REVIEW - Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a delightful reminder that indies are making magic
The spark of hope.
By Jonathan Garrett
27/08/24
Reviewed on Xbox Series X.
Review copy provided by Ember Lab.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits has a wonderful sense of momentum that propels you forward without artificial barriers. After a brief text introduction you’re thrown into the world with the expectation that exploration will always light the way. It is mechanically interesting, visually crisp, and that’s before you even meet the Rot’s; genetically cute critters who aid you on your journey.
It’s a primarily linear adventure with some flexibility in certain areas, allowing you to poke around for hidden secrets. Generally though developer Ember Labs is always pushing you to the next landmark or encounter. Narrative context is simplistic but plentiful, with superbly directed cutscenes that are written with restraint and imply production value well beyond the scope of your typical independent project.
The combat mechanics are perhaps the weakest aspect of the gameplay; there’s plenty of options, and the inclusion of enemy targeting instead of wild flailing is appreciated. But the controls lack precision in heated moments. You’ll often find yourself trying to target something in the environment for your crew of Rot’s to interact with, but accidently select an enemy instead.
It’s a shame because Kena isn’t short on ideas, and they all tie back to the central mechanics of cleansing the world and forward progression. There’s a neat selection of character customisation (including a pirate hat available for your shoulder Rot), and there’s appreciated flourishes spread throughout. The interactivity with your squad of minions, the idle animations that evoke Rare games of old, and the subtle environmental physics whenever Kena uses her staff.
This is a game where detail matters. Top it off with an outstanding musical score, and you’ve got one of the best third person adventure titles of this console generation. PlayStation were smart to lock this down for a timed exclusivity period, but now that Kena has arrived on Xbox, we very much hope that a whole new audience can discover what a fantastic little gem this truly is.
They are as cute as you'd expect.
WORTH IT?
At the bottom of every game review, we ask the question: Worth it? And the answer is either “Yeah!” or “Nah”, followed by a comment that sums up how we feel. In order to provide more information, we also have “And” or “But”, which follows up our rating with further clarification, additional context for a game we love, or perhaps a redeeming quality for a game we didn’t like.
YEAH!
Kena: Bridge of Spirits is an ambitious and thoughtfully developed adventure that will hold your attention from start to finish.
BUT
There are aspects of the combat design that don’t quite click, although they’re not enough to spoil the broth.
TARPS?
At the bottom of some of our articles, you’ll see a series of absurd looking images (with equally stupid, in joke laden names). These are the TARP badges, which represent our ‘Totally Accurate Rating Platform’. They allow us to identify specific things, recognise positive or negative aspects of a games design, and generally indulge our consistent silliness with some visual tomfoolery.
