X-Blades Preview

E3 2008 Preview

The developer showing off X-Blades at the Southpeak booth in the Pavilion Showcase area of E3 in the Los Angeles Convention Center referred to the game as “Tomb Raider on crack.” Well, I would call it more like a hybrid of Tomb Raider and Diablo 2.

The action is fast pace, featuring melee and gun-shooting action, plus magic has a place in this world, overlaid with RPG elements.

It will put a smile on your face. The combat can be tactical, it is definitely fast past paced.

Set for release in the Fall of 2008, X-Blades is the story of a young woman who happens to be a treasure hunter. As she moves through her worlds, she will encounter an increasingly nasty assortment of baddies. But as she battles, she will gain experience points, which can then be placed into magical abilities. Those abilities can be loaded into the hot slots and used with devastating effect. In the level demo’d, one of the skills was earthquake, in which the heroine jumped into the air and landed with such force that she sent a ripple effect out from her, knocking all area enemies down. The effect was delightfully rendered out in slow motion, and the graphical effects were quite entertaining.

For weapons, she carries dual pistols that have swords attached. The swords can also be hit with a magic spell that will engulf them in flames, doing increased attacks to enemies. And speaking of which, the diversity of enemies is impressive and players will have to use different tactics to defeat them. Once encountered, though, the monsters will be input into a bestiary in the main menu, which serves as a reference manual. Players will be able to see monsters coming from a distance, can pause the game and dive into the bestiary for an idea of how to beat the various enemies.

Getting to play the game on the 360 proved to be an entertaining experience. The controls were easy to pick up. You use the left thumbstick to move and the right to rotate the camera. The sound was solid, but the graphics – with its anime look – were very nice, indeed.

X-Blades was 90% complete when shown at E3 and will release on the 360 and PC. This is definitely a game to watch for as it edges toward release.

For All E3 2008 GZ Previews