Okami Coming to Wii Spring 2008

By Eric Wright / Friday, 19 October 2007

Publisher Capcom announced the Wii port of PlayStation 2 title Okami today. The game is expected to be released during Spring 2008. In Okami, players assume control of the wolf-embodied sun god Amaterasu, who must travel through a world ravished by the legendary monster Orochi in order to regain the powers of the Celestial Brush and restore the land. The Celestial Brush is used extensively in gameplay, from attacking enemies to solving puzzles. "Players will now be able to directly manipulate the in-game Celestial Brush by literally drawing on the game world itself, thereby altering the physical properties - whether by creating pathways, chopping down trees, or turning night into day," said Michael Pattison, senior director of marketing for Capcom Europe. "The world, in essence, becomes a virtual canvas for Wii owners." The game's presentation is rooted heavily in Japanese culture -- from the folklore references, to the 3D visual style that has the appearance and texture of paper scrolls brushed with watercolor-like calligraphy art. The development of Okami for Wii is being handled by Ready at Dawn Studios. The company previously developed Daxter for the PlayStation Portable and is currently at work on God of War: Chains of Olympus, also for the PSP. "In accordance with our tradition of only working on games we'd like to play, we're proud to announce that we are taking after Clover Studio to bring this incredible game to the platform it was always meant to be on in the first place," Ready at Dawn said via the studio's Web site. Okami earned much critical acclaim upon release last year, but did not find the same retail success. Whether or not Capcom will include new content at a lower price point (like Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition) is unknown. Gamers asked for Okami, Capcom listened, but will the company deliver? Stay with The Wiire to find out.