Odin Sphere Leifthrasir (PlayStation 4) Review

This enhanced version should not be taken for granted; Odin Sphere Leifthrasir is a complete remake. More than just HDifying the visuals into some of the most glorious hand-drawn areas and spectacular animated sprites around (as expected of Vanillaware), the actual battle systems and gameplay have been overhauled to introduce a much more accessible and smoother experience for newcomers and veterans returning from the PS2 original that had a tough time before.

The changes are for the better. Following on from the mighty success of the quite brilliant Muramasa: The Demon Blade on Wii (and its subsequent updated port for Vita) and Dragon's Crown, Vanillaware has adopted some of what made these games so great; namely characters that move quickly and fluently with tight controls that never bring gameplay down to a halt. Comboing enemies feels effortless, as even when an attack sequence ends with the final hit, the combo can be kept alive with a simple evasion, which is a much-needed additional move for Leifthrasir, allowing a swift jump to set up another string of attacks, whether it's through special moves, item attacks, or main weapon strikes. In addition, the POW gauge doesn't deplete from standard attacks now, meaning there is far less stopping and waiting before being able to strike again.

Even if racking up combos has been made easier, and even if the gameplay has been spruced up to look flashier, it is worth it for actually guaranteeing that battles remain enjoyable and engaging. One criticism of the PS2 version was its repetitiveness, and whilst that is a natural side-effect of the beat 'em up genre (even with Vanillaware's other titles), this is circumvented massively through the ability to pull off impressive continuous moves, juggling enemies long after their HP has been depleted to the point of overkill.

Each of the five playable characters has their own unique play style, where one is not normally better than the other, but has its own advantages and disadvantages. Gwendolyn is very easy to use, with her spear able to perform swift strikes that can inflict the freeze status; Cornelius' small form means he is a nimble fighter whose sword can place strong dizzying effects on foes; Mercedes turns gameplay into a 2D shooter of sorts, since she fires off bullets with her ranged bow, and can glide around arenas with ease; Oswald is incredibly agile, and has the option to transform to increase his abilities, but does drain his power; and Velvet is a personal favourite, elegantly comboing enemies to hell and back with her powerful chain, and being able to swing around stages for efficient travel.

Characters are used in a set order, as the story progresses in a fixed way, but the beginning of a new arc means learning to adapt to the abilities and style of the new character taken control of. Some work better at close range, whilst other fair better in the middle or from afar. Weaker ones need to find ways to keep combos going or make effective use of abilities, which are learnt from finding them in levels, completing areas and finishing chapters. Through the acquiring of Phozons in battles, they can be used to level up abilities, which also bolster stats like attack power and defense.

This is more than just a 2D brawler; there are light RPG mechanics under the bonnet, and this side of things has also been streamlined a bit from the original game. Instead of having two separate levels for attack power and HP, there is now just one overall character level, which increases all stats upon level up, whilst HP can also be raised through the eating of food, obtained by being grown from plants, bought at cafes or found as items.

A smart little procedure of planting seeds anywhere in a level, then using Phozons to grow the plants to produce fruit is a clever way of levelling up characters, and doesn't come across as implemented just to be different; there is some thought required as to whether or not to spend the Phozons on creating fruit or saving them to level up abilities. In addition, deciding to save up the food or eating it there and then factors into whether or not to combine the food at the travelling restaurant, whose recipes (collected throughout the game in chests) provide bigger bonuses in EXP and HP. It's fine to eat every piece of food as it's come across, but if wanting faster levels and bigger HP stats, going out of the way to grab rarer food stuffs will definitely be a path that needs considering.

To keep from the prior complaint of samey stages in the PS2 game, there have been plenty of new mid-bosses added to areas, with big rewards for defeating them. Difficulty has been reduced on the Normal mode, at the very least, no doubt in response to how tough Odin Sphere was back in 2007, and that does now make it far more playable to the vast majority of people. Hard mode is recommended for any vets returning to the remake, but it is the unlockable Hell difficulty that will pose the major threat, cementing HP at 200 for the entire game. For the true test of skill, though, the Boss Rush mode, featuring 30 of the toughest foes in the game locked at level 50, with no items or checkpoints available, is where it's at.

What makes this whole package extra special is how story plays such an integral role in making Odin Sphere the wonderful game it is. Set in a world of fairytales, with Valkyries, goblins, fairies, dragons, magicians and dwarves the inhabitants of a place rich in lore, the five protagonists at the heart of it all tell a captivating tale of love and deceit, leading onto a path of Armageddon. Fully voiced cut-scenes don't dampen the story at all, but there are options for both English and Japanese, or none at all. That the fantasy chronicle equally matches the quality of the gameplay is the icing on the cake for a game that also includes the original PS2 version, which retains all of its original gameplay mechanics, whilst utilising the redone HD characters and backgrounds.