Akuji: The Heartless

by Eidos Interactive

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00000I1BO
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,157 in Video Games (See Bestsellers in Video Games)

Product Description

Editorial Review
"My weapons are an extension of my will," boasts Akuji, a voodoo warrior priest with a serious score to settle. As the story opens, you--Akuji--find that your brother has killed you and imprisoned your fiancée. Not only that, but you, as the undead Akuji, must seek revenge and save the woman you love. There is just one problem: the keeper of the gates of the underworld will not let you leave until you purge all the levels of hell of the souls of your evil ancestors!

Rendered in stunning 3-D, this very playable third-person game immerses you in the world of voodoo mythology. Built around an engaging story, Akuji is a bitter struggle against the evils of your heritage. Wrist blades and devastating spells are your only allies in this horrific battle. While the basic key hunt structure of most first- and third-person shooters is also present here, the grimly fascinating story line keeps the player involved. That said, the nightmarish reality of Akuji's voodoo struggle is not for the squeamish. --Allen Stewart

Pros:

• Beautiful, fluid graphics
• Compelling story
• Spooky sound effects and scenery

Cons:

• Very creepy plot
• Little variation of enemies
• Too dependent on monotonous key hunts

GameSpot Review
With a modified Gex: Enter the Gecko engine at its core and a loose interpretation of voodoo as its backbone, Crystal Dynamics' Akuji the Heartless is a grim and gritty "full scroller" that dares to defy Spyro the Dragon and the rest of the recent slew of light-hearted 3D platform games for the PlayStation. The story is equal parts Todd McFarlane's Spawn and Dante's Inferno: You're a voodoo-practicing, blade-wielding hero, and you've been slaughtered and had your heart ripped out on your wedding day by your brother. Now you travel through the planes of hell, destroying its caretakers and collecting the souls of your ancestors for the top-hat-wearing voodoo loa, Baron Samedi. If you do, he's promised to grant you passage out of the underworld to take revenge on your sibling rival and reunite with your sweetheart.

Visually, Akuji's 3D world appears much like a darker-themed version of Gex: Enter the Gecko and carries many impressive little graphical and lighting effects throughout (the chamber of rolling snakeskins comes to mind). Undercutting these niceties, though, is the game's camera, which can be moved from side to side around the character using the L1 and R1 buttons, targeted with R2, or else it otherwise eventually shifts into position. The problem is that "eventually" takes too long to rely on, causing you to continually shift the camera around, hence turning the perspective into another of the game's many puzzles. (I don't know about you, but I have simple enough needs when it comes to 3D platform-game cameras: I just want them to stick in a view that's aimed in the direction my character is facing.)

The music in Akuji is exceptional. It has an excellent undulating soundtrack that obviously loops but also changes its rhythm from time to time and keeps its jungle beat sounding continually fresh. The pace of the music also picks up whenever a fight begins, which works to build tension unless you're confronting the most pathetic grunt creature. Both elements work together to set a great mood for the game. The voice work, on the other hand, is only decent. Akuji's voice-overs (done by Shaft's Richard Roundtree) are occasionally delivered in a tone of near disbelief (when he picks up the Hell Blast spell, he says "Hell-Blast" as if asking a voice coach, "Is this right?") and are never as dynamic as you'd expect them to be. Slightly worth noting is the fact that Akuji's bride-to-be sounds far too old for him, leading to the thought of her being his mother instead. (If you make that leap, the beginning of the game is very funny. When she starts explaining the basics, you think, "Aw mom! Leave me alone! I'm trying to play a game!")

Besides the game camera though, the rest of this is ancillary to the title's gameplay, which is decent and sometimes very fun. It's a nice, easy little platform game that'll only take you about eight to ten hours to beat in all, making it a good, brief distraction from tougher, time-devouring titles such as Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It's over a little too quickly to recommend Akuji for purchase, but it's well worth the money and time it'd take to rent it. -- Steven Garrett

--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited. GameSpot and the GameSpot logo are trademarks of GameSpot Inc.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very neat!, November 29, 1999

By A Customer

Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

Akuji is very underrated, yet it has much of everything: challenge (watch out for the bosses, some aren't easy at all!), tight controls, a great graphical engine (the same for the beautiful Soul Reaver -it's the same company anyway-, just not as advanced yet since it came out before), good atmosphere, and it boasts exploration and demands action-platform skills. I strongly recommand giving it a chance.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very cool!, March 28, 2003

By	4MaskCurse "Kyonshi Jiang Shi" (Chicago,IL) - See all my reviews

While this review is a little late,I feel that it need to be posted as this game is quite a gem.I bought this game pretty cheap at the used game store,and I have to say that it was the best video game bargain ever!

First of all the story is excellent with it's dark voodoo (something I've always been a fan of!).Akuji,a voodoo warrior having had his heart torn from him,now wanders the diffrent depths of the underworld to be resurrected and seek revenge.If you are a fan of the Shadowman games,then Akuji would definatly be for you.While perhaps not as demonic,still very dark and gothic(after every end boss you kill,you offer up an animal sacrifice!)

While the graphics are a bit dated,they are no less captivating with the game's use of shading,design and florescent colors.Some of the most spectacular colors can be found in the sunset of the Blood Ruins level,and the errie green glow of the Temple of Tears.In fact most of the levels seem like they came right out of a black light poster!

Another strong point for the game goes out to it's music!Right from the title screen,this game is filled with authentic drum-thumping tribal voodoo beats!This is one game whose music is sadly overlooked;in fact it's too bad a soundtrack CD was not made.You really have to hear this music to believe it's strong influence to the nature of this game!Some of the greatest tunes can be heard in Ladhaa:the tribal forest,Limbo:the river louth,
and esp. the final boss level.The voice acting is also very well done and very convincing;my personal favorite being Keisho,your
voodoo mambo bride!

The gameplay is fairly quick to get the hang of,and the controls
are easy to use.Also the collecting of your ancestors souls makes for a reason to go back and play the game even after you've already beat it.While you only need to find 40 to beat the game,there is a total of 52.While this game can be tough at times,it is one that can be beaten without the use of cheat codes
or a strategy guide.Something I rather liked for a change!The only minor flaw with the controls,is that sometimes the camera can get "stuck".Most of the times however you have the option to swivel the camera left or right by pressing the L1/R1 buttons.

If you are a fan of the voodoo occult,and manage to find a copy of this game,I highly recommend you pick this one up!You will be very satisifed!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars JUST INCREDIBLE, March 9, 2001

By	R. JANKOWSKI "HORROR FAN" (YONKERS, NEW YORK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I RECENTLY GOT BACK INTO THIS GAME , AFTER SHELVING IT. I DID NOT GET ENOUGH SOULS TO ADVANCE- BUT AFTER PLAYING IT AGAIN I WONDER WHY I EVEN STOPPED PLAYING IT.. YOU CAN USE INFINITE LIFE , OR INFINITE SPELLS CODES TO GET REALLY FAR IN THE GAME. BUT THERE IS NO NEED - BUT A LOT OF NASTY BEASTS TO FIGHT , AND BOSSES AS WELL CAN GET YOU WRECKED!BUT IF YOU TAKE YOUR TIME , THE HEALTH UPS ARE SCATTERED AROUND , NOT TO MENTION TOTALLY REPLENISHING YOUR HEALTH AFTER DEFEATING ENEMIES AND COLLECTING THEIR SPIRITS... ALL THE LEVELS ARE GREAT AND NOT VERY HARD TO FIGURE OUT. BUT THEY CAN BE LONG , IF YOU ARE UP TO THE TASK !! BUT THERE ARE CHECKPOINTS IN MOST LEVELS , IN CASE YOU DIE - YOU START AT THE LAST CHECKPOINT ;SO AS NOT TO HAVE TO START AT THE BEGINNING OF THE LEVEL AGAIN. LOTS OF COOL CONTRAPTIONS TO CLIMB AND JUMP ON. BUT BEWARE !! ONE MISJUDGED STEP CAN HAVE YOU LEAPING INTO THE DARK DEPTHS AND DEATH ... TRY IT IF YOU GOT TIME , PATIENCE , AND SKILL . CHECK OUT MY OTHER COOL GAMES TO PLAY ... NOW ONTO '' SHADOWMAN '' ... ENJOY AND HAPPY GAMING!!!!!