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 | Brave: The Search For Spirit Dancer Playstation2 Vis Entertainment/SCEE  The platform game has been a staple genre of videogames ever since... well, since videogames were first invented. Since then the genre has been divided into two basic types of platformer: the brilliant, Nintendo-developed 'Mario' or 'Donkey Kong' spinoff, and the enjoyable, yet not so brilliant, everything else. Of course this is simplifying things a bit, but on the whole Nintendo has held a stranglehold over the genre for the last 20 years: a reign that few other developers have been able to crack. With this in mind, along comes yet another 3D platformer, Vis Entertainment's cumbersomely titled 'Brave: The Search For Spirit Dancer'. Could this finally have what it takes to topple the Nintendo juggernaut? 'Brave...' sees the player take control of a young, exuberant native North American on his coming-of-age quest to become a warrior and also find that elusive Spirit Dancer mentioned in the title. Of course, such plot intricacies are largely irrelevant (this is a platform game, after all), and you soon realise that the real point of the game is exactly what you had expected: you run, you jump from ledge to ledge and collect meaningless objects for similarly meaningless benefits. While 'Brave' follows this mindless platforming formula to a tee, it's worth noting that there's still a few innovative features included along the way to keep things interesting. For starters, the game is not always just a pure platformer but also includes some basic hack'n'slash elements. Actually, this results in some pretty furious battle scenes at times, especially considering that up to 20 baddies can attack on screen at once. Another nice touch is also the 'upgradeability' of the player's weapons and powers, most of which are learnt from animals that inhabit the game environments. And while this can get a bit ridiculous (learning how to swim from a fish is one thing, but shooting lightening bolts like a 'thunderbird'?), it still provides the game with a sense of progression and achievement. Finally, it also features an abundance of side quests and mini-games to help break up the monotony of the jumping. The pick of these is definitely the challenging white water rafting levels, but other notable mini-games include a 'Pilotwings'-style flying level, and a bizarre moment in which the player takes control of a giant grizzly bear and goes on a zombie-eating rampage. Add to this the pleasant orchestral score and some colourful, cartoony graphics and you have yourself a pretty enjoyable platforming title. But is this enough to place it on par with the likes of 'Mario'? Unfortunately, this is where 'Brave' fails. Try as Vis Entertainment might, the game just can't compete with Nintendo's brilliance; the characters have no personality or humour, the game worlds are unimaginative and unoriginal (your stock standard lava world followed by an ice world and so on), and while some features are innovative, most of them we have seen many, many times before. 'Brave' is a fun romp, and a good way to spend an afternoon, but Sony will have to do far better if it wishes to topple Nintendo as the platform king.  | |
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