Game:

Magatama (2003)

Duration: 1:29:49

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Of all the Japan-only gems released for the original Xbox, "Magatama" is perhaps the most well-known as it was featured prominently in magazines and demos during the earlier days of the Xbox as a title that would bolster further support for Japanese games on the platform, but (despite their best efforts) the game fell into relative obscurity and not much is actually known about the game in Japan, much less the West. It was released in 2003 as the first game co-developed by Microsoft's Japan Game Studio and the sole title of "Team Breakout", a subsidiary that was later absorbed back into MJGS. Magatama was produced by former Squaresoft veteran, Hiroshi Kawai, who was best known for his work on "Final Fantasy VII", "Final Fantasy IX" and "Parasite Eve" before spearheading his most acclaimed title under the Microsoft umbrella, "Lost Odyssey". As his first work for Microsoft, he was tasked with working on a game that would really appeal to the Japanese gaming base and worked alongside other Square alums and veterans such as Soichiro Yasui (Battle Design), Hiroyuki Abe (Game Design), Yoshikazu Kamata (Sound), Eddy Fries (Supervision) and more. Jun Okutani was also the Art Director who worked on many iterations of "Pokemon" and eventually went on to work with the "Xenoblade Chronicles" series.

The story takes place in what is described as "Medieval Japan" during the warring states period (Sengoku). A battle of supernatural proportions is taking place between the Yamato and Bakufu (synonymous with the Japanese shogunate) for the region of Kyoto as Monkon, a Yamato buddhist monk who has defected from the light, usurps the power of the gods by opening the door to another world with forbidden power passed down through generations and manipulates it to summon youkai, undead samurai and other forces to take over Japan. Bakufu's main general, Ashikaga, has been tasked with combating Monkan and his forces, but luck out when their intelligence agent, Kureha, comes across the brave warrior of Izumo, Shinato. Shinato is a tribal dual-wielding swordsman (Dubbed the "God-Killer") who was the first to learn of Monkan's deceit and is a sacred warrior entrusted with the "Magatama Eye" to confer with the council of spirits to protect the balance of the world. As the last hope for Japan, he is offered a powerful guardian deity, Orochi (henceforth called "O"), who is drawn to the whereabouts of the other youkai and grows more powerful as it defeats them in combat and as you acquire more magatamas and "cursed balls" which bestow a variety of attributes.

Given the game's pedigree, expectations were rather high and it's kind of a shame that it is still relatively unknown and saw limited distribution (a modestly small print run and backwards compatibility and distribution for the Xbox 360). The game is visually excellent with 60FPS combat, dynamic lighting and reduced-frame cinematics. The game's soundtrack is a combination of ambient sounds and tribal tunes during casual exploration but also sports some fantastic and more upbeat tracks during more tense segments and boss encounters. The gameplay, in basic terms, is a simple but functional deconstruction of titles such as "Dynasty Warriors" (2+) and "Devil May Cry" with a hub-world that's divided into several stages and optional areas where secrets can be found (which offer good rewards and are time-sensitive / missable... the game is almost impossible to beat if you skip some of them). That said, the game is moderately challenging in the first half, but considerably unbalanced in the second half with a significant jump in difficulty and a final boss that requires finesse and dexterity that will test the patience of even the most seasoned action game enthusiasts (at least until the last phase, where things calm down).

The combat is moderately simple from start to finish and gives off the illusion that you'll be learning all sorts of wicked swordplay as you progress, but Shinato's repertoire barely expands throughout the game. He can jump, dodge, and execute a few basic combos which are extended by holding the button between chains -- there is ONE attack button for Shinato, so the real star of the show is O. O grows in utility as the game advances and gains a variety of augmentations that can also be passed down to Shinato but O is powerful, can stack damage with different effects, and is your main form of crowd control. O's abilities rely on the "berserk gauge" which slowly decreases over time and is also used to solve certain puzzles or grab distant items. Fighting in some areas can be a chore as the camera can prove to be a hindrance at times, but most stages aren't terribly long. You can earn a ranking after clearing each stage. It takes about 6-7hrs to complete the game.

Magatama is not without its problems, but it's a worthwhile exclusive that should've definitely seen a release outside of Japan. This is a video of roughly 90 minutes of gameplay (timestamps below). Enjoy.