OKAMI HD

Coming here after the sequel was announced to be in production, we're so back Okami bros. This game is the best thing I've ever played and i'm shocked we're getting more.

Good

Dog gameplay, dog character, dog story, dog graphics, dog music, dog ending.

I remember this first coming out, played it on PS2.
Loved it.
Played it multiple times throughout the years. Still loved it every time.
and to find out we are getting a sequel?
Hideki Kamiya we are with you the whole way because you brought an amazing game into our lives and we are so happy to see that story continue!
(Highly HIGHLY recommend this game if people have not yet played it!)

A beautiful remaster of one of the best games of all time, I recommend using a controller or the steam deck for the best experience

This game is truly magical. Don't worry though, as when you think you've beaten the game, you'll realize you have barely begun! Has become one of the best games I've played this year and one of the best games ever if I'm honest. I'm interested in investing in a sequel. Who is with me?

Platforms tested: Windows desktop, Steam Deck
Pros
Cons
Incredible art and soundtrack
Aggressive LOD, which makes finding things difficult at times.
Game has lot of content.
30 FPS cap
Classic dungeon adventure design.
Heavy filter
Things to know
Game does not have auto-save. Save often!
The game has a very annoying fishing minigame which is required for 100% completion.
In windowed mode the cursor is bound to the window and win-key is disabled. If you want to use a browser, prepare to alt+tab.
There are no DLC or microtransactions.
This review contains spoilers.
Overview of Story and Gameplay
Okami is an action-adventure game. It was first released on PlayStation 2 in 2006 and later on Nintendo Wii. It later got an “HD” version on PlayStation 3 in 2012 before getting a release on modern consoles and PC in 2017. With the announcement that Okami would be getting another sequel nearly 20 years after its release, what better time than to try out Okami and to see why the game is so highly praised.
In Okami, the player assumes the control of Sun Goddess Amaterasu in the form of a wolf. Amaterasu, or Ammy for short, is called to the mortal plane in action after a certain moron accidentally releases Orochi, the eight-headed serpent, who promptly goes to curse the whole world. Amaterasu is accompanied by Issun, another moron and a wandering artist seeking out Celestial Brush techniques for himself.
The gameplay is a Zelda-like action adventure. You control Ammy in wandering around the world of “Nippon,” solving puzzles, searching for treasures, and fighting enemies. Occasionally, you stumble upon Zelda-like dungeons with a boss fight at the end.
Okami features light RPG elements in the way of allowing players to upgrade their equipment with specific items and enhance their health and ink pots (the game’s version of mana). The stat enhancements are done with specific currency that is obtained by exploring the world and doing good deeds, such as feeding animals or advancing quests. The battles only drop specific items used for trading, and no experience points or levels are featured in the game.
The special game mechanic that separates Okami from other Zelda-like games is the use of the Celestial Brush. At any time, the players can bring up a canvas to draw shapes to use special skills. Celestial Brush skills are used both in battles and out in the world for solving puzzles. On PlayStation and Wii consoles, it’s possible to use motion controls to draw the shapes, but on PC, it’s mainly done via mouse or analog stick.
The game features various minigames, both in loading screens and during your adventure.
The Tech
Let’s get this out of the way. The game is locked to 30 fps (the menus run at 60 fps). There are no mods or anything to increase the frame rate. You can try external tools to generate more frames, but the game will run 30 fps, nonetheless. The game also has a very strong post-processing shader applied to it. You can reduce the intensity of it in the settings, but you need external mods to remove it.
The game has very aggressive LOD, which means that your viewing distance is not very long. This can cause the player to easily overlook things as certain objects may not appear unless you are right next to them! Fortunately, there are very few missable items during the game.
The game supports only 4:3 and 16:9 resolutions, in windowed, borderless, and exclusive full-screen modes. This means that on platforms like Steam Deck, you will get black bars. On ultra-wide screens, the game supports proper resolutions but just draws the game to a 16:9 frame in the middle of the screen. One thing to note with g-sync compatible displays is that due to the 30 fps cap, you may experience flickering on the screen if you don’t turn off g-sync.
Most display options, such as screen mode, v-sync, and resolution, can only be edited in the title screen. In-game, you can only adjust graphics settings levels from low to high (affecting AA and AF). Aspect ratio and loading screen minigames are toggled in the “Original settings,” while the Filter is on the top-level options screen. The sound settings offer only three different sound type levels. The game features no voice acting.
Curiously, something in the port uses a lot of CPU power. This means that the CPU draw is very high, be it on desktop or Steam Deck. This leads to a whopping 19W power draw on Steam Deck, resulting in around 2 hours of playtime.
Misc.
DLC
The game has no DLC that affects the gameplay. The game has a wallpaper DLC and soundtrack divided into 6 different purchases.
Achievements
All achievements are achievable in a single playthrough. The game has no difficulty options, so no achievements are tied to difficulty. Some achievements are missable, and a few require completion of minigames. The game has a New Game+ mode, so if you miss an achievement, you can replay it.
My Opinions
This game came out first in 2006, and the subsequent releases have not changed anything in the game itself. Surprisingly, the game holds up pretty well in 2024.
The adventuring is fun, and the dungeons, while short, are enjoyable to explore. The different powers keep the very long 40–50-hour adventure fresh. During your adventures, you also have the chance to play various minigames. In the original version, the loading screens had minigames. These are, by default, disabled on modern releases, but you can enable them in the main menu.
There are a variety of enemies to battle. Most of them can be blasted away, but there are plenty that require you to approach them with your Celestial Brush powers. The boss fights are generally easy but have some fun quirks. Just keep in mind that this game predates Dark Souls by a lot, so don’t expect Souls-like bosses.
The controls feel responsive and allow inverting the camera controls. The Celestial Brush may feel a bit awkward initially, but after playing for a while, one gets used to it.
That said, there are aspects of the game design that haven’t aged well.
The very slow dialogue speed (which you can mostly speed up by holding B on your controller) can make some of the cutscenes last very long.
There is no auto-advance for the dialogue, which can make some cutscenes annoying.
The fishing minigame, especially at higher levels, is extremely annoying and time-consuming.
The lack of auto-save can be surprising for some players, though save points are plenty and the game is very forgiving.
All in all, I really enjoyed my time in Nippon. I did, to my knowledge, everything in the game except new game +, and had fun.
I highly recommend this game. It can be had for very cheap, and with the upcoming sequel, I have no doubt that everyone can enjoy this game.