Iāve been thinking a lot about Gravity Rush lately and itās making me want to replay through 1 and 2 again. Except, I put almost 100 hours into the games combined when I played them, so Iām worried I might actually do it.
Itās a real shame that GR2ā²s online portion is being shut down in a month (July 19th last I heard). Itās one of my favorite integrations of multiplayer into what is otherwise a strictly singleplayer game. I wasnāt too into the leaderboards stuff, but I adored the way the camera stuff played into multiplayer.Ā
These red apple treasure chests were hidden throughout the world, and the easiest way to find them was to find them was to use a photo that somebody had taken. Once you find it, you then have to take a photo of it yourself so that somebody else can use it to find the same chest in their game. A lot of people, including myself, had fun with these photos and included Kat in some fun way. Iām a huge sucker for photo modes in general, and the fact that this gameās photo mode exists as a physical camera that Kat carries around with her makes it so much better. Itās so fun to imagine, and so in character, for Kat to be zipping around taking silly photos.
This is one of those few games that I actually went out of my way to get every collectible because I just enjoyed running around in that world so much. It feels so alive and is so interactive in a way that never stops being fun. The people around you have varied reactions to things Kat does, including almost every emote. In one of them she cups her hands and yells āBoo!ā, and if you do that to say a street musician theyāll get startled, drop their instrument, and then start yelling at Kat. Itās these little details that propel a game from good to great. There are just so many of these personal little touches throughout the game and its world. Donāt even get me started on Katās āhouse.ā
And the music. The whole soundtrack is an eclectic and bombastic mix of orchestral, jazzy, and other stuff I donāt know the name of. Itās all unique and makes for really memorable tracks and set pieces. I know I wonāt be forgetting the song. If youāve played the game you already know which one Iām talking about. The way it gets used and arranged throughout the course of the series is fantastic in a way I wouldnāt dare spoil.
Speaking of things that span across the two games, it blows my mind how connected the two games are. The first seems like one of those weird experimental indie JP games for a small audience that would never get a sequel, but the way that events of that game are so critically tied to, and foreshadow plot points of the second game is nuts to me. It takes guts to write a game so thoroughly assuming that youāll get to finish the story in a second game. Itās incredibly fortunate that the game got the sequel it rightly deserved.
Thereās actually even more I want to talk about, specifically about the characters and world, but this post has already gone on far too long.
The Gravity Rush games are criminally underrated and one of those thatās just so easy for me to gush about. I love these games and Iām glad to have played GR2 while the servers were still up.Ā If you havenāt played these yet, check them out. Make sure you play both.