We experience a never-before-seen stage in Tetsuya Mizuguchi's rhythm-based, multi-sensory shooter, Child of Eden.
What we're talking about: Child of Eden, the multi-sensory, motion-controlled "shooter" from Q Entertainment luminary Tetsuya Mizuguchi.
Where we saw it:
In a private room above the PAX East showroom floor.
What I knew going in: I was able to spend some time with an earlier build of the game last year in Tokyo, so I was pretty familiar with Eden's basic premise and gameplay mechanics.
(http://i55.tinypic.com/25rko0l.jpg)
What you need to know:
• While the TGS build of Eden was impressive in its own right, the PAX build exudes a noticeable amount of polish. The hands-free Kinect controls are much more responsive, and a few new additions and tweaks have been made to the game's core control scheme. It was explained to me that Microsoft Kinect technicians worked closely with the team at Q Entertainment on perfecting the controls, and utilizing the motion-control device to its full potential.
• While clapping is still available to switch between firing modes, it's no longer mandatory. Instead, a player's right arm is assigned the "lock-on" attack, where their left arm will default to the "rapid fire" mode. Euphoria Bombs -- nicknamed "happy bombs" during TGS -- are still accessed by raising one's arms above their head, and players can now kick (instead of flick) to release their torrent of locked-on attacks.
• After letting loose a stream of eight locked-on attacks, players are ranked on how in-sync with the game's music they trigger their shots. The more on-beat they are, the better their ranking, resulting in more points at the end of each archive.
• Where we glimpsed at the decidedly more Rez-like Matrix archive at TGS, the vibrant, and notable diverse Beauty stage was on display at PAX. For the uninitiated, Child of Eden plays something like a first-person Rez -- it's an on-rails "shooter," where players "purify" the creatures infecting any of six of the game's stages, or archives, with sounds.
• Each archive also has its own garden, looked over by Eden's star, and Genki Rockets' leading lady, Lumi. The gardens are interactive menus, more or less, inhabited by vibrant, multi-colored flora and fauna that players can unlock and upgrade by successfully clearing the game's stages.
• A minimalistic heads-up display has been implemented, with a health display in the lower right corner, and a count of how many Euphoria Bombs are in your arsenal in the left corner. Players can shoot blue orbs in the environment to earn health, and purple orbs to gather Euphoria Bombs -- (http://i52.tinypic.com/1kb47.jpg) (http://i55.tinypic.com/23ud8c1.jpg)
which are infinitely useful in clearing the game's lengthy boss battles.
• Borrowing from Rez's (right ►) somewhat infamous Trance Vibrator, Child of Eden utilizes the Xbox 360 controller in such a manner when players are using Kinect. Up to four controllers can by synched up to Eden at one time, and all four will vibrate to their own unique rhythm throughout the course of the game's archives.
Point in development cycle: Child of Eden is currently slated for a Summer 2011 release for both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
My take: I was impressed by Child of Eden a good six months ago, and at the rate that Mizuguchi and his team have polished it, I'm anxious to see how it'll shine upon its release later this year. Even after the device's retail release, Eden is still the most thoughtful and innovative implementation of the Kinect motion-controller that I've experienced, and I can't wait to see how players will respond to it.
Child of Eden - On Stage Gameplay (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEu51YFmrhw#)
Child of Eden: Video Preview (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgPxzqSA_l0#ws)