All of these additions create a thoroughly fantastic world, yet skillfully consistent and grounded in reality. The gameplay itself would also have to be considered another big collection, with elements of stealth, sniping, and keen observation betwixt hacking and slashing. Kri's main fault is that these haven't been smoothed over with as much care as the art and animation has, but at least it never loses ground and, by the end, the game becomes a roaring mass of frenetic energy and action.

Be forewarned, however - The Mark of Kri is a gratuitously violent smear, another victim to the opiate of Western games, the frame of mind that being senselessly brutal is an absolving reason in itself. Don't allow the cartoon mien and warm colors to deceive you; minatory violence is Mark's almost superfluous effluvium, a noxious and pungent loblolly of severed heads, flying appendages, and spilt blood. Considering the fluid nature of The Mark of Kri, a pulsating Disney-esque animated land of exotic locales, to see our hero impale a soldier on a big stick is nothing short of bewildering. If most of the other aspects weren't done so well, I think I'd be morally opposed to this game.

At least, I have to admit, that for the bitingly sharp sword that The Mark of Kri brandishes, there's a tough hilt to support it, a backbone that exonerates the fighting (or rather, accompanies it). Narrated by his blackbird familiar, Kuzo, Rau embarks on a series of journeys, each one increasingly important than the one before it. Long before the events of the Rau's adventure, an evil spell that would plunge the world into darkness was created, the incantation being an emblem comprised of six marks. These six marks of Kri are grafted onto the skin of the firstborn of the one who previously held it, carrying out a twisted filial malediction. Dark forces are moving forward in an attempt to bring the six marks back together. This original story is of real worth, progressing smoothly and interestingly throughout the game, and is even further complimented by the presentation and having enough sensibilities to avoid the common pratfalls with grace. There's the usual assortment of clichés (kid to save, disaster that hits close to home) but most are given a unique spin: most of the annoying characters are given very little screen time and most of the characters fail to live to the ending. And I'm especially happy to say that there is absolutely no hugging or warm embraces anywhere. Even the requisite final ultimatum (the "Join me and we'll live like gods!" bit) is handled in a very precise manner; funny, and, of course, very violent. Most of the cutscenes are shown through uncolored pencil drawings, slowly sketched in as Kuzo narrates. A fantastic and highly novel technique never before used in a game, it's a persuasive example of effective style over substance.

On the subject on original techniques, the combat system is yet another very neat trick. Using the right analog stick to target your surroundings, the game assigns each enemy selected to one of the main buttons, save for triangle. Pressing any of these buttons will send Rau attacking in the direction of the enemy with the giant corresponding shape over his head. Pressing the R3 button cancels all assignments, allowing reassignment or more easy movement (when focused on enemies, Rau will refuse to turn his back on them). The value of this system should be easy to see, as it allows quick movement and easy transition in attacking one foe to another, something that has been missing form virtually all 3D games of this ilk. The game has a very fine sense of pacing just when things seem to be slowing down, new twists and gameplay mechanics and weapons are introduced, a perfect recipe for addiction. While the sword, spear, and axe all perform in the same general manner (main difference: sword can target up to three enemies, spear with six, and axe with nine), the bow is used for long-distance, first-person sniping or fast close combat (Legolas in the upcoming Lord of the Rings game will have a difficult time topping Rau). The bow works well with the stealth component, consisting of your standard neck snapping and tiptoeing.

Kuzo, aforementioned familiar and narrator, is used to scope the area, flying to specific perches that are marked with a beam of light and a spinning chalice. Pressing the triangle button switches between Kuzo's view and back to Rau's third-person view. Strangely, Rau can see some perches that Kuzo cannot and Kuzo can see others that Rau cannot, meaning that getting to some perches means follow a strict path of flying from one perch to another perch to another. Not aggravating, but annoying at least. It's also unfortunate that you can only fly to designated areas and not given full control over Kuzo, meaning that every time you play, it'll always be the same. Considering the Metal Gear Solid series and No One Lives Forever, part of the intrinsic fun in stealth is the jolting spontaneity of it all, while Kri's stealth element in comparison is artificial and limp, where the brain-dead enemies are placed only for maximum visceral pleasure. Still, it's understandable, if not forgivable, considering the nature of the game is to kill rather than avoid.

So returning to the main, and frankly, better, part of the game, combos are another important factor. Since not all three buttons will be assigned all the time, the remaining buttons are used to perform combos (videlicet: if you have only the X button assigned, pressing X, circle, square, X will perform a powerful combo on the target). Combos, while short, are often quite hard to pull off, as they require perfect, punctual timing and there always lie the possibility that enemies will truncate your combo by attacking you midway. Easily the best maneuver of the game is disarming your enemy, which is done by pressing R1 while you have no weapon equipped and just before the enemy's weapon strikes (and unfortunately no, you cannot catch arrows and throw them back). Though all the moves are very dynamic and choreographed well, especially the combos, Kri seems a bit too enamored in its fancy tricks, taking special care in highlighting its delights with slow-motion shots, close-ups of extra gruesome deaths, and of course, blur effects, making sure you don't miss any of its antics.

The levels are all very long, sometimes exceedingly so, but there are only six (hey, reminds me of the early 90s), each one sharpening a specific skill (getting used to basic combat, using the bow and arrow, using stealth, using the spear). So it'd be logical to think that the final level would be the apotheosis of everything that has transpired, a big jumble of every skill you've learned thus far. But actually, that happens during the fifth stage. The final level seems more like an easy denouement, a slightly disappointing and repetitive exercise in using the axe, a contained version of Sword of the Berserk.

Good non-sports affiliated, North American games can get difficult to find on the console market, but titles like Maximo and Halo are doing well to reverse this tide. The Mark of Kri is another solid piece of interactive entertainment, despite its childish and dissolute mores. Not quite original, but certainly an excitingly creative and, for the most part, successful attempt in a very old genre.

· · · Sqoon