For my first retro 360 review of the year, I played through Kameo: Elements of Power from Rare, a launch game for the Xbox 360 back in 2005. I never owned this game back in the day, but I remember playing the intro level many times either at a store kiosk or on a demo disc.

Kameo is an ambitious action/adventure game and in 2005 it would have definitely stood out as next-gen when visually compared to similar titles for the PS2 or original Xbox. You play as an elf princess who can transform into different elemental creatures and use their various abilities to explore, solve puzzles and battle armies of trolls. Kameo feels like a cross between Rare’s N64 3D platformers and an Ocarina of Time-style adventure game. I felt it was a fun, breezy game that almost overstayed its welcome.

You are constantly gaining new elemental forms to aid you in combat and puzzles, about 2-3 per area or dungeon. It is extremely satisfying to mop the floor with a dozen trolls by rolling over them as an armadillo, or bombarding them explosive mortar shells. With so many abilities, it can be hard to keep track of which ones are the most useful, and the game itself goes back to the same powers for dungeon navigation. Two parts of the game nearly ground my enjoyment to a halt though: a water temple with inverted swimming and a plant elemental where you must spin the control stick to aim projectiles. Interspersed between dungeons are fun horseback and siege battles where Kameo must defend her allies from hundreds of trolls and their war machines. It was surprising seeing how many enemies pop up on the screen during these segments; you don’t see modern AAA games use large battles as impressive tech demos the way they used to. There are just the right amount of side quests and collectibles for a game this size, though the village and NPC are sorely lacking in personality.

The colorful graphics of the game age well, and the Elementals and enemy monsters have fun designs. Outside of the villainous Thorn and Kalus however, the NPC characters’ designs feel undercooked or too cartoonish. Kameo doesn’t quite find a balance between kid-friendly fantasy and an edgier style (like a Fable or Gauntlet: Dark Legacy) it seems to be going for. It made me appreciate how easy a game like Ocarina of Time makes it look when striking that tone. There are a lot of characters in this for a story that doesn’t go far, and Kameo herself has hardly any lines. Overall, Kameo is a fun and occasionally shallow 3/5 game.

Game Design: 3/5 Vibes & World: 3/5 Fun to Play: 3/5

Bonus Points:

• Goth baddie evil sister trope
• Different-colored monster blood splatters on the screen
• Trampling hordes of enemies on horseback
• A score system for creative kills

Current ranking of all Xbox 360 games:

• #1 – Kameo: Elements of Power