Conan – PS3 – Preview

When you tackle
an iconic figure like Conan, you had better do justice to Robert E. Howard’s
character or risk the wrath of the Cimmerian gods – not to mention the vast
legion of Conan fans.

The game begins
as a Conan adventure might – the barbarian is washed ashore on a mysterious
island with little memory of his past. He is immediately confronted with
supernatural enemies and has only his brawn and sword to defend himself. He is
very handy with the latter and the former stands him in good stead as well.

Nihilistic and
THQ are behind the Conan game, and they sent along a preview for the PS3 for
GameZone to take a gander. Not only are the graphics top-notch, but the action
was easy to leap into the midst of and begin lying waste.

Before moving
forward with the preview it is important to note that the graphic style is
emblematic of some of the best fantasy artists. If you have seen the work of
artists like Boris Vallejo or Frank Frazetta, then you will immediately delight
in the way this game looks. Frazetta did a large number of paintings centered on
Conan, and that style is represented with this game. With that in mind, you just
know this game is going to look good.

And it does.


But that is
just the beginning. The story of Conan is told in retrospect, from an elderly
person to a child. She is reading from scrolls. There is an evil lurking just
beyond the reach of Conan’s steel, one that threatens all of Hyboria. En route
to the final showdown, players will tackle numerous other bosses, like the Bone
Cleaver. Now if that does not sound like it is right out of the Conan novels,
then nothing else will. In point of fact, the story to THQ’s title is drawn from
Howard’s original novels.

This is indeed
a game that is trying to remain true to the books, and it does show – not only
in the way the story evolves, but in the blood and the way it treats women. If
you have read any of the Howard novels, you will know what that means.


If you have
played Heavenly Sword, you will recognize the combat scheme. Conan can
learn/master different weapons, and he has the quick attacks and the slower,
more powerful attacks as well. The right thumbstick is for rolling out of range
of attacks. You will need to know how to do that. Even early on, you need to
time the attacks of the bigger foe, roll to avoid them and attack from behind.
You do more damage that way and do it quicker. The game’s AI precludes reflexive
combat (you know, button mashing) and instead tries to make it more logical and
methodical, as well as strategic.

The game’s
sound was excellent and the graphics were amazing. The game itself will have 14
levels and take between 10-12 hours to play through; the length may be a
detractor, but with many adventure epics falling into that time frame, this
seems right in line with the next-gen trend.

One of the nice
features is the way the cut scenes juxtapose against the gameplay. There is
almost a graphic novel feel to the cut scenes, and then the ante is upped for
the game itself. You will feel like the cut scenes are merely the appetizer for
the main course (the game) and that is a very good thing.

Due out in the
first quarter of 2008, Conan is shaping up to be a first-rate adventure that
should entice and delight action-adventure fans.