Kameo: Elements of Power -- Initial Impression.

Out with the old, in with the new. Since I was playing Taito Legends and its old arcade titles as the last disc of 2005, it's fitting the first game of 2006 should be from the Xbox 360. Why Kameo: Elements of power? Well, the system doesn't have a mascot title and all system launches should. Kameo is that old style action game updated for the now current next generation consoles. At least I think it is. Actually I'm not entirely sure what Kameo is yet based on the first few hours I've spent messing around with it. I'm not sure of what it's trying to be as far as gameplay goes. I am sure of a couple things though. The game is just pretty. There were a couple next generation now type moments for me. First of all the game opens with what would like good FMV and as you're watching the camera swoop along heading toward a castle under siege from an army of trolls and dragons there is a moment where you realize that it's not FMV at all but the actual realtime game engine. A similar moment is to be had when you're at the start of the second area and the camera pulls back from your character on horseback and pans down a hillside you're facing revealing literally thousands of trolls.  As the camera sweeps along you grasp that they're all real active enemies that you're about to charge into. Before you can even get to "holy shit" you're off crashing through a sea of trolls and there isn't any sign of slowdown, or graphic tearing, or limited draw distance, or anything associated with pushing the hardware at all. It's these little things that are going to represent the next generation of consoles in my opinion. It's not going to be any radical departure in game design. It's just going to be in the living and breathing details. Other things I noticed is just how pretty the game is. It's gorgeous. Of course my console experience tells me that in two or three years, the game will look hideous as all first and second wave titles do for any system as you get into third and fourth waves of the system's life span. The music is Rare's usual great work, but this time seems just to have such an amazing in game sound quality. I'm interested to see just what Kameo turns out to be gameplay wise, but my initial foray into the future tells me said future looks bright.