Kena: Bridge of Spirits Review
Release Date: September 21st, 2021
Developer: Ember Labs
Platforms: PC (Reviewed), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5
Price: $39.99 (Standard), $49.99 (Deluxe)
There are myriad games out there from all sorts of developers of varying sizes, cultures, and backgrounds that have crafted brand new properties that have gone on to become staples within a genre, some even redefining them while simultaneously introducing a brand new wave of players to an unforgettable experience that ends up becoming one of their favorites. What's more difficult, however, is the ability to carry on with it a sense of magic both in and out of gameplay that you continue to feel even long after you've put the controller down. Kena: Bridge of Spirits seemed to be the next big game that would potentially hold that special touch when it was announced as Ember Lab's debut title, and the world felt it. With the developers coming from a background of film animation, it was obvious right away that their prowess and years of expertise would exude from the game and deliver, if anything, one of the most beautifully fluid and animated video games in years if not within the medium as a whole.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits sees players in the shoes of the title character, Kena, who acts as spirit guide to help those that feel lost or unwanted move on in peace. It adds itself to the lineup of games as of late such as Oninaki, Cozy Grove, and Spiritfarer that also touch upon these subjects of helping the deceased that remain in limbo finally move forward to a better place than be confused and ultimately find themselves corrupted. It's a topic that can be sensitive to some, but more often than not these games - Kena included - beautifully orchestrate through their gameplay and narrative focus what it means to have that responsibility as a spirit guide to help bring peace to both the living and the dead. This task is not without challenge, however, and Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a stunning portrayal of the topic in a beautiful lively world that has been mostly absent of life for quite some time thanks to what's known as The Corruption that has terrorized and ruined many areas of the land.
Combat in Kena: Bridge of Spirits has a nice fusion of what made the games of the genre lead into where they are today, as well as those that mainly focus on the action such as hack-and-slash titles, beat-'em-ups, and brawlers. With The Rot by your side, Kena's easily accessible controls helps to create simplistic inputs while adding just enough vareity to feel fresh and immersive, utilizing both light attacks and heavy attacks alongside ranged shots and special attacks with the help of your upgrades, newly acquired skills, and Rot that you've found along the way. Simple button presses and basic combinations allow for dodges, parrying, and moves that power up your weapons and unleash massive damage with the right usage of your staff as not only can you fight up close with it, but as you progress can unlock new skills that allow for more flexibility with the staff. Powerful arrows, increased defense, and huge area-of-effect attacks make it so you can better handle the waves of enemies that will increase in number the deeper into the game you get, and it's always immensely satisfying being able to dish out these moves in such a polished state. It has the sort of fluidity you would expect from a hack-and-slash title despite not being one, though not necessarily as flashy. However, particle effects, environmental damage, and the attention to detail of how things interact and collide certainly help in providing a robust and immersive time when in battle, though it's not without its faults. Having discussed Kena: Bridge of Spirits with others in the media space, everyone has had their own sort of qualms with how the combat is executed, though two areas of combat in particular were consistent with criticism that also matched my own personal issues: Dodging and Blocking/Parrying.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits feels fair more often than not, and any challenge brought upon the player also feels like a test of everything you and Kena have both learned so far leading up to that point, however dodging is an odd area that can feel like it does more harm than good. You can run around the battlefield and out in the world of the game without having to worry about any stamina usage, and the same goes for the moves you'll do in combat with the only real meter worth paying attention to is the "courage" the Rot will have to muster up in order to do another special attack. Dodging, however, has little to no invincibility frames and can be interrupted at any given moment during any part of its animation sequence, and with some of the larger enemies taking up such a large radius with some of their moves (this is especially prevalent in the smaller "arenas"), more often than not your best bet is to just run away or shield as dodging won't amount to much good even if it seems like you're out of the way. It can feel inconsistent, and while Kena undoubtedly has an element of patience to its combat making it so you're not just mashing away at the buttons, dodging still feels like a high risk/high reward maneuver even after you've memorized enemy patterns and flow. I often found myself dodging simply to run faster and tread more ground quicker rather than for any purpose of evasion. Though that is a big part of combat that can feel irksome, nothing felt like more of a nuisance to me than Kena's actual shield that can also be used to parry. A simple button press will allow Kena to form a forcefield around her that can block virtually any attack for a set amount of time which is indicated further by the blue bubble around her turning darker and more red before bursting and potentially stunning her, leaving her vulnerable to any attacks. Utilizing the same button, players can simply tap rather than hold the left shoulder button to initiate a parry attack when it makes contact with an enemy attack at the same time, however despite me having a long history of brawlers and hack-and-slash titles that make use of the parry mechanic and becoming extremely comfortable and efficient with them (sometimes making it through fights with parrying exclusively), for the life of me I was rarely able to perform a parry and make use of the skills that accompany it because of an extremely tight window that couldn't even be a fraction of a millisecond behind to execute. Because two of the most important thing in protecting yourself in combat being lackluster at best, every fight felt mostly like an all out brawl because of this, leaving little technical strategy when finding yourself going against more of the Corruption.
Even with its combat not being up to par because of a few things, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is without a doubt one of the most beautiful, polished, and engaging adventure games in years that in ways feels like a love letter to the platformers and adventures of yesteryear that helped define the genre to this day. Feeling like an amalgam of Heavenly Sword, Enslaved, Beyond Good & Evil, Jak & Daxter, and so much more, Kena: Bridge of Spirits takes what the forefathers and influential titles of the genre built from and upon each other and feels like a student exceeding their master thanks to its exemplary craftsmanship. What sets Kena: Bridge of Spirits apart from a lot of other titles within the genre also is that even though it can certainly provide a challenge for the avid gamer, it's accessibility, intuitiveness, and quality of life features are really what make Kena not only a fun experience, but a comfortable one at that that's perfect for anyone's schedule and availability. Whether on PC, PS4, or PS5, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is incredibly well optimized and an absolute joy to play, and from its story, vibrant world, cute Rot, and absolutely phenomenal animation, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is one of the most wholesome packages both narratively and as a package in recent memory and should absolutely be played by everyone that has even the slightest interest in adventures that will leave a lasting impression. Ember Labs has set a new standard on what to expect for not only games that are accessible, but creating a world and formula that holds a sense of magic well after the game is finished. The 10 to 15 hours you'll spend in Kena's shoes will shower you with one of the most captivating experiences that's difficult to put down, and for Ember Labs' debut title, this has easily and quickly put them on the map for one of the most talented studios currently in the business.
PROS:
Animations both in-engine and pre-rendered are some of the best I've seen in years, if not ever.
A stunning world that draws you in with its wonder, mystery, and charm
Accessible but offers a fair challenge where it matters without ever feeling cheap
Tons of collectibles and rewards give the game great depth and reward the player's curiosity.
CONS:
Hitboxes and the way evasion and parrying works could certainly use some tweaking as a lot of moments in combat can feel uncalled for regardless of reaction timing
A big thank you and eternal gratitude to Ember Labs for providing us a copy of Kena: Bridge of Spirits on PC for the purposes of this review.