14 DAY TRIAL // A launch date has been announced by Namco Bandai for Enslaved: Odyssey to the West for North America. Ninja Theory's latest title will hit United States store shelves on the 5th of October 2010. The United Kingdom will see the release of the game a bit later, that is on the 8th of October. It will be available only on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.
Ninja Theory calls this title a tactical action adventure game that is set in post-apocalyptic America. Nearly all of the human race is gone and the few that are still alive are forced into slavery by robots. The main protagonist of Enslaved is called Monkey and he is captured by the machines also to be used for forced labor.
He manages to escape from the transport with a technologically adept woman named Trip, but while he is down she hacks into his slave head band, making his life bound to hers, thus forcing him to become her protector. Monkey is voiced by Andy Serkis, of Gollum fame, and the script is written by Alex Garland, who also penned the canceled Halo movie that was supposed to be directed by Neill Blomkamp.
The gameplay revolves around Monkey's efforts to protect Trip. The rule is if she dies, he will die too. The fact that the title is inspired from an ancient Japanese story, Journey to the West, also shows in the fighting mechanics like Monkey's ability to defeat his enemies with the staff and martial arts. Ninja Theory is the developer behind the PlayStation 3 exclusive Heavenly Sword, an action adventure title released in 2007. The game was praised for its graphics and its free-form combat system. It has sold over one million copies, making it quite a successful endeavor for Sony.