Dark Native Apostle Hands-On

What do you get when you combine Hudson's Bomberman with North American comic book influence, trendy cel-shading graphical technology, and a 3D action-adventure game? The answer is Hudson's latest game, Dark Native Apostle for the PS2. DNA immerses you in a futuristic world where geneticists have perfected human genome technology. Scientists have the ability to alter a human's genetic code to create a near perfect human being. You play as a man who happens to be the subject of an important genome experiment. You've been implanted with nano-technology, and as a result you possess physical abilities that surpass those of normal humans. The nano-technology also lets you create an infinite number of bombs with your right hand, and your left hand has slots where you can plug in different biochips--special chips that endow you with new abilities and knowledge. As the game begins, you wake from a near coma state with no memory--your objective is to find out your identity by infiltrating the laboratory of a secret organization known as Stray Sheep.

Bandai had a similar type of game a while back called Silent Bomber for the PlayStation. In this game, you had the ability to lock onto enemies, release a series of bombs, and detonate them with the press of a button. DNA takes a simpler approach and doesn't let you lock on or detonate the bombs you throw. Instead, DNA focuses on the biochip system: The biochips let you enhance your abilities. These abilities include adding hit points, increasing the range of explosion, increasing the intensity of explosion, extending the time until explosion, increasing jump height, increasing moving speed, or reducing air resistance. Also, by attaching the biochips in a certain order or by combining various biochips together, you can create different types of bombs such as flash bombs, smoke bombs, lightning bombs, and remote control bombs. Though the environment and characters are rendered in 3D polygons, the field map is shown from an isometric point of view, and the camera angle can be rotated at certain areas. The game features a total of seven different stages including sewers, a laboratory, a control tower, and a relic. You battle against a variety of enemies, ranging from grotesque reptiles to mech robots to superhumans.

DNA is more than just about dropping bombs onto enemies and moving from one area to the next. The areas are not linear like an action platformer, since you will need to go to one place to pick up a certain item in order to move onto another area. There are also certain parts in the game that require the reflexes that are necessary in, say, an action platformer title. Other than picking up items and biochips, you will also come across documents that expand the game's story, and you'll discover hints for creating different types of bombs. The field map limits your vision to a certain degree, and rotating the camera helps you see what may be attacking you from a blind spot. Players will require acute attention to details, since you might miss the door that leads to the next area, especially if you weren't rotating the camera. The cel shading is not the same style that you see in games like Jet Grind Radio, which is more anime oriented. DNA certainly has its own style, leaning toward more of the American comic shading, which adds more shadow effects onto every polygon and gives a dark tone overall.

The style and artwork may not be for everyone, but the game itself is rather an entertaining 3D action-adventure game. Dark Native Apostle is scheduled for an August release in Japan. Release dates for the North American and European versions of the game have not yet been announced.