Shadow of Destiny

Review

by Jon Thompson

Adventure games are a genre on critical life support. Despite a handful of titles coming out each year, most seem to pass below the radar of the general public. It is a rare occasion to see an adventure title on a console and rarer still for that game to be an exclusive release. Despite all the odds against it, Shadow of Destiny has made its way to the PlayStation 2. While it suffers from a few somewhat glaring flaws, it contains a deep narrative structure and a surprisingly interesting adventure motif that should excite fans of the genre and those who like complex storytelling.

One of the reasons why adventure games haven't flourished on the console format is the emphasis on puzzle solving rather than pure action. Those who feel this way will not change their minds after playing Shadow of Destiny. Rather than blowing enemies and whatever happens to be in sight to smithereens, one must have choice discussions with a few important characters to advance the storyline.

Adventure gamers have their own standards, however, and Konami has implemented an ingenious narrative structure. It commences with an intriguing hook: a murder victim attempting to solve his own death. From there, it launches into a full-blown murder mystery that contains a grand amount of depth and a healthy dollop of atmosphere.

In Shadow of Destiny, you must use a Digipad to propel through different moments of time. Through Eike Kusch, you'll explore a bustling town in medieval times, the early 1900s, a present-day setting, and the 1980s. Progression involves collecting items, talking to people, and coming up with solutions to the various puzzles that haunt and complicate the game's eight chapters. While the puzzles can be a bit unintuitive at times, the manner in which they are solved is both clever and interesting.

The theme behind this adventure title is executed in a meaningful fashion. The further you progress in this game and the more ways you avoid Eike's death, the more information you'll obtain to find other methods of preventing the culprit; it will also bring the character closer to the murderer's motive. Shadow of Destiny's story unfolds like the layers of an onion, eventually reaching a core where everything comes together.

Interestingly enough, there are five endings to the game. The ending you'll receive depends on the course of action taken within the game. On the second time through, you'll have access to previous information pertaining to the adventure and will have a better understanding of subsequent adventures. Because this game is meant to be tackled multiple times, you'll build on previous experiences, become a more active participant in Eike Kusch's fate and gain a better understanding of when to travel back in time and when not to. This is the strongest feature behind Shadow of Destiny -- the way it builds upon itself.

While the grim, foreboding atmosphere is sometimes quite strong, Shadow of Destiny isn't the best looking title on the PlayStation 2. In fact, the visuals are rather bland. While the world has been designed in complete 3D, the detail is often lacking and didn't receive enough attention. Some of the characters look far less detailed than they should. The sound effects and music are ambient and moody while the voice acting is b-grade.

While this isn't an accessible title for the masses, Shadow of Destiny is certainly an outstanding adventure game in terms of thematic and narrative structure. Fans of the adventure genre and those are interested in something new should give this one a look. Those who would rather demolish enemies instead of sitting through countless conversations, however, should forget about solving Eike Kusch's murder.