Attack on Titan Humanity in chains is a third person action game developed for the Nintendo 3DS. Developed by Spike Chunsoft and published by Altus along with Spike Chunsoft based on the Attack on Titan manga it follows the events of the first anime series. Originally released in japan in 2014 the port has finally made its way here.
There’s not really much I can say about the story as it really does follow the events of the anime and does this nicely with the use of clips from the anime and missions that make sense to the story. I guess even Sasha’s missions make sense, even if they are pretty much just about collecting stuff. However I do find an issue with this, and that is its still in Japanese. It’s subbed, however I really can’t see why it is not dubbed- I mean especially the clips. It might be a budget thing maybe with obtaining the rights to use it and so forth however I don’t really think this is too much to ask for a game that you are paying £25.
The gameplay has a few quirks to be pointed out and I guess by a few a mean one massive one that can’t be persuaded to go away even with the finest collection of stamps for a stamp collector, you know. If you’re into that kind of thing. That is, I have not seen such a bad camera design since Too human. But, in all fairness this may not be due to the game but the platform it is on as the gameplay is great with the zooming around and really cutting into some of the more monolithic titans however this happens rarely due to the fact that by assigning the camera controls to the D-pad not only makes turning the camera incredibly slow but also due to both the stick and the d-pad being on the same side it means both your hands have to try and fit on one side while still having a couple of fingers able to reach the x and y button to actually do anything. It may be the most awkward way I have ever tried playing a DS – well, there’s the 3D thing, but that was annoying and I could turn that off. You can try to use the re-set camera to reset it to the way you’re facing, but since that is also, the button to hold to make a permanent lock onto a target it creates more problems than it really solves including killing the pace almost instantly.
As for the missions there are only four to five types of missions you will do either kill X amount of titans or kill specific titans, find items around the map, travel to checkpoints around a map, escort Person A from Point A to B and kill a bunch of titans as a titan. Each play well for themselves but, with this real limit to what you will actually encounter it can get very samey fast. A more interesting mode is the world map mode, which is the best thing about the game, here you participate in the same kind of missions in the story mode however there is a lot more to it. This is due to the ability to customise your character via face, hair voice and clothing. Also, you can make and upgrade weapons by collecting materials in the missions and forging them in the armoury. Levelling –up is also an option as you gain levels that grant you growth points that can be spent in one of six areas such as strength, defence or slashing power. If you feel like you need some support you can form your own team with some coins at the training barracks. Also the multiplayer accessed here is quite fun as it really feels like you are playing with another person in a good way when they help you take down a titan or saving you when you are about to be titan munch.
The sound is fine – not really much to say about it other than that. However, this feels limited too as there are only really a good couple of tracks and a lot of the music is taken from the animation – plus the random screaming in a foreign language that I don’t understand can get annoying fast.
Overall, I would say within the game in itself, there are many promising aspects such as the world map mode and how it adds a multiplayer experience that actually feels like you are part of something Pretty Big. However, there is a lot to be improved with the useless camera controls which feel like they’re designed for a controller and not a 3DS, the rather lacklustre missions and slight disappointment on how much that was translated compared to what could have been. But, as a sign that Nintendo is taking much more of an interest in the western market’s hard-core gamers on their platforms it is something I am incredibly glad to see. Unfortunately, since it takes so much from the actual anime story if you are really just looking for the story as the main experience I would recommend you just watching the anime.
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
You must be logged in to post a comment.