Review in Progress #3 : Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom

Status : 6 hours in (PS3 Version)

This is the first time using my long intended First Taste section, so to introduce it and elaborate on its purpose, many games I play don’t actually get completed for one reason or another. Writing a full review for a game that I’ve only played half of is just plain wrong, which is where the first taste section comes to play. It’s a temporary space where I can write my opinions between points of play without finalizing which will be periodically updated until the time of completion for the final review, if it ever gets to that point. Call it an incomplete review, I plan to have multiple of these going on simultaneously in the near future, and whether or not the Review in Progress becomes a full Review is up to the game in question.

Oh I get it, They're making the same pose...

Part 1 : First Taste

My first impression of Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom : Cheap Zelda knockoff where you have a buddy constantly follow you and you command him to do stuff while together you work to solve puzzles and save the day. Kinda sounds like Star Fox Adventures.

Star Fox Adventures? Wait a second, I used to shit on that game as a kid all the time until I gave it a random second chance last year and fell in love with it! This is awesome!

So, the Majin might be a lot more useful than Prince Tricky, the under-appreciated honorary member of the Star Fox team. Trading in annoyance and small size for a larger and more gentle sort of charisma, The Majin as a companion is much more of a pleasure, and talks kinda like Big the Cat to the point where I am a little scared that he might run for Froggy at a moment’s notice. He also randomly falls over, kinda like the tripping system in Super Smash Bros. : Brawl.

The battle system is also pretty good, except, with the relatively weak power of the weapon our hero, Tepeu wields, the Majin is more central to combat, helping immobilize the enemy while you smack it around enough to finish with a team attack (the only way to get team xp). The addition of a leveling system for both Tepeu and team xp is cool. I don’t remember a very free camera in these types of games either, so being able to move the camera wherever I want while fighting is a plus.

I like the atmosphere. Almost has a Nier feeling to it, except more lighthearted, and Nier was my game of the year last year, I don’t care how much some people hated it. The game over screen is also pretty creepy. In concept it is also very interesting : you have this unnamed guy who can talk to animals and when attacked, instead of physically wounded is slowly taken over by the darkness, where he leaves slimy footprints and begins to drip black gooey stuff.

The game also encourages me to explore the world completely, it lists how many treasures are in each portion of the world map, without telling me exactly where they are. I give the developers props for that feature. The world is also broken up into regions – not sure how many yet, but they are typically separated by a glowing healing tree and a giant heavy door that requires both characters to open. Each region seems to have its own flavor and music.  Some of the voice acting for the animals is done terribly might I add.  Terribly good or terribly bad is tough to gauge, but I frequently chuckle listening to how these npcs are voiced.

So far I love it. The cheesy dance the pair do whenever they solve a tough puzzle is hilarious, the majin cheering every time you win a battle makes you feel good. The puzzles are also a blast to solve, and even the big boss fights seem to take a little thinking.  I say give it a play! It’s not like the game is that expensive to get your hands on anyhow, unless they cranked up the price for some reason…


Puzzles that require the electricity power and the second boss kinda killed my mood to resume playing anytime soon.  Particularly the fact that unless you know exactly what the currents are capable of in terms of motion, it’s a matter of trial and error… which wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t such a pain in the ass refilling the Majin’s magic meter (by fighting which means making enemies respawn if you cleared out the room by exiting and reentering).

If Amazon fulfills my release date delivery (I did the order like 5PM today) I will be getting Okamiden tomorrow *hint*.  Sorry Majin, your review in progress is on standby, until I feel motivated to play again.

Next update (if there is one) : Post game, when I can relate my impressions originally, now and whenever the time comes.

1 thought on “Review in Progress #3 : Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom

  1. Pingback: Review in Progress Top Ten : Episode 1 (Reviews 1 – 10) | The Wired Fish

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