Maximo: Ghosts to Glory
Review by Skinny MinnieApril 2002
The Fable: King Me, Check Her!
Once upon a time there lived a spunky young king named Maximo who ruled over five colorful and whimsical three-dimensional lands. Whenever this king was off fighting distant wars to protect his kingdom, the court at Castle Maximo was controlled by a council of four lovely Sorceresses. At these times, court advisor Sorcerer Achille would watch over Princess Sophia, Maximo’s betrothed.
After emerging victorious in battles far and wide, Maximo returned home one stormy night. Unlocking the gilded gates to his illustrious abode, he had nary a clue that his beloved lands had recently been cursed. A reality smack came from just inside his front door in the form of Sorcerer Achille’s magical scepter, which killed Maximo and sent him hurtling into the afterlife. In Maximo’s absence, Achille had forced Sophia into unholy matrimony and set himself up as the new king, locking the four governing Sorceresses away at the farthest reaches of the kingdom!
Achille had also used his powerful magic to drill an immense hole right down to the underworld. He drew up all manner of souls and created an undead army to help him protect his unrightfully claimed lands. This upheaval to the Hereafter did not escape the notice of the sarcastic but amenable Grim Reaper, who also witnessed the untimely demise of King Maximo. Grimmy, realizing that his own job could soon be in peril as there were less and less souls to govern, struck up a deal with the great warrior. Grim would send the king back to his own world, in exchange for the promise that Maximo would stop Achille. Besides sparing his life, Grim promised that an additional debt of gratitude would be paid if Maximo was successful. Our hero was also told to find and free the four imprisoned Sorceresses, as they would be his best chance of help with this Herculean task …
Game Play Heyday …
After the graphically impressive and intriguing opening cutscenes, our charismatic 3D hero is deposited into the first transformed world, now known as the Boneyard. In this foggy burial land you will find classic platform “koins” scattered about, but as soon as you direct Maximo in the third person toward them for automatic pickup, the thrills begin! Mountains lurch up out of nowhere or the terrain cracks wide open right underneath our hero’s boots, revealing fiery lava pits that require quick reflexes to avoid falling into! New secret passages are unearthed and the previous ways blocked or lost in sudden landslides. Bell-clanging stone towers spurt up as Maximo approaches, tossing dangerous groups of glowing purple skulls that crunch as they bounce down hills. Black tar acts as quicksand if Maximo pauses as he strides through it, and deadly, bubbling red lava contains bobbing paths of floating wooden coffins.
As you progress through this game you will also encounter many of Achille’s comical, cartoon-like, brightly rendered minions. Cackling, cloaked wizards pop out of treasure chests and cast temporary, colorful bubbling spells on our hero that turn him into a limping old man or a creeping baby. Plant pods rise up from the bogs and burst open to reveal facetious, long-haired hippie creatures! Purplish sections of cemetery land sport bony remains that break through the earth and try pulling Maximo in as he passes. Lush tropical jungles harbor both mobile thorny overgrowth and giant purple flowers that arise and spit forth spinning, chomping, red and yellow fish! Goat devils attack on green plateaus, and doomed souls lift Maximo off golden masonry suspended over fire and brimstone, depositing our wriggling hero into deadly endless voids! Sword-wielding skeletons spontaneously generate from underground, sporting colorful shields or even pirate attire. Translucent green waters ripple with scaly crocodiles and bomb-throwing swamp zombies.
There are, however, redeeming qualities to this fighting even if you are an inexperienced or unwilling action gamer. Enemies have limited areas they patrol and they will stay confined to these places for one thing. You can often lure them to the outer fringes of their little territories one by one to make confrontations easier, or you can run out of range entirely for a breather. Baddies do not regenerate once felled, so Maximo will then be free to explore an area fully or even backtrack to a scene later for hoarded power-ups. You can even choose to send Maximo running or jumping right past the baddies and they won’t follow him very far, though you’ll miss a lot of pickups (and lower your score for a level) if you do. Finally, there is a complete lack of gore in this game, making it more suitable for families.
Your coordination and strategic abilities will not only be tested in battling Achille’s otherworldly armies, but also in leaping on to both static and moving objects like tortoises, coffins, tree trunks, statues, slippery ice, and abominably shaped stones. Even as these objects must be landed on, you will be leaping to them over deadly boiling lava, fiery flames, claw-snapping traps, oceanic whirlpools, and tentacle-laden marshes. As challenging as some of these areas are, Maximo himself does give physical and aural warnings should he be on the verge of potentially plummeting to his doom. Even if he does wave his arms around, yell “Whoa!” and then fall off of a large precipice, quick reflexes on the jump button while spinning him around will land him back on the solid ground from whence he fell. Although the amazing Maximo can begin a jump even if he is already falling in midair, short plunges to his doom usually can’t be recovered from.
Try Some Puzzles for a Spell …
Plot-twisting, steadily increasing, pulse-pounding action does abound in this title, but puzzle-solving and thoughtful, thorough exploring are also keys to your success. Certain secret pathways can only be discovered by jumping from tombstones, fountains, trees, hills, or bridges up to barely accessible heights and surveying the surroundings from above. Temples have rainbow-colored stained glass portraits that can be broken and leapt right through, revealing hidden rooms and power-ups. Certain gates harboring treasures can be unlocked with keys found on expired baddies, but others require the use of brainpower to discover alternate entryways. There are stony hills hiding blocked caves that can reveal goodies when slashed open. Other treasures are secreted on tough-to-reach precipices. Pickups can also be found in buried treasure chests that Maximo can unearth by jumping around randomly at various locations, and still others are dropped by fallen enemies.
The pickups themselves include armor, specialized keys, diamonds, and red hearts that represent extra lives. You will also occasionally find coveted sword enhancements like the Frostbiter, the Flame Tongue, Armageddon, or Pure Blade, which deplete with use. Special magic spells are also dropped by extinguished enemies; these can produce unique magical attacks or even temporary invincibility. The hard-to-find Mask of Sorrow, for example, can be used when maximum armor is worn. This temporarily turns Maximo into a green demon who is able to extinguish whole groups of enemies instantly. With the Shield of Midas, Maximo can draw diamonds or koins into inventory that would otherwise be out of reach. Some sword enhancement refills and armor can also be bought if enough koins are collected. You can “lock in” limited numbers of magic spells to keep them, but you will lose all others any time Maximo dies, so choose wisely. The game is intuitive to jump right in and play, but the amount and sheer variation of powers available as you progress adds greater complexity and strategy to this title.
Every land also has differently shaped “spirit containers,” appearing as bubbly tombstones, glowing toilet bowls, blue flame-spouting brass vases, and cute, icy snowmen with pirate hooks! Breaking them open reveals blue angel spirits that can be caught and turned into red koins that the Grim Reaper will take in exchange for another chance at life, should Maximo lose all the extra lives he has gathered. Beware though, as blue angel-stealing ghosts lurk about who will attempt to pass through Maximo and raid his angel inventory!
How the King Is Reigned In …
As you control Maximo through each of the five vividly detailed 3D lands, you will use simple PS2 button commands. These cause Maximo to jump, slash with his sword to attack Achille’s minions, and block enemy blows with his shield. Maximo can also throw his shield like a long-range boomerang at a distant or hard-to-reach enemy, and he will catch it again automatically. The left analog stick moves Maximo in all directions at a walk or a run depending upon how hard you push it. The commands are basic, can be repeated quickly for a double jump or double slash, and can be combined for more complex overhead or spinning strikes. Special magical power-ups taken into inventory are used with these same four buttons. One additional trigger button centers the view back directly behind Maximo a little more quickly than the camera would normally follow, and another trigger can be used to look around without other movement.
Not One Bungle in the Fungal Jungle …
All five vast worlds to be conquered are unusual and exceptional, not just in gameplay but in graphics and sound. Besides the foggy, stony spookiness of the Boneyard, there is Great Dank (a gorgeous tropical jungle complete with flowing green water, stone temples, bamboo huts, and pretty trees sporting coral fungal “steps”), Frozen Wastes (a blue and white arctic backdrop of snowy mountains and icy caves with a large skeleton-pirate ship), Realm of Spirits (a fiery underworld setting for pig devils, dragons, swirling axes, and swinging pendulums), and finally a siege on Castle Maximo itself.
Excellent sound effects and visual clues are used optimally as regards each unique enemy’s groans and gurgles; you will see bubbles in the swamp and hear a crocodile’s growl before it emerges. You will see a neon green haze and hear the “Polterghost” moan, the wind he stirs up whispering along behind him, before he soars through Maximo and casts his vertigo/sleepwalker spell on the king. Other sound effects offered include swords clanging, water rushing, bluebirds cawing, and skeleton bones crunching as the skeletons run! The unforgettable music matches each land to a “T,” being whimsical yet spooky for the main burial land hook, then replete with jungle sounds and voodoo drums in one land or full of yo-ho-ho pirate-like adventure in the next. No matter what, the score is always extremely appropriate and highly entertaining.
This Land Is Your Land, this Land Is My Land … So Beat It, Achille!
Most lands contain five levels as well as a final boss. The first four lands’ oversized bosses guard one each of the four Sorceresses, and all bosses require different tactics to eliminate. As you rescue the Sorceresses, each one in turn will offer you advice and a gift: a kiss (collecting all four kisses and locking them in will garner you a special prize at the end), armor, or an extra save. You won’t face Achille and his demonic drill or rescue Princess Sophia until all lands and other bosses are conquered first.
Each land also includes one place you can return to at level’s end to save your game, which costs 100 koins per save. Before any level ends, you are subsisting on checkpoints that you lose once all your lives are depleted and you visit the inimitable Grim, passing him more red koins with every few visits. Every time you finish a level you are given statistics on what percentage of it you discovered compared to how much there really is. If you want to better your score on any finished level of a land you’re in, you can travel back for a replay from the save area without penalty. If that level is in another land, you can still access it but it will cost you 100 koins for travel each way.
The Plot Does Thicken …
One thing I loved about this high-octane game was that the plot was continually referenced in cutscenes as the Sorceresses were rescued one by one. At the end of one level, Achille punished a skeleton captain for failing to kill Maximo. Achille brought that skeleton back to life, then commanded his forces to torture said captain until he died once more! In another level, three of the rescued Sorceresses were together when Achille magically appeared. He was holding the fourth Sorceress, Sephonie, whom he had just murdered! As Achille made off with Sephonie’s body, an angered Grimmy appeared and helped Maximo to follow Achille to the spirit world (Realm of Spirits) so Maximo could attempt to retrieve the Sorceress … The final ending was a real lulu as well … Speaking of which, was that actually a spiky black tail I saw poking out of Princess Sophia’s dress, or was it just a hallucination brought on by my perpetual state of hyperventilation? Don’t you worry, because the plot did indeed twist more times than the hips of Mamba Marie the Swamp Sorceress, and Grimmy said he’d owe you big time when all was said and done, remember?
No Matter How You Slice it, King Maximo Rules!
Maximo: Ghosts to Glory is one of the most addicting, angering, exciting, and unforgiving-as-all-get-out (when jumping onto moving targets) games that I have ever played! There is never a dull moment, and it truly sparkles with creative, unique, progressively more challenging twists and turns around every corner. I never played Capcom’s original NES Ghouls and Ghosts or Ghosts and Goblins games on which they loosely based Maximo: Ghosts to Glory, so I can’t compare them, but I’ve heard the originals were more difficult than this new offering. You may find anyway that you must replay a level multiple times to complete it, and completion may be barely by the seat of Maximo’s adorable heart-print boxer shorts at that! Maximo can sport up to four levels of armor, which in my case got cut right down to his skivvies by enemy blows more times than I care to remember!
As a matter of fact, I would have had this review finished far sooner, except my sword kept slicing up the paper too much! Somebody please help me; I just have to put this game away! If I don’t, I’ll be inexcusably late for my Maximo Anonymous meeting …
The Verdict
The Lowdown
Developer: Capcom Publisher: Capcom Release Date: February 2002
Available for:
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Copyright © Electric Eye Productions. All rights reserved. No reproduction in whole or in part without express written permission.
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I’ve still not completed this yet so will keep this short but.. I’m absolutely loving Heavy Rain. Not unconditionally.. it’s not without it’s problems (some of the voice acting is literally laugh-out-laughable, and screen tearing has never been this distracting before) but I don’t think a game this flawed has ever had me so gripped before.
It’s abit emotionally draining though.. I keep coming away from it feeling cold and letting out big *sighs*. Absolutely a good thing though in the context of what the game is attempting (successfully) to do!
..although having said that, I have just realised none of that has any relevance to this actual story. Hmm, sorry!
Sales performance? I think it will do modestly. One thing I have noticed however is that alot of my close friends who aren’t “gamers” as such (and who literally buy games consoles for sports games – nothing else – if they even buy consoles at all) are VERY interested in this. As the resident geek in my circle of friends, I’ve been asked all sorts of questions about what this is, what it’s like and whether it’s any good.. by all sorts of different people.
I think it will be interesting to see Sony’s hardware figures around the launch of Heavy Rain, because I can see this being more popular amongst less-traditional gamers and non-gamers than amongst the existing base of Call of Duty, Gears of War loving “core” gamers.
Or something.. *shrugs*
Agreed, Mat. The story, the writing, a lot of the technology and scene blocking, all those things really keep you entranced. The actual gameplay is… I don’t know, I don’t want to say “nothing special,” but it’s certainly minimalist.
One thing I often wonder is how much my button presses are really influencing the game, or if they’re just in there to make me feel like a participant in what’d otherwise be a passively viewed story. A good one, to be sure, but no different from a movie.
I think Heavy Rain could mark the point at which AAA production values meet the sensibilities and tone of certain realistic and mature adventure games, that is, games which don’t emphasise fighting or action and concentrate more on storytelling, characters, dialogue and situational puzzles. I know Heavy Rain has its twitchy QTEs but the production values and mature themes are going to be hard to resist. The general non-gamer consensus with most mainstream ‘mature’ or ‘grown up’ titles at the moment will probably be something like:
Mass Effect is a fighting game for trekkies and sci-fi geeks.
Dragon Age is a fighting game for beardy weirdy fantasy geeks.
GTA IV is a fighting game for sociopaths.
Heavy Rain has the accessibility of something like GTA IV with its modern setting and believable characters but without the controversial Rockstar/GTA stigma attached and without the emphasis on fighting. It will not only appeal to the gamers who have been waiting ages for it or fancy something different, but also to the non-gamers who perhaps want to enjoy something a bit meatier but don’t care for outright fighting like in the above titles. Intriguing.
The things we love mature like HR games for?: http://borderhouseblog.com/?p=1691
The issue around the fighting sections of Heavy Rain is quite interesting in itself I think.
I’ve sunk several hours into this now and have pulled the trigger of a gun once.. and I tell you what, when the time came I actually felt like it meant something. The option to shoot also came with a string of alternative actions, and I went through afew of those before deciding to open fire. For someone who plays alot of FPS games, that Heavy Rain made me think twice about doing it once was quite intriguing..
I agree with you about the aspect of involvement too, Matt. I’m finding there are times when it feels like you’re genuinely playing a part, and others where it’s quite peripheral. Flicking the analogue stick to open a car door for example is nice and all but.. I would neither notice nor care if the AI did that for me. Alot of the more mundane actions do feel a little loose, although at the same time I do think they’re a nice way of building your relationship with the game and your characters personality. To open the fridge door or.. to not open the fridge door?
I haven’t actually played this game and probably won’t anytime soon. I don’t have a PS3, and, even though this is getting rave reviews, it really doesn’t seem like a killer app. Plus I’m terribly poor. Nevertheless I’m intrigued.
But here’s the thing, every time I see a game being lauded for a story, in spite of its lackluster gameplay, I feel very conflicted.
I think, is this a game then? Is this a story that could only be told in this medium? Why? What narratological elements of the game are unique to the medium? If the game was told as a movie, would it be considered anything more than average?
Then I think, does it matter? One thing a game does that no other medium can do is imbue its audience with a real sense of tension. You can fail in even the most simplistic game, which ups the ante. Additionally you can get stuck, which makes the story, even if its only told in cut scenes, more emotionally resonant because you overcame something to get to it.
So… well I don’t know. I feel like games can tell a story, and they can probably do so on the same artistic level as a masterful film… but the heart of the medium is its gameplay and games should be striving for innovation in that AND innovation in story AND integration of the two.
Does Heavy Rain do that?
@Igor: Hello Igor, the Border House is a great website that I’ve been visiting quite often since it was launched. I’ve got to say though, as a white, heterosexual male I feel out of my depth over there sometimes! There are some fantastic reads though. Thanks for the link. I’ll probably steer clear of it however, because of the spoilers!
@ Gregg
Absolutely. There are a couple of moments that remind me a little of GTA in terms of what’s actually going on, but they’re so far removed from that in the way that they’re handled and portrayed. Grand Theft Auto looks so childish in comparison.. and that’s coming from a GTA stallwart who still holds a candle for those games. Essentially of course they’re very different experiences and nobody will ever play one for the same experiences as the other but I still think it’s a fair comparison.
Did you buy the game or have you downloaded the demo, Gregg?
@ Lokimotive
I particularly agree with your point there about the ability to fail being so engrossing. One of the things that impressed me about Uncharted 2 was that Nathan Drake really does take a beating in that game. That’s another area where Heavy Rain does push it quite far. The characters go through some pretty testing times as it is, but if you’re that way inclined you can pile misery onto them even further by your own actions. Although it’s not happened to me yet, apparently they can also die prematurely and the game will continue without them.
Just as an aside too, I could sit and talk about Heavy Rain all day. I could write a list as long as my arm about things I don’t like about it from a technical/gameplay standpoint (but wont, because that would have to include spoilers) but the things it does do well make me so giddy.
For some reason my PSN connection is having none of it. Money’s too tight at the moment as well to buy any games so I’ll have to wait until PSN gets its act together so I can download the demo! I actually can’t wait to give it a whirl.
Is it just today you’re having PSN trouble? You are aware of the absolutely monumental crash/bug with the PS3’s today, right?
http://bangbangtech.com/archives/113267/60gb-ps3s-locked-out-of-psn-error-code-8001050f
Mat, I bet I know the one time you pulled a trigger of a gun, and you’re right, unlike any other game, it’s a very tough decision. I pulled the trigger and wound up regretting it almost immediately.
One interesting thing is that some of the prompts and conversational options are a bit misleading. There are times when I think I’m going to say one thing and wind up saying something else.
One of the impressive aspects of Heavy Rain is that it does a good job of making you realize how all the small decisions impact all the large ones. To open the fridge or not open the fridge… seems innocuous, but it may shape the fates of men one day.
@Gregg I should have explained why I’ve linked to that article. The reason is it makes me doubt if HR should be described as really that mature, or at least if it should be denied that sex and violence are its primary attractions for most buyers. The text discusses the main female character and how she is presented as a victim of male abuse type of character throughout the game above all other characteristics.
This and other things I hear about Heavy Rain make me think about shock value and putting the player in uncomfortable situations – both the subtler ones, as well as those straight from exploitative fiction.
Anyway, too bad Heavy Rain isn’t for the PC, so I could check it out myself. At least there’s the interactive youtube demo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjNsqPxO2Ws
Makes you think if the full game would be actually much less of an experience if it was just an interactive movie on Youtube.
There’s a slight focus on violence against women, Igor, but at least so far it hasn’t been as bad as I feared. While Madison is victimized from time to time, she’s also presented as a tough lady who’s capable of taking care of herself (unless I’m the one directing her QTEs, in which case we’re both hosed).
If sex or violence are the primary attractors for most buyers – and I don’t disagree at all with the possibility – then most buyers are going to be disappointed. This game is about sadness, and loss, and not much else.
Of course I’m not far in yet, so my assessment could change.
Ahh, thanks for the clarification Igor. I’m keen to know what the feminists make of Heavy Rain considering what (little) I’ve read about it, so I can’t really comment but will be sure to when I’ve played it. Incidentally, I wonder if PSN has stopped acting the goat…
EDIT: @Mat – Yeah, I briefly heard something about it on the news this morning. Will check it out now.
For Sony’s sake I hope they fix this problem in about five more minutes, or they’ll be facing down one humongous lawsuit. Their official response (“we are looking into it”) is probably not going to cut the mustard.
It’s fixed now, Steerpike 🙂
By the way, after a monster late night session.. I’ve just finished Heavy Rain. All I can say is.. wow. Stunning game on so many levels. Also, now that I’ve finished, I’ve decided to open myself upto the many “what ending did you get” threads across the internet. I don’t think I’ve read any 2 that are the same yet. I have to go through this again to experiment with the differing avenues myself though, of course..
I think I’m about halfway through. It’s a good game.
It’s a great game.
It’s… complicated. We’ve never seen anything quite like this before, have we?
Go to bed!
@ Mat, and to think you’ve booked an entire week off work to play it! You only needed one day! (i’m so lonely at lunch 🙁 )
Must resist buying a PS3. Must….resist….Tap-Repeatedly effect…
Once the price dropped, I’d have picked one up but for the no backwards compatibility for PS2 games issue. That still annoys me as I have a substantial PS2 library left to play.
@Toger: I got my PS2 modded to play US games so in that sense it’s more valuable than a backwards compatible PS3 but in truth the whole thing pissed me off to. I don’t want 12 consoles under my TV. Just one please.
Finally got the demo of Heavy Rain downloaded and installed. Will probably play it tonight with my girlfriend. I’m looking forward to it.