In Oni, players assume the role of Konoko, a special agent on a mission to overthrow Boss Muro and his Syndicate, an organized crime ring that deals in illegal technology. The game is set in a sprawling metropolis of the near future, in a setting of environmental devastation and a government run amuck. It’s up to Konoko to discover what secrets her own shrouded past holds — she’s not sure who she can trust or what the truth is, but she’ll find out.
Oni is a 3D action game rendered in a third-person perspective. Although the game superficially resembles other third-person action titles like the Tomb Raider series, which emphasizes platform jumping skills and other feats, Oni’s emphasis is on hand-to-hand combat between Konoko and her enemies. Players learn new combination moves and gain access to new and more powerful weapons as the game progresses. Alas, there’s no multiplayer mode for Oni — it’s a single-player game only.
Gathering of Developers CEO Mike Wilson hopes that Oni will have widespread appeal both to hardcore gamers and to the gaming market at large.
“Bungie Software has created a stunning game that takes action/adventure to the next level and features a hard-core action heroine main character who breaks the stereotypical ‘gaming babe’ mold,” said Wilson.
System requirements for Oni call for a PowerPC-equipped Mac operating at 300MHz or faster; Mac OS 8 or higher (it’s Carbonized for OS X, as well); 64MB RAM; 800MB available HD space; 3dfx Voodoo2 or ATI RAGE Pro graphics card or better; CD-ROM. The game carries a suggested retail price of US$39.99. The game carries an ESRB rating of “T” for “Teen.”
Rights to publish Oni were sold to Take Two Interactive Software last summer as part of Bungie Software’s acquisition by Microsoft. Take Two had owned a 19.9 percent share of Bungie prior to the acquisition. Gathering of Developers is a subsidiary of Take Two Interactive Software. Take Two subsidiary Rockstar Games is publishing Oni for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console.
Oni is available from leading resellers and e-tailers. The game can also be purchased directly from Gathering of Developers’ Web site. MacCentral will post a review of the game soon.