.. I love the concept of Playstation Move, I really do. However I’ve been very disappointed at the lack of original ideas that effectively utilize the technology, thus it’s been months since I picked up a Move controller. When Medieval Moves arrived at my house I was a little skeptical about it being another piss-poor attempt at providing a unique Move experience. Fortunately I found out that it wasn’t actually that bad.
Medieval Moves comes from developer Zindagi Games, the makers of Sports Champions. The game sees you taking control of a child prince named Edmund. Eventually Edmund is to rule his kingdom; however an evil antagonist known as Morgrimm attacks the kingdom, turning everyone (including Edmund) into Skeletons and stealing the precious Gatestone. It is now Deaddmund’s responsibility to set out on an adventure to defeat Morgrimm and regain the Gatestone. Simple enough considering this is a game meant for all ages.
Story related cut-scenes are done in a fun comic-book art-style which is a nice touch given the target audience, my only problem is that they run on a little too long for my liking. When I play a Move game I would rather get straight to the action rather than stand there watching the TV patiently with the controller in hand.
I never played Sports Champions, but I can tell from watching others that Zindagi made use of some of the mechanics in Medieval Moves. Medieval Moves features a mix of swordplay and archery, as well as being able to throw stuff here and there. Thus I assume anyone who played similar modes in Sports Champions will feel at home with Medieval Moves core game-play.
Swinging the Move controller left to right will allow you to swing your sword, as the Move can sense how much force you put in, you actually have to do it with some effort to pull off the right results. Archery is even more fun, to pull it off you simply put up your Move stick as if taking an arrow from your back, and then aim, once you’re ready to fire you simply press the trigger. Stars can be thrown with a flick of the wrist, milk can be drank to restore health by tipping the controller towards your mouth, and dynamite can be ignited by simulating the action of lighting your Move stick alight before throwing it (no, don’t actually throw it). So as you can tell there are some pretty creative ways to use the controller here; and they do try and mix things up a little so you’re not just swinging with a dead arm, but it does get old after about three levels.
Some may hate the fact that Medieval Moves is another on-rails title. I do agree with the criticism of on-rail games somewhat, as there is nothing better than being in control of the character you are forced to spend your whole experience with. However While there are Move titles that suit the navigation style of play, Medieval Moves is not one of them. Part of this is due to the fact you have the option to use two Move sticks, which cancels out any chance at having navigation.
Overall Medieval Moves is a fun box of tricks that will amuse you for at least a half hour at a time. It’s definitely one of the better Move titles I’ve played, which doesn’t say much to be honest. But it has restored my faith that there can be great things to come from the Move technology. Whilst I would mostly recommend this to the younger audience, I do encourage a quick waggle for the older audience too.
This review was based on a retail download copy of the game for the PlayStation 3 provided by Sony.
