This review was originally published on Gaming Horizon, GameBump's predecessor. Its format does not match our own but we support its content.

It seems like a story we're hearing more and more lately. Here is a game that Rare has been trying to put out for years now, beginning its life as a concept sheet for a Nintendo 64 follow-up to Rare's very successful Banjo-Kazooie, moved to the backburner for the sake of developing more sequels, and was to be born anew on the GameCube before Microsoft bought Rare; the objective failure of Grabbed by the Ghoulies probably made men in suits reconsider whether Rare should be making platform/adventure games or not. Finally, when the Xbox 360 was sent into development, Rare was handed the chance to make both a new Perfect Dark game and any other title they wanted. Finally, Kameo was given her wings.

Kameo: Elements of Power is unique in its genre-bending ways. It could be considered a platformer if you accept the more contemporary definition of the title – cute little heroes blowing enemies apart with engaging and creative weapons. Even still, that's not quite what we have here. You could also consider Kameo an action-RPG in the swing of Legend of Zelda in the way you add abilities and attacks to your repertoire. Whatever you consider it, it's these things for certain: a launch title for the Xbox 360, and a game made by Rare. Take that how you will.

This game exists in a fantastic world where two major factions live: elves and trolls. Kameo is an elf, daughter of the benevolent ruler of the elves who – until recently – had secured a truce between the mean green trolls and the kindly elven types. Kameo, being first in line for the throne, is given a great power. She can control and embody creatures known as "ancient warriors," somewhat-elemental characters who can pack a serious punch in a battle.

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This preview was originally published on Gaming Horizon, GameBump's predecessor. Its format does not match our own but we support its content. It was written by Matthew Call.

Kameo: Elements of Power began its creative process over five years ago. Originally slated for the GameCube, the game’s developer, Rare, was bought by Microsoft and the game was developed for the Xbox. The game was almost complete when Rare decided to switch consoles once again, this time to the Xbox 360. After years of development, Kameo is expected to be a launch title for the 360 and should be on shelves later this month.

The protagonist, Kameo, is an elf who has the unique ability to shape-shift into 10 different elementals of power. These elementals are based on the elements of plant, water, fire, earth, and ice and are unlocked as the game progresses. Kameo, with her elemental forms, must challenge her evil sister and restore goodness to the world by battling evil trolls, orcs, and other creatures across the various levels of the game. Much of the gameplay involves the use of these elementals to solve various puzzles and eliminate the enemies who are attacking the peaceful inhabitants of Kameo’s world.

The various elementals in the game are all very distinct. The first elemental Kameo uses in the game is Chilla, a blue furry giant with spikes on his back and arms. Chilla can pick up trolls and jam them into the spikes on his back, then take them off and use them as clubs against other foes in the game. Another elemental at Kameo’s disposal is Pummel Weed, who resembles a giant Venus flytrap with the boxing abilities of Mike Tyson. Rubble is a ball of rock that rolls around the level flattening enemies. In what is certainly a nice touch, enemies who are rolled over by Rubble will sometimes become flattened and stuck to the outside of the giant rock ball. Each elemental in the game starts off with a couple of basic attack moves and there are also four unlockable attacks awaiting the player’s discovery.

Where the game really shines is in the creative use of combinations of elementals. For example, players can hose down an area with oil using Deep Blue, a giant squid elemental. Once the area is thoroughly soaked, players can then shape-shift into Ash, a fire elemental who will quickly turn the oil into a raging inferno. There are several unique combinations of the 10 elemental abilities that can be combined to create interesting possibilities for problem solving as well as dispatching enemies. Rare also focused on allowing puzzles to be solved by using more than one combination of elemental, which means players will be able to solve the puzzles the way they want to, instead of being forced to play the way the game forces them to. 

The game begins in a “lobby” world, where Kameo can explore her abilities and choose which level to play. In addition to the regular game levels there are also four battlefield action quests, which are massive battles that Kameo can jump into at any time from the game’s starting level. These battles are enormous, with literally thousands of characters fighting on the screen simultaneously. Kameo can wander around and jump into the fray at any time to turn the tide of the battle in favor of her elven kindred. These levels really show off the horsepower under the hood of the 360 as games with thousands of characters on-screen at once have yet to grace the current generation of consoles.

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