Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom is a game of odd contrasts. On the one hand, I admired its beautiful art style, its emphasis on cooperation, and its solid gameplay. On the other hand, poor graphics, awful voiceovers, and corny dialogue mar the experience. This is a game that certainly has its quirks. Look past the blemishes, though, and you will find a fairly interesting action/puzzle game in the vein of Ico or Enslaved. Cooperating with an AI-driven partner may not be the most original concept nowadays, especially with The Last Guardian gathering plenty of post-E3 buzz, but if you are intrigued by Majin’s world, or if you find yourself unable to wait for Team Ico’s next project, you would do well to give this game a shot.
In Majin, you will step into the shoes of thief-with-a-heart-of-gold Tepeu. Fearful for the future of his land after an army of dark, gooey demons begin to attack, Tepeu ventures out into forests in search of the mythical Majin. It is said that the Majin possesses magical powers capable of vanquishing the dark hoards. Almost immediately upon starting up a new game, Tepeu finds the Majin imprisoned in an elaborate series of caverns. He frees the creature, and together they set out to escape the Majin’s prison and save the world. It quickly becomes apparent that years of inactivity have weakened the Majin greatly, and thus he can only access a fraction of his powers at the outset of the game. These powers include superhuman strength and fire breath. Over the course of the game, the Majin will grow stronger and stronger, gaining new abilities that will prove useful in combat and puzzle solving. The change in the Majin’s power level will be given physical representation by the amount of plant life growing on his back. As he gains more strength, more plants and crystals will grow out of the Majin’s back, giving a nice physical representation to his growth and giving you the feeling that you are really making progress through the game.
