I finished Momohime's story last night. Overall, I enjoyed the game. First, the pros. The music and art direction is phenomenal. That rich, detailed, hand-drawn 2D art is something else. I also enjoyed the pacing, which is strange because my first 15 minutes with the game were brutal; it felt like I was being led down a boring, linear path to a much more interesting boss battle. But after that the game opens up. There are branching paths, optional boss battles, and a bunch of interesting people and places along the way. Another feature I liked were the RPG elements, which are presented very well and raise the game above the average hack-n-slash. Forging swords, hunting for orbs, cooking food -- it made the game more layered. Lastly, and most importantly, the gameplay. At first glance, it can seem like a repetitive button-masher, but the combat is surprisingly deep and tactical, especially on the hard difficulty level, which I would highly recommend. There's a great sense of achievement when one takes down a platoon of ninja without getting a single scratch.
Second, some cons. Although the game does open up after the first boss battle, it could have been a little more open-ended. The addition of side-quests, however short, would have been a welcome addition. Also, the control scheme leaves room for improvement, especially the command used for jump. This really becomes an issue during Momohime's final boss battle.
That being said, it's a beautifully-presented, addictive, challenging game that I would certainly recommend to others.
7.5 for me.
