Okami hands-on

Wait... Celestial Brush? Did we not mention that your overlord powers come in the form of a reality-altering paintbrush?

To bring this world of living art back from the brink, you'll need more than a powerful set of jaws. Your mystical power stems from the Celestial Brush, with which you can stop the game, draw on the screen and affect whatever you touch. Drawling circles around dead trees, saplings or cursed land causes them to burst with life (as you can see in ourexclusive movie), and the more you clean up, the prettier everything becomes. Anytime you raid a demon nest, it makes way for a clearing filled with cute little animals and lush plant life - a true testament to your benevolent powers.

The brush isn't just about creating life, though - it's also a powerful weapon against evil. Using it while in battle lets you draw a horizontal line through enemies and slice them in half. As they scream in horror at their untimely demise, you can then encircle their carcass and transform them into a collectible treasure merchants will pay out the nose for.

If your standard button-mashing weapons aren't doing enough damage, you can literally draw a bomb on the screen and detonate it in the demons' faces. Obviously, as the game goes on, you'll discover both many more artistic abilities and close-quarters weapons to dispatch the creatures of the night with. So far we've seen an electrical whip (which is actually a set of holy beads), an enchanted shield and a golden sun that lets you fire ink bullets into the air, juggling enemies before they can even regain their footing.

CATEGORIES
Brett Elston

A fomer Executive Editor at GamesRadar, Brett also contributed content to many other Future gaming publications including Nintendo Power, PC Gamer and Official Xbox Magazine. Brett has worked at Capcom in several senior roles, is an experienced podcaster, and now works as a Senior Manager of Content Communications at PlayStation SIE. 

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