2007's Okami is viewed as one of the most artistic games in the history of the medium. In fact, one review is quoted as saying the game is “A stunningly gorgeous and unique masterpiece that effortlessly blends art and storytelling with puzzles and amusement. Miss this landmark effort at your peril.” It's safe to say then that Capcom had their hands full when they decided to return to the property for another go-round. Luckily, they were up for the challenge.

By not trying to reinvent the wheel, Capcom has invoked the spirit of the cult favorite remarkably well. It literally oozes charm and appeal, unfortunately though; that will only take you so far. While the aging DS hardware may lend itself well to the painting mechanic, you can't help but feel that it acts more as a hindrance to what Capcom could have done with the franchise if it were on another platform. Still, fans of the franchise and those who have yet to experience the cult favorite are encouraged to check out Okamiden for all that it offers.

Okamiden takes place less than a year after the events of the original Okami, so technically in theory it's a sequel, but in practice it's more of a reimagining. Much like the original game, you take control of a wolf-pup tasked with ridding Japan of some bad-assed demons, though short of a few cutscenes, Amaterasu is gone in favor of new protagonist Chibiterasu. Not much is different from the two characters, but for what it's worth, the story mentions that Chibiterasu may or may not be the direct descendent of Amaterasu.

"...it feels natural and incredibly fluid..."

For those who have yet to experience Okami, the game revolves around players using a “celestial brush” to paint your way out of conflict and puzzles. This mechanic undoubtedly lends itself incredibly well to the DS' stylus. In truth, Okamiden's brush is easily the best iteration of the mechanic to date. The original PS2 title's dualshock control was precise but felt unnatural, and the later Wii port was the exact opposite. The DS version feels like the developers took the two control schemes and met in the middle of both. Here, it feels natural and incredibly fluid almost like it was born to be on the touch screen system.

Also new to the formula and lending itself well to the DS system is the inclusion of a small group of children that tend to aid Chibiterasu in his quests. At certain points in the game, you'll control an entire group of these children via the touch screen, in a manner very similar to some of the later Zelda games on the DS. As you progress through the game, you're going to meet a number of different kids, each with their own abilities, and it's a welcome addition to the formula.

Not everything feels like it was made for the DS though, and chief among those is the game's camera system. See, you control the camera from the touch screen, meaning that you'll actually have to take your hands off of the game's controls to manipulate it. It's infuriatingly imprecise and to put it bluntly, you're going to hate it. The only time it's tolerable is when the celestial brush mechanic is invoked, as it stops the game's time, making it easier to deal with the shoddy camera, but during 90% of the game, it's by far the worst aspect.

"...sitting through a ton of grating text based cut scenes."

The majority of Okamiden's main gameplay is incredibly similar to that of the original Okami, but here Capcom attempts to mend the campaign with a much more sentimental story, and for the most part, it works, but it also leads to you sitting through a ton of grating text based cut scenes. For some reason, it also leads to you doing a lot of fetch quests. While I did find the game's main story to be quite intriguing, the “go here, and get this then repeat” nature of much of the side quests left a lot to be desired.

To the company's credit, Capcom did a great job invoking the visual spirit of the original game. The images are vibrant and the art style feels just as fresh as it did when the original game first launched. You do get the feeling though that much of the animations were lifted straight from Okami, as with the music. Though the presentation is definitely an achievement, you never really get the feeling that it reaches the level it should thanks to a bit of slowdown, and the feeling of repetitious animations as you get further into the game.

Though Okamiden never really reaches the success level of it's much talked about predecessor, it's still a remarkable DS game. The paintbrush mechanic feels like it was made to be on Nintendo's handheld, even if some of the game's other aspects don't feel quite at home. Whether you're a fan of the original Okami, looking to rekindle your love for the franchise or want to know what all the fuss is about, you can't miss with Okamiden.