Akuji the Heartless

🎮 PlayStation ⏳ 6 hours ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

Dark Voodoo Premise #

This title is a third-person action-adventure that you play as Akuji, a voodoo priest betrayed by his brother and murdered during his wedding ceremony. Condemned to the Underworld, Akuji must battle through realms inspired by death, mythology, and spiritual folklore to recover the pieces of his stolen heart and seek revenge. Despite having nothing to do with Soul Reaver, this game gives the exact same vibe, based on real-world mythology, and focusing in the darkest side of them. The premise is dark and unusually mature for its time, immediately setting the game apart from many of the brighter, cartoonish platformers that dominated the start of the PlayStation 1 era.

Haunting Atmosphere #

Atmosphere is the game’s greatest strength. this game embraces a grim, voodoo-infused aesthetic filled with eerie architecture, grotesque enemies, and haunting environmental design. I don’t have extensive knowledge in the voodoo mythology, and despite it’s graphical limitations, it gives a very good presentation on this subject, one that is very little explored in any media, not just video-games. The OST complements this tone well, relying on ambient and tribal-inspired music rather than catchy melodies, which reinforces the feeling of isolation and dread. Even today, the visual identity stands out as bold and memorable, especially considering the technical constraints of the PlayStation hardware. I got to admit that if it wasn’t for it’s visuals, and if I wasn’t a fan of dark fantasy, I wouldn’t bother playing this one.

Rough Combat Mechanics #

Th gameplay revolves around exploration, platforming, and combat, though not as extensive as something like a metroidvania, I think it stands out among titles of the same era. You, can punch, kick, use weapons, and acquire magical abilities tied to souls collected throughout the game, but while these mechanics offer some variety, execution is inconsistent. Platforming can be imprecise, largely due to awkward camera angles and occasionally unresponsive controls. Though this is not an isolated case, this was a very common issue on games back in the day, especially on fully controlled cameras. Combat, though serviceable, tends to become repetitive, with limited enemy behaviors and a reliance on basic attack patterns rather than deeper strategy. Akuji is very much capable of defeating any enemies with regular attacks, which diminishes the combat complexity, especially because the enemies are not very tough to begin with.

Strong Level Design #

Level design shows flashes of creativity, featuring shifting environments, traps, puzzles, and vertical exploration. And while visuals and atmosphere are the number 1 strength of this game, the level design is definitely the second. Every level has a decent amount of it’s core mechanics, there is not a single boring or badly designed level, or repetitive enough for you not to care to come back to, in order to grab remaining collectibles. However, progression is often linear, and trial-and-error sections can disrupt the pacing. The game is also relatively short, often completed in under ten hours, it took me 6 hours, and I could easily 100% it with nothing more than an additional hour. These shortcomings contributed to the game’s mixed critical reception at launch.

Flawed Cult Classic #

In retrospect, this game is best viewed as an ambitious but flawed experiment. It may not hold up mechanically when compared to genre-defining classics, but its commitment to atmosphere, theme, and originality earns it a cult following. For people interested in darker, unconventional PlayStation-era games, Akuji remains a fascinating example of style and mood overcoming technical roughness. If you are a fan of dark fantasy such as myself, this is definitely worth checking out, the biggest downside being it’s availability. I played the original version, and I have no idea if there are modern re-releases. But I wouldn’t go too far in order to be able to play this title, it is not as worth as other hidden gems out there, but a competent enough game I enjoyed very much.