Sep 6, 2009

Tower of Shadow

Categories: Nintendo

The first time I saw the fuzzy scans of the Tower of Shadow I feel in love straight away. Fortunately Konami have released some official screens as well as a synopsis of what to expect from this shadowy title

At the heart of The Tower of Shadow lies a mystery. The player controls the shadow of a young boy. The shadow has one purpose in life: to scale the colossal tower that dominates the game’s skyline. He does not speak. Nobody knows who he is or how he came to be. He just climbs. And climbs.

But even a shadow must abide by certain rules, and thus the player must fulfill certain criteria as they help the shadow to climb the tower. First, the shadow can only walk on the thin line between shadow and light. While he is not affected by height or distance, he must always have a shadow foothold, and he will disappear if he is fully engulfed by either the dark or the light.

The Tower of Shadow introduces a number of new concepts to its platform game basis. Gravity, for instance, does not apply in normal ways. Instead, when the source of light in a stage is parallel to the ground, the shadow is pulled towards the light. Similarly, if the angle of the light changes, so the gravity also shifts as the shadow is extended or reduced.

The mysterious shadow is also accompanied by a winged sylph known as a ‘Spangle’, which can be used to manipulate physical items that the shadow boy cannot. As such, The Tower of Shadow mixes unique platform elements with a level of puzzling, with the Spangle giving support to the player. The combination of light and shadow creates a unique blend of game styles, with the shadow boy altering the shape of shadows so he can create walkways to previously inaccessible areas.

Along the way, The Tower of Shadow introduces a giant shadow that is in pursuit of shadow boy, and patrols the tower, alongside other assailants. With a number of tortuous levels to negotiate, The Tower of Shadow demonstrates Hudson Soft at its creative best. The sprawling levels are full of clever problems that force the player to challenge conventional ways to explore, and to use the varied abilities of the shadow boy and Spangle.

Konami Digital Entertainment will release Hudson Soft’s innovative Wii title, The Tower of Shadow, in Spring 2010