Developer: Kaiko
Publisher: Nordic Games
Platform: PC, PS4, Switch, Mac, Wii U
Tested on: Switch
Legend Of Kay Anniversary (Switch) – Review
Legend Of Kay was a popular PS2 game that was released in 2005. Since then the game has been reworked and released on several platforms as Legend of Kay Anniversary. This time a Nintendo Switch version has been released and we got the chance to test it. Legend of Kay Anniversary was developed by Kaiko and published by Nordic Games. We previously reviewed the PC version of the game and were happy to get a chance to also review the Switch version. So with our trusty Joy-Con controllers in hand, we were ready to go on an adventure with Kay the cheeky cat.
Story
On the island of Yenching, four clans lived in peace: the industrious rabbits, cheerful frogs, disciplined cats and wise pandas. Each clan lived in their own village and they all had their own fountain. The fountains had songstones embedded inside of them which caused the water to be enriched. Water from the fountain was said to nourish body and spirit. All clans followed in the way which is the belief in the essential goodness of life. After a while, they faltered from the way and at this same time the water from the fountains dried up. Evil became more common and gorillas joined by rat alchemists invaded the island.
Kay is a young cat that lives in the cat village. He is learning how to fight by what used to be the finest weapon master in all of Yenching. His master has become a bit of a drunk since then but he hasn’t lost his ability to fight. Kay doesn’t like that the gorillas and rats that have taken over the village. When he hears that the mayor is going to agree to hand over the village’s weapons to the gorillas, He goes to talk to his master but then the leader of the rats closes down the dojo because they think it is a “terrorist training camp”. Kay then decides to take matters in his own hands. He takes the master’s sword and goes on a quest to talk/beat some sense into the leader of the rats.
The story parts of the game are mostly told in a comic style and are very well told. While you play the game the story progresses nicely. You come to find out more about the rats their plans and about the other clans. Listening to Kay make witty insults to the rats and gorillas is also quite funny.
Graphics
Graphics from the Legend Of Kay Anniversary are okay but show pretty clearly that it is a rework from an older version. The graphics, even though looking pretty smooth, also look a bit outdated. Every character is animated smoothly only the lip syncing isn’t that great but since they are all animals it isn’t that bothersome. Backgrounds in the game all have an Asian tint to them and are well designed. The lightning and shadows look a bit weird as sometimes the characters are a bit overexposed.
Sound
All the music in the Legend Of Kay Anniversary is Asian themed. While you explore the Island calming tracks play but once you start a fight or get to an exciting part the music picks up. Voice acting in the game is pretty weird and often it doesn’t seem to fit the mood. Voice acting takes place both in the comic part and regular conversations between characters. The sound effects are really well done and realistic sounding with birds singing in the trees and realistic splashing when you jump in the water.
Gameplay
Legend Of Kay Anniversary is an action, adventure game where you have to solve puzzles or do a bit of platforming. You play as Kay a young boy cat who is getting taught how to fight and use chi by his master. As Kay goes to his master to get lessons you get a tutorial on how to fight at the same time. Kay can fight with a sword or use his chi/magic to defeat his enemies. Different combos can hit harder or can be used to even hit a knocked down enemy. The game uses combos to also unlock certain locks. Those locks require to be hit after a certain amount of combos in order to be unlocked.
To get more combos Kay is able to jump from one enemy or target to the other. The ability to jump from one target to the other is also used to reach different locations. As you hit a demon Zhong, which are urns that make you move quicker because of the demon’s power, you can move on to the next one and keep hitting demon Zhong’s until you reach a new location. The demon Zhong’s can also be used in different ways to complete puzzles for example hitting enough of them to unlock a combo lock.
Most enemies you encounter are either rats or gorillas. These rats and gorillas have different looks mostly in the color of their shirt or the amount of armor that they are wearing. If enemies are wearing armor then you first have to knock pieces of the armor off of them before you can actually kill them. Enemies mostly appear in multiples and try to surround you. Kay is able to block but can only block enemies that he is looking at directly. Now sadly there is no way to tag an enemy or focus on them. Kay can also jump or roll to dodge.
There is however a huge issue that makes fighting enormously difficult and that is the camera. The camera in Legend of Kay is really wonky. You need to manually control the camera in the right direction most of the time. When the camera automatically focusses on something it makes you see nearly nothing. When you’re fighting multiple enemies this is especially annoying as you need to look directly at them to block but if you can’t even see them coming then that is quite difficult. The wonky camera not only makes fighting difficult it’s also quite difficult to do jumping puzzles in tight spaces as it focusses the camera on Kay with almost no way to see the next platform.
Besides fighting the rats and gorillas, Kay can also finish quests that allies ask him to do. He can save trapped allies by breaking them out of their prison. There are even a lot of quests that require him to race on a boar. Along the way there is a shop where you can buy potions and other items and even sometimes buy upgrades for your health and chi. Some items can also be found randomly scattered around the island in vases. Health and Chi potions are quite regular but there are also some potions that help Kay in a fight. Bombs can also be found and can be used to blow up damaged walls or enemies. There seems to be a bug present that sometimes the game doesn’t fully register that you have blown up a wall. This means that the game won’t open the way so you can pass through the cave.
Conclusion
Legend Of Kay Anniversary is a game that is pretty enjoyable. The game could be enjoyed by all ages but seems targeted a bit more to a younger age. Even though the game has a few issues it’s still a pretty good rework of an old game. For people that like the old game it might be nostalgic to play this rework. For people that enjoy games like the Legend of Zelda might also find Legend Of Kay enjoyable as it has quite a few similar aspects. So if you want to play a fun and quirky rework of an older game then maybe give Legend of Kay Anniversary a try.
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