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PS2
Kamiwaza -
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NCS
Game Synopsis
«©NCSX»
Ebizo is a thief. Stealthy and able to skulk through
the palatial estates of Edo like a wisp, he has the
power to snatch valuables on the fly and load them
into his nigh limitless sack. Ebizo gave up his life
of crime over a decade ago to take care of a little
girl named Suzuna. Back then, he was a member of the
Gingarasu, a crew of thieves who stole from the
wealthy and distributed the spoils to the poor.
While on an outing with his partner Ainosuke, Ebizo
found and rescued Suzuna from an incident in which
her parents were killed by criminals. With new
responsibilities, Ebizo raised Suzuna like a
daughter and walked away from the Gingarasu.
Returning home one day, Ebizo finds Suzuna
collapsed on the floor and in bad shape. Suffering
from a mysterious illness, her prospects for
adequate treatment aren't high given the meager
earnings that Ebizo brings in every day. With no
other choices available to him, he decides to return
to a life of crime doing what he does best:
thievery. Kamiwaza is a game of stealth tactics and
Ebizo's abilities exemplify the ways of elite
thieves. In addition to creeping motion, Ebizo can
lay flat on his belly and slither, hide behind
obstacles, wedge himself between tight spaces,
disguise his appearance, and literally shadow
enemies thisclose as they walk around.
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NCS
Game Notes
» In the intro to the game, ripples appear on
top of a surface while a single koi swims
underneath. In the next scene, day turns to dusk
over a town and hazy wings blow. The protagonist
Ebizo is shown rising up and doing his thing against
foes. He leaps, spins, and does a spinning attack
routine which sort of looks like break dancing. A
female warrior named Byakumon with pink threads
struts into the cinema before fading. The
presentation is very stylish and well done. Ripples
appear again and the camera fades out followed by
the title screen with Kamizawa characters in green.
» PRESS START and the following options appear:
NEW GAME
LOAD DATA
» At the outset of the game, a female voice-over
plays which explains the situation during the Edo
era of Japan's history. Japanese paintings of life
in Japan are also shown. She recounts the arrival of
the black ships as commandeered by Commodore Perry
and the strife afterwards. To help the stricken,
clans such as the Gingarasu appeared which robbed
from the rich and gave to the poor. This is your
life as a vagabond-thief named Ebizo.
» In the next scene, a snowy expanse opens up and a
red-haired guy leaps down and is shivering from the
cold. His name is Ebizo and his hair is unnaturally
red. His partner Ainosuke is more composed and not
suffering from the freezing temperatures. They are
both thieves and members of the Gingarsu who are
about to rob an estate. The breath of each exhale
from the two men may be seen in the cold air and
single snowflakes slowly drift downwards. The two
converse, a crow caws, and they leap into action. In
the next scene, players take control of Ebizo who
has slung a green sachel over his left shoulder. In
the background, loyal retainers may be seen with
their swords at their sides.
CONTROLS
L-Analog..........Movement
R-Analog..........Camera Control
L1-Trigger........Drop / Pick up plunder
L2-Trigger........Center camera
R1-Trigger........Duck (R2-Trigger serves the same
purpose)
SQUARE...........Side swipe attack
X-BUTTON.........Jump
O-BUTTON.........Low kick attack useful for soccer
kicks
START...............Option menu
» The goal is to infiltrate the estate by sneaking
past the retainers and plunder some goodies. The
four retainers are all facing away from the door so
it's a simple matter to slowly walk past them and
into the first corridor of the manse. They're also
all sleeping while standing up which helps Ebizo's
cause. In the first room, a number of masks and
other items may be plundered. Your partner in crime
advises you on the mechanics of play and pilfering
controls. To take items hanging on walls, jump up
with the "X" button and smack them by pressing
the "SQUARE" button and they'll all fly into your
sachel which bulges with the prizes from the room.
» Later in the level, Ebizo stumbles on a child
named Suzuna whom he rescues from a cruel fate when
her parents are killed by vandals inside the house
that he's robbing.
» Although its possible to fight the enemies, the
goal is really stealth and escape. Ebizo's goal is
to avoid conflict whenever possible although he can
punch and kick his enemies. For example, when
passing right in front of a sentry, walking slowly
doesn't always work and you'll be noticed but
running fast makes noise and you'll definitely be
heard and noticed. Pushing up slightly on the
L-analog will make the thief creep and pushing it
more will make him run. The solution is to mix
speeds when walking in front of guards. First move
slow and then fast and you'll usually get past
without being noticed.
» Escape from the first level is fairly easy even
though you'll be noticed by the sentries outside.
They're sort of dullards who'll sort of notice your
passage RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM but they don't do
much except scurry after you half-heartedly before
giving up the chase. After the level, players are
given the chance to save their progress to memory
card.
» In the next level, Ebizo is now older and wiser.
His red hair has now been replaced by his natural
black shag. When his young charged Suzuna falls ill,
he returns to a life of thievery to support her.
Continuing his old ways, Ebizo slings a green sachel
over his shoulder and infiltrates another estate
with sleepy guards at the entrances and around the
grounds. When Ebizo is spotted, the pursuit is
comical because the samurai who's chasing him takes
about a full second to execute a sword attack and by
the time he swings, the onscreen thief is already
down the path. Ducking out of sight behind a wall
makes the pursuer forget all about your presence and
he goes about his routine one more.
» Some object have hit points and they must be
beaten up before they can be added to your bag of
goodies.
» There's no enemy killing in the game or bloodshed.
Foes can be knocked unconscious where they'll sleep
for a spell but they'll eventually get up and wonder
what happened with no apparent recollection of their
beat down.
» The enemy AI is pretty bad in some areas. There
was one point in the second level where we were
beating on a hapless retainer and kicking him around
(literally, by the way) and another retainer outside
continued pacing back and forth, oblivious to the
carnage within.
» After stealing a bunch of stuff, the sachel
eventually becomes bigger than the thief. It looks
ludicrous after a particularly fruitful session of
robbery.
» Ebizo's skills are fairly remarkable for a lowly
thief. He can become one with the steps on a
stairway to avoid detection, hide behind thin posts,
twirl around with stardust trailing him to bedazzle
foes, and even snatch the valuable kimono off a
geisha in one sweeping motion.
» Supporting characters in the game include a big breasted geisha named Motojime
who wears a purple and white kimono, a warlord in black
with a patch over his right eye named Okashira, and
a flamboyant
guy in red kimono named Onatsu who has an effeminate
voice. There's also a green-robed guy in tiger mask
named Komagishi and an old guy in black who carries
two swords named Igitsune.
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This document and photos are ©NCSX 2006. All rights reserved. No
reproduction in whole or in part of this document
may be made without express written consent of
National Console Support, Inc.
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