The first thing I did when I picked up a PS3 a few months ago was download as many playable demos as I could. I was very interested to see what was worth buying, what was worth renting and what was not worth even a second look. Heavenly Sword fell into the category of worth renting; only because I heard it was short and had no multiplayer or co-op.

Heavenly Sword is the story of Nariko and her clan as they dedicate their lives to the protection of the Heavenly Sword. The story to me was really more about Nariko's quest to earn the respect of her father and the other members of her Clan, and I felt that the story of the Heavenly Sword was more of a side story. As usual I don't want to ruin the story for anyone but suffice it to say that Nariko must wield the Heavenly Sword and condemn herself to certain death in order to save her father.

Without a doubt my favorite element of Heavenly Sword are the cut scenes. Now I don't say that because Heavenly Sword is some kind of epic tale, I say it because I have never played a game where I felt like I was watching someone who could very easily be real. King Bohan has the most realistic facial expressions I have ever seen (and Nariko's aren't bad either). In fact every character seems very life like. I also found myself enjoying the incorporation of the sixaxis more than I have in other PS3 games. I found the catapult missions immensely enjoyable.

Although bold and innovative Heavenly Sword should have focused more on game play. While playing Heavenly Sword I couldn't help but feel that I was playing a rehashed God of War. The combat was similar but not nearly as fun and ultimately not very satisfying. Also there seems to be no criteria for unlocking new combos. They seem to come almost at random and there is no option for upgrading weapons which leads to a fairly flat experience. Also as much as I liked using the sixaxis feature in some areas the game relies too heavily on it. Sixaxis is all well and good but if I wanted to spend 40% of the game using motion sensing controls, I would go play the Wii.

I like that Heavenly Sword went out and tried some new things, and that nets the game some bonus points with me. With an overhaul of the combat system Heavenly Sword has laid the ground work for what could be a very successful series. Unfortunately this installment is nothing more than a poor mans God of War.