, but Aragami takes Sora's sword and defeats her as dawn begins to break. Before the final blow, he describes them as twin souls in an endless cycle, and states that he wishes there were another way. Yamiko quietly agrees.
After the credits, an image is shown of Nisshoku's (the Shadow Emperor before Yamiko) grave, encountered earlier in the game. Before it Sora's sword has been placed, and Yamiko's childhood doll.
Reception
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Aragami received "favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[4][5]
References
- ↑ Amores, Travis (20 April 2016). "Lince Works drops the first trailer for their stealth ninja game, 'Aragami'". GameZone. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ↑ Devore, Jordan (20 April 2016). "Teleporting stealth game Twin Souls lives on as Aragami". Destructoid. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ↑ Romano, Sal (20 April 2016). "Ninja stealth game Aragami announced for PS4, PC". Gematsu. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- 1 2 "Aragami for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
- 1 2 "Aragami for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
- ↑ Carter, Chris (4 October 2016). "Review: Aragami". Destructoid. Retrieved 4 October 2016.