On the show floor of the Penny Arcade Expo, I was guided through a 15 minute demo of Rise of the Argonauts which showcased both the combat and story elements of the Greek action game; though the game is supposed to feature a robust integration of role-playing upgrades, I didn’t get to check those out, but I was fortunate enough to dive in to the brutal action of the game.
News editor Ross Arbour teases me about my overusing of the word “visceral,” but it couldn’t be truer in the case of Rise of the Argonauts. As a suddenly widowed Jason (of, you guessed it, Jason and the Argonauts fame) players will slice their way from their abruptly concluded wedding to hunt down the assassin who made the kill. From there, epic adventures presumably follow – but I’ve got to focus here: the SOB just iced my lady, and I’ve got to exact some vengeance.
Generic-o-legions of enemies swarm and surround Jason in his pursuit, but the Argonaut Hercules is by his side to assist. Herc, along with the other unlockable Argos, aid in battle by beating and bear-hugging their way to a violent victory while the player controlled Jason uses a variety of maces, swords and spears do spill the blood of his foes in some of the most hard-hitting combat in any action game yet.
There’s always a catch, though: in a trade-off for the, ahem, visceral attacks, you’ll have to deal with a complete lack of fluidity. Jason’s assault is hard, viscous, and anything but graceful so the controls of it feel almost sluggish as a result. Mashing the attack button belts out stabs and slices that result in bloody dismemberment and geysers of gore, though the slight delay between motions is slightly irking until you get the feel of it.
Once you do, bashing your shield into a foe’s face to explode it becomes a satisfying endeavor. You’ll get the opportunity to do this a lot considering the enter-a-room, fend-off-some-dudes mentality of the game, but rest assured that bigger baddies await you once you leave the confines of the demo-area.
Choice will also play a huge factor in the game – a staple of modern RPGs. Choosing the outcome of a specific situation allows you to pledge the result to a specific god, such as Hermes or Ares depending on the powers you wish to obtain in your adventure. This allows players to have a drastically different Jason each time they play.
And if the game is as consistently visceral as the conclusion of the demo – the murder of the wife-slaughtering assassin – odds are high that gamers will be back for a double dose. What I thought was a cinematic was actually a beautiful change of pace in real-time gameplay: Herc corners the jerk and chucks him in to a corner, wherein players are tasked with equipping the weapon of their choice and feeding repeated slices, stabs and clubs in to the downed hitman. Blood sprays over Jason’s shoulder as he cuts his way to revenge before the camera switches to the dying and darkening perspective of the blood-soaked enemy before he finally dies.
I was more disgusted with the use of gore in Rise of the Argonauts than any other game I’ve ever played. In my morbid lust for computer generated blood, I want more. Now.
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