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Rise of the Kasai

 
Games: Rise of the Kasai
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Rise of the Kasai
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Game Description

A sequel to 2002's unusual combat adventure The Mark of Kri, The Rise of the Kasai incorporates the innovative interface that helped distinguish the earlier game, while adding new elements to extend the narrative and gameplay possibilities beyond those of its predecessor. Rise of the Kasai story plays out along two separate time lines: one set about a decade before the events of the original game, and one that takes place about a decade after. A total of four playable characters become available; two in each period.

At the beginning of Rise of the Kasai, players hear a report that Rau, the hero of the first adventure, has fallen in battle. The game then allows them to follow Rau's story, both through recent times, which lead to this fateful conclusion, and also through earlier years, when past heroes explored the mysterious curse that would ultimately lead Rau to his destiny. Levels in the later period feature Rau and his sister Tati, while earlier parts of the story involve two new characters, Griz and Baumusu.

The unique targeting interface introduced in Mark of Kri, that allowed players to attack enemies to the side or even behind their hero, is revisited in Rise of the Kasai, but the new character types suggest new uses for the combat system. The tough, burly Baumusu fights much like Rau, but the nimble Tati and her earlier-era counterpart Griz offer great speed and agility, at the expense of strength and endurance.
~ T.J. Deci, All Game Guide

Production Credits

Company 1: Bottlerocket Entertainment; Producer and Lead Designer: Jonathan Beard; Associate Producer and Designer: Dan Mueller; Assistant Producer and Designer: Andrew Zoboki; Lead Programmer: Rich Karpp; Programmer: Gerald Tachiki, Keith R. Freiheit, Kirit Nagda; Art Director: Erik Medina, Tim Neveu; Lead Artist: Tim Neveu; Lead Technical Artist: Bryan Gaier; Artist: Baz Pringle, Steve Merghart, Hong Hoang, Matt J. Case, Edgardo Magsino, Greg Miller, Vance Kovacs, Kyushik Shin, John Dickenson; Texture Maps: Edgardo Magsino, John Dickenson; Concept Artist: Edgardo Magsino, Vance Kovacs, John Dickenson, Jeff Maka Merghart, Matt J. Case, Steve Merghart; Lead Animator: Erik Medina; Animator: David Oelkers, Bang Won Lee, Floyd Bishop Jr.; Game Design: Jonathan Beard, Dan Mueller, Andrew Zoboki; Cinematics Director: Erik Medina; Cinematic Lead Animator: Erik Medina; Cinematic Animation: David Oelkers, Bang Won Lee, Floyd Bishop Jr.; Editor: Vance Kovacs, Kyushik Shin; Script: Jonathan Beard; Cinematic Storyboards: Vance Kovacs, Jeff Maka Merghart, David Oelkers; Cinematic Special Effects: Floyd Bishop Jr., Vance Kovacs; Company 2: SCEA Santa Monica Studios; Co-Producer: Tim Donley, Barbara House; Associate Producer: Kyle Shubel; Director, Product Development: Allan Becker; Vice President, Product Development: Shuhei Yoshida; Technical Director: Jon Steele; Director of Tools, Technology and Services: Buzz Burrowes; Music Director: Chuck Doud; Sound Design Manager: Dave Murrant; Music Supervisor: Chuck Carr; Music Production Coordinator: Tammy Tsuyuki; Lead Sound Designer: Greg DeBeer; Additional Sound Design: Erik Buensucceso, Brad Aldredge, Darren Hamlyn; Original In-Game Music: Game Audio Ltd., Jack Wall, Rednote Audio, Soundelux DMG, Mike Reagan Music; Instruments Provided By: Michael Masley, Mr. Lee Vang; Voice Production and Casting: Blindlight; Casting Director: Dawn Hershey C.S.A; Voice of - Ganguun: Robin Atkin Downes; Voice of - Maibisi: Michael Bell; Voice of - Baumusu: Brain Cummings; Voice of - Tati: Kim Mai Guest; Voice of - Griz: Nick Omana; Voice of - Twins: Jessica Strauss; Voice of - Large Enemy: Fred Tatacoire; Voice of - Oracle: Mari Weiss; Voice of - Rau: Wally Wingert; Voice of - Med Enemy: Wally Wingert; Voice of - Priest: Wally Wingert; Voice of - Kuzo: Keone Young; Additional Character Voices: Barry Dennen, Daran Norris, Wally Wingert; Cinematic Post Production: Alan Howarth; Music and Sound Design: Alan Howarth; SCEA 1st Party Quality Assurance Director: Michael Blackledge; Senior Manager: Ritchard Markelz; Test Manager: Michael Graham; Game Test Engineer: David Paymard, Mike Pulst; QA Analyst: Gabe Datte; Game Test Analyst: Abel Ramos, Casey Fulton, Jedd Snaid, Jonathon Ecker, Ron Bruster, Dwight Gibson, Thomas Taylor, Donald Henderson, Brandon Knighten, Michael Holloman, Donald Carothers, Antonio Gallardo, Alex Warren, Ken Hill, Mark Chao, Asher Engel, David Boulom, Jorge Correa, Ferdinand Macalos, Brian Geus, Arthur Gustafson, Marc DaLuz, Clay Boslaviski, Nathan Reese; Lab Technician: Vince Loughney; Project Management Supervisor: Eric Ippolito; Project Coordinator: Jason Coker; Project Assistant: Randall Lowe; QA Support Manager: Ken Kribs; Applications Manager: Kevin Simmons; Applications Administrator: Christian Davis; Technology Project Coordinator: Matt Harper; Product Marketing Manager: Allan Frankel; Senior Director, Promotions and Sports Product Marketing: Sharon Shapiro; Senior Director, Communications and Brand Development: Molly Smith; Public Relations Manager: Patrick Seybold; Public Relations Specialist: Heather Sorensen; Director, Product and Online Marketing: Susan Nourai; Director of Loyalty and Channel Marketing: Steve Williams; Director, Creative Services: Ed DeMasi; Creative Services Manager: Jack Siler; Creative Services Specialist: Dan Aquino, TJ Consunji; POP Manager: Josh Bingham; Packaging & Manual Design: Origin Studios; Manual Copy: Greg Off, Off Base Productions; Legal & Business Affairs: Lisa Lunger, Ninalei Morrison, Sue Nopar, Kirsten Costello, Jim Williams, Brian Fukuji, Mary Nappi, Stephanie Stroughter
~ Keith Adams, All Game Guide
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Wikipedia: Rise of the Kasai
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Rise of the Kasai
Rise of the Kasai cover
Developer(s) BottleRocket Entertainment
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Platform(s) PlayStation 2
Release date(s) NA April 5, 2005
Genre(s) Action-adventure, Hack and slash
Mode(s) Single player
Rating(s) ESRB: Mature
Media 1 DVD
Input methods DualShock 2

Rise of the Kasai is an action game developed by BottleRocket Entertainment and published by Sony Computer Entertainment America for the PlayStation 2 video game console. Released in 2005, the game serves as a followup to the 2002 game The Mark of Kri.

Contents

Story

The story for the Rise of the Kasai takes place in a Polynesian-influenced fantasy setting. The game's plot centers on a band of warriors known as the Rakus and their battles against the evil sect of dark magicians known as the Kasai. The narrative focuses on a series of events that take place ten years prior to the events of The Mark of Kri and ten years afterwards.

Gameplay

Gameplay consists of thirteen levels, in which the player, accompanied by a computer-controlled ally, must battle numerous enemies to progress through the story. The levels of Rise of the Kasai alternate between two pairs of playable characters: Rau with his younger sister Tati and Baumuso with his mentor Griz.

Focus Beams

Much like its predecessor, the combat system of Rise of the Kasai revolves around the use of Focus Beams, a gameplay mechanic used to lock on to single or multiple enemies from any direction. While the DualShock 2's left analog stick is used to maneuver the character, a sweep of the right analog stick will cause a beam of light to extend from the player's character. When this beam of light comes into contact with an enemy, an attack icon will be assigned to them. Attack icons are symbols that appear over the enemy's head and correspond with the X, square, and circle buttons on the controller. When an attack icon is assigned, the player can press the corresponding button to initiate a focused attack.[1]

Baumusu locked on to multiple enemies.

This attack will vary depending on distance and the direction that the character is facing in relation to the focused enemy. When only one or two different attack icons are in use, the free button(s) becomes a Modifier that can be used to chain together attack combinations. In addition, some of these attack combos can lead to an instant kill if done correctly.[1]

Stealth

While players may spend a majority of the game fighting enemies head on, there are many occasions where the player has the option to employ stealth tactics to avoid detection and quietly ambush the enemy. A stealth kill can be performed by sheathing the character's weapon and using the focus beam to assign a flashing attack icon onto an unsuspecting enemy. The player will be able to initiate a stealth kill once the enemy is in range and the attack icon becomes solid.[1]

Spirit Guides

To help remain undetected, the player can send out a spirit guide to a certain key-point to scope the environment ahead and monitor enemy positions, armaments, and patrol patterns. Using a spirit guide to scout ahead can also allow the player to devise battle strategies if stealth is not an option. Spirit guides vary between the four protagonists. Rau and Baumusu use Kuzo, a spiritual familiar that takes the form of a blackbird, as their spirit guide. Kuzo can be sent to various perches throughout the level to scout ahead. Tati and Griz summon the souls of the dead to scout ahead from the various corpses that litter the environment.

Audio

Rise of the Kasai's musical score was composed by Jack Wall[1][2], Rod Abernethy, Jason Graves[3], and Mike Reagan[4] with instruments provided by Michael Masley and Mr. Lee Vang.[1]

Voice Cast[1]
Actor Role
Wally Wingert Rau, Med Enemy, Priest, Additional voices
Kim Mai Guest Tati
Brian Cummings Baumusu
Nick Omana Griz
Keone Young Kuzo
Robin Atkin Downes Ganguun
Michael Bell Maibisi
Jessica Straus Twins
Fred Tatasciore Large Enemy
Mari Weiss Oracle
Barry Dennen Additional Voices
Darren Norris Additional Voices

Reception

Wiki letter w.svg This section requires expansion.

Rise of the Kasai received mixed reviews from critics.[5] While many critics praised the game's combat system, control scheme, and distinctive cinematics, others panned the game due to repetitious gameplay while expressing disappointment in the game's AI and lack of multiplayer options.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Rise of the Kasai instruction manual. Sony Computer Entertainment. 2005. SCUS-97416. 
  2. ^ "Credits at Jack Wall's official web site". http://www.jackwall.net/credits.html. Retrieved July 8 2007. 
  3. ^ "Rod Abernethy and Jason Graves site". http://www.rednoteaudio.com/about/. Retrieved July 8 2007. 
  4. ^ "Mike Reagan Music". http://www.mikereaganmusic.com/. Retrieved July 8 2007. 
  5. ^ "Game Rankings Rise of the Kasai page". http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/920751.asp. Retrieved 2007-08-11. 
  6. ^ Metacritic staff. "Rise of the Kasai Reviews". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/riseofthekasai. Retrieved 2007-08-11. 

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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