Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: Primal

Written by Chris Reiter on April 08, 2003

Full Review: It's prime time for a demonizing design.

We, as humans, often are led to believe that the wheels of the universe spin around solely on us and us only. Truth can be blinding. At least for Sony's newest adventure bound protagonist, anyhow. From real to surreal, Sony has striven to produce some of the most exhilarating video game fantasy tales we couldn't even begin to fathom. Now teamed together again with the same people behind the PlayStation's quirky adventure release, MediEvil, Sony's diving head first into a story about a woman and her newfound friend gargoyle to uncover her true origin...that she is and was born to be part demon.

Sexy. Stylish. Soulful. Jennifer Tate, or Jen as she likes to be called, is pretty much the average result of today's "present" good looking goth-like chick. In a part of Jen's life she was not yet prepared for, it is here that her boyfriend, Lewis, is about to be stolen into the night by a brute creature of terrible power deep within a realm that is unknown to any human life form. Left for dead after the struggle, Jen has been hospitalized...until Scree; an unusual talking gargoyle lifts Jen's spirit from her body, and carries her off into Oblivion. After learning that the Lord of all that is chaos in the world, Abaddon, is overpowering the half that is order, Goddess Arella, Jen's eyes begin to awaken to her planet's underlying clockwork. Confused, curious, and most of all eager to save her missing boyfriend, Jen is about to undergo her biggest mission in life: to demonize herself for the fate of everyone.

Lately it seems like Sony's a bit too preoccupied with the whole "role built for two" process. First they gave us Ico and Yorda, then Jak and Daxter, then Rau and Kuzo, then Ratchet and Clank, then Max and Monica, and now it's Jen and Scree's turn. Don't get me wrong though, because without the benefit of both Jen and Scree, Primal simply wouldn't work. It's just; Jen and Scree's offering on the table maybe is not working to the same degree as Sony's previous published releases. Like any good tag team partnership, Jen and Scree cannot function without the better half. Jen's half is half the battle, in that she does the fighting, pulls the punches, slashes and gashes -- you know, the works. Scree's half is more along the lines of embodying the knowledge of the duo's quest, possessing statues, as well as utilizing the ability to contain and maintain the power of the couple's life energy. Essentially Jen isn't without Scree and Scree without Jen; but there are reasons why their combination isn't also without fail.

First of all, Jen is more of the pivotal character in this game's plot. To live in a place where you must progress past ferocious monsters left and right, you must fight. Shape-shifting into one of four ultimate formations, Jen becomes one with the nature of her creature. This means in Jen's primal state, she should be combat ready for anything. To that extent, you might expect something a little different than the same fighting stances while in human form, but in this case it's unfortunately not conceived in that direction. All the combat system really is in Primal is Jen executing one ugly creature after the next using punch and spin attacks, thrown in with the occasional finishing blow and blocks. Granted that not all enemies are the same, with at least a few course of enemies per stage. But even with some variations in enemy being the faster or slower sort, Jen's tactics for combat never change.

Redundant as the combat may sound, the element of Jen's transformation is still useful towards other ends in the game. While in her monster state, not only does her strength increase, but also other aspects enhance in different ways depending on the demon type. Starting out as a Ferai, Jen becomes stronger, faster, and is able to jump high walls in a single bound. Afterward Jen will morph into other creatures as well, like the Wraith that's built for slowing down time; the Undine, a water monster that enables Jen to plunge into the murky depths of the unknown; and the Djinn, a fire breed of fierce magical power. Each skill she will eventually host serves her purpose of accessing points of the game she couldn't previously do before, next to taking care of a few baddies down the road.

Not without her reason for being here, Scree is kind of like the tour guide. He may look like a gargoyle, but this moving stone figure can do a lot more than it seems at first glance. As far as climbing up and across brick walls to reach several game access points, gathering lode stones to possess statues for the unlocking of inaccessible doorways, storing the power of gems and spirits from fallen enemies inside his gut in order to regenerate Jen's human and demon life gauges, and a few other things goes, Scree is one small critter that really packs a punch.

Together, Jen and Scree match up like peas and carrots -- Jen being the sexy, slender orange carrot, and Scree the puny, olive colored pea that's strange to look at, yet still tasty. Whilst fused into one grouping, it's often that Jen and Scree's travels as one will come to a halt when they have a puzzle to solve. Unfortunately, Primal's puzzles don't focus on the element of riddle, but more on the "how the hell am I going to get Jen/Scree from this point to that point" basis. Usually the puzzles don't consist of a lot of work, but some can be brain teasers, such as one example where Scree needs to climb up a building, then continue into a foreboding dungeon alone to lay a set of pots on top of a weakened floorboard, only to break into the room below to grab a rope, to toss to Jen's rescue, and finally to have her climb up with Scree's stone weight holding her own. Combine that with a lot of monsters to slaughter, and Primal is pretty much a straightforward game.

Getting to know Jen and Scree is one thing -- getting to be them is another thing. Having both characters accomplishing various tasks enables them with different purposes and different buttons to press in action. The basics of the game are quite simple really after about half an hour of playtime. Most important above all else is that in Primal you have the option to switch between your two characters at any given time. Pressing the select button lets you do this. What's simple about the controls is that whatever character it is you're using, the range of button options are restricted right down to the bare bones. Jen's purposes being mainly to fight and to walk around, her angle comes from mainly the back buttons. Tapping down on L2 or R2 will activate Jen's left and right arm attacks, where the L1 button engages a spin maneuver and R1 prevents any incoming damage. Pushing the X button during a fight sequence also selects which attacker it is Jen faces, as it can open doors and bust containers wide-open throughout the dungeon areas. And when not killing anyone, a jab of any of the directional buttons will allow for Jen's human to beastly mutation take affect, depending on which direction it is you press (each demon access channel is mapped specifically through each of the four directions). If in need of assistance, the triangle button also allows Scree to lend Jen a hint pertaining to where to take the game to next at any time while in Jen vision.

Scree's controls are basically the same through way of opening doors, breaking barrels (both with X), or guiding the character through thick or thin (with the left analog stick). The only thing different really is that Scree can transfer his power into that of another statue and then press the triangle button to dispossess it. Also pushing the circle button lets Scree take on a solid form for when a battle occurs. But out of all of Scree's easy qualities, the trickiest to perform is in handling the scaling of walls when it comes to being a gargoyle. Poor camera angles can ruin a gaming experience. For Primal, the camera system is thankfully only a minor annoyance at times. In weird positions, such as when pressing Scree up against a wall, he'll cling to it and the camera will shift to view from behind his back...and if Scree descends down the wall, he'll automatically perform a little handstand maneuver to flip over into an upright position. This awkwardness about the camera can be confusing at times, but as players aren't essentially always piloting the stone statue up hard surfaces, the camera continues to remain fairly easy to manipulate using the right analog stick for free roaming mode and the R1 button for a first person perspective.

It's still an astonishing sight to see one game, any game, top any offerings before it in the visual department. Primal is just one of those games that is marked for redefining the visual splendor of digital bliss. Inside its gorgeously grotesque landscape, Primal manages to pay attention to detail, especially in its amazing model making skills. Drenched over Jen and Scree's body designs, over other relevant story characters, over inside and outside locales, and even on top of enemies, the texture effects seriously give Primal a life of its own. Each character, be it the good guys or the bad guys, you'll notice how differently distinctive each arm, each leg, and even the head is chiseled to a quality of a "real" enough to make you think "I've been to Heaven, and it was good." Still though, there are sections of the game that could've used some work, like the game's probable areas seem always to turn out a little on the drab side where while the caverns, outside trails, and ruined buildings look excellent, it always seems like Sony could've rendered the game in a fashion so not to make everything as cloaked in dim as it is.

Animations too are key to making the game's overall turnout great, especially in the likes of the two main protagonists, Jen and Scree. Immediately taking effect, it's noticeable how Jen and Scree's movements aren't the same as another, nor are they with their enemies or allied forces you'll approach. Jen -- a human, now a part demon, remains to appear as though still human throughout the rest of the game. As so, Jen's animations readily appear humanistic, although slightly change in other forms when performing tasks that no ordinary person could do. On the other hand, Scree is the small gargoyle that is without a doubt animating at its best. He scales walls on all fours, hunches over while hopping forth, and even tends to grabs items inserting them into his stomach without a flaw in sight. Outside in the thick of night, other effects such as the blowing of wind against trees and bush life also give Primal an excellent touch. Enemies too each have their own unique brand of combat characteristics...only not as many as the plot's two relevancies.

Yet another area of "wow" is in the scenery effects. Light plays a huge part with its ability to surround anything and everything. If Jen is in demon form, the braces around her arms begin to cast an eerie glow of green all around her and anything she nears. For Scree it's the same way, where he can carry a torch picked up from off from the wall and enter a pitch dark cavernous spot to emanate only the surrounding patch he stands on without falter. Shadows like light play as big a part, since all characters are handed to them all kinds of shades -- on top of body and dark silhouettes, coloring the walls or floors in an essence that's almost too good to be true.

Had music been able to soothe the savage beast, it could've at least done a better job in Primal. What Primal has in store for you in the music department is nothing really new, nothing really demanding of your attention...in fact, it's even hard at times to get past point of even noticing that there is any music in the game at all. Jen and Scree's travels are fairly a calm quiet at most times, until any number of battles occur, and then the music goes from its drift action to a heavier stream of rock music. Once a battle is over though, the music fades away changing back to the way it was before, which is kind of unfortunate being this looping pattern is but one of the game's more annoying flaws.

On the brighter side of things though, Oblivion is a place where audio is authentic and the voice actors pour all of their emotion into the part of the character. Footprints, the clinks and clanks of metal through battle, fires roaring, arrows incoming from afar, and even the wind shaking rustling trees are each as much a part as the next in making Primal's sound design work. I don't know how Sony dug them up, but Jen's voice and Scree's voice are perfect as they come. Where Jen's pitch goes from sarcastic to a more demonic range while talking in her monstrous form, and Scree's voice is of an elderly but enigmatic flavor, the stunning jobs this unlikely duo pulls off is entirely worth the buck. If only the other supporting characters were around more often, they too lend their talents in a dramatic way that's good enough to assign these people positions in the movie business.