“Nariko’s flowing hair is longer than this game”

Heavenly Sword is a gorgeous masterpiece, a stunning achievement, for the six or so hours of gameplay and cinematics that are on the disc. If only there were more of a game to enjoy, Heavenly Sword would be one of the most satisfying experiences available only for the PS3.

Some of the levels feel truly innovative, like a forest sniping scene early on, or an arena where you have to use less-than-deadly force for once. However, these moments are brief, even with a ranking system to encourage replays. It would be nice to see some of these great ideas become full-blown chapters, as the twisting narrative structure of the game allows for all sorts of fun diversions.

Between gameplay moments Heavenly Sword has excellent cinematic cutscenes, brought to life by Lord of the Rings and King Kong mo-cap actor Andy Serkis. As expected, they’re a triumph for videogames because of the extraordinarily detailed animation. It seems like everyone’s eyes and lips are conveying actual emotion, instead of the blank stare seen in other games. One effect of this is that a lot of melodrama occurs between characters, which can be repetitive if you’re trying to play through the game a second time. Another effect is that it makes the characters seem quite interesting and compelling.

One particular charmer is Kai, the sweet and slightly deranged sniper. Kai likes to play “twing twang”, which involves sticking bad guys full of crossbow bolts. One of Kai’s best levels involves defending her adopted father during his slow escape along a bridge, where enemies will blindly run at him and expose themselves to Kai’s twing twang. You can guide the arrows in slow motion to any sensitive body part you want, which brings us to Heavenly Sword’s other great gift to gaming, Aftertouch.

Aftertouch is Heavenly Sword’s other big innovation besides the cutscenes, and even though it’s been done before, Heavenly Sword does it best. Anything you throw or shoot, from Kai’s crossbow to Nariko’s puzzle-solving box of hats, will let you guide it gently in slow-motion with the analog stick or SixAxis control.

Of course, if you opt for the SixAxis control, it may not be a gentle flight so much as a jerky, out-of-control mess. Like an arrow with broken feathers, SixAxis often makes the projectiles veer in every direction. Unless you train yourself to keep the PS3 controller completely level, making only the slightest adjustments, it’s not nearly as satisfying to use motion control. And since I tend to play my PS3 games in a relaxed position on the couch, with my controller tilted slightly back to be more comfortable in my hands, analog control was the only way to use Aftertouch.

When you’re not watching a cutscene or controlling a projectile in slow-motion, the rest of the game involves a simple three-stance fighting system and legions of super-dumb enemies. Most of them will simply wait for you to attack, and if you wait for them to attack you will block most of their hits automatically. Simply rolling around and striking can defeat any enemy in the game, including a few bosses. There’s also no jump button in the fighting system, which means that the levels were designed to be highly linear with no room at all for exploration. The lack of a jump button also leads to some frustrating moments where a boss will be standing on a small ledge just a few feet away, but out of reach for poor lead-booted Nariko.

So while Aftertouch and the cutscenes are solid additions to Heavenly Sword, the short storyline and familiar fighting gameplay ultimately ended up a disappointment. I hope that if this game is just the first in a series, we’ll see more of an emphasis on a long, involved adventure for the sequel. There’s a good deal of potential in Heavenly Sword’s ambitious characters, and they feel wasted in a go-nowhere script like this. Still, this game is recommended for its great visuals and excellent virtual actors, even if it’s over before it really gets going.