El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron was one of the real artsy games of the PlayStation 3/Xbox 360 era. In that it was wildly beautiful and thematically rich… and sold peanuts. That didn’t stop it from gaining a niche following though… and indeed I even remember going to a pop-up gallery in Nakano Broadway (in Japan) to find a lot of art from the game’s concept artist. It’s just that kind of thing.
The game’s getting a second lease on life courtesy of developer Crim and a release on PC in mid-April, ten years after its console release. It has been scrubbed up a little for this PC edition, but otherwise should be the same game… and that’s not a bad thing by any means. As per the developer description:
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron combines many genre elements with its rich and detailed storyline, its glorious anime style graphical presentation that changes dramatically as the player progresses through a totally mesmeric experience. With the recent rise of the graphical novel games, what is offered within El Shaddai goes far beyond these confines in that action, strategy and platforming are just a few of the challenges and exciting dangers that unfold.
It’s a game filled with religious motifs and discourse, and for people who enjoy their games thinky, there aren’t many action titles that are deeper than this one.
Keep an eye out for more coverage on DDNet as the release gets closer.
– Matt S.
Editor-in-Chief
Find me on Twitter: @mattsainsb
