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Kingdom of Paradise

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8.0 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 38 critic reviews
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Based on 14 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

Developer: Climax Studios

Genre(s): Action, Role-Playing Game

Players: 2

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: November 15, 2005

Summary

(Also known as "Key of Heaven") Kingdom of Paradise is an action-RPG title where players take the role of a young warrior outcast named Shinbu. When one of the five martial clans attempts to disrupt a peaceful balance of power within the land of Ohka, Shinbu seeks to defend his clan and restore equal power to the five clans that once ruled the world. With more than 20 hours of gameplay, players will venture through vast, living worlds and battle mythical enemies in a quest to restore peace to Ohka. More than 150 sword attack styles are available and players can create unique fighting combos by customizing sword attacks and moves gained throughout the game. In Ad Hoc mode, custom-created sword skills can be shared with friends and players can battle in one-on-one matches. Special skills and defensive items, along with an exclusive sword, are available to download via Infrastructure mode. [SCEA]

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central

Also On The Web: Official Game Site

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Cheat Code Central

This is definitely one of the best RPGs I've played this year.

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Pure Magazine UK

A fully fledged RPG for the PSP, nice graphics and customisable combat system give this title depth.

eToychest

It isn’t for everyone, but those who enjoy taking part in seemingly endless combat should find more than their fill here.

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Armchair Empire

The game doesn’t just look impressive, but sounds impressive too. Every sounds fits the game and some voices are so-so, but for the most part; it’s very fitting.

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Gaming Age

Probably the best fully original title to hit Sony’ Portable since "Lumines." It’s a solid action RPG set against an old Eastern backdrop that bears a resemblance in style to Bioware’s "Jade Empire."

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Pelit (Finland)

A beautiful Japanese action-RPG with some new ideas and many old ones. It is an adventure of epic portions, but after about a 1000 fights, you are willing to give peace a chance. [Mar 2006]

Da Gameboyz

With a lengthy single player campaign, and a multiplayer versus mode available, the game really provides a lot to do.

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Game Over Online

If you can forgive the button mashing simplicity and the other hiccups of the fighting system, you'll find an enjoyable action RPG title in a beautiful environmental setting.

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DarkStation

Be the one-man army with Climax's martial arts brawler, which shines on the PSP with its bright visuals and solidly fluid combat system.

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Siliconera

Kingdom of Paradise has a solid combat system, which makes it an entertaining diversion from meatier RPGs. [JPN Import]

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Play Magazine

It's everything you'd expect from Climax Japan, let alone a handheld. [Dec 2005, p.72]

Official U.S. Playstation Magazine

This is an attractive, fun game, and if it had a better story and slightly more polish, it would be one of the best for the system. [Jan 2006, p.104]

GameZone

A grand RPG with a great combat idea. It is certainly deserving of more than a mere look by PSP owners and RPG fans are likely to be enthralled with the create-a-combo pack idea.

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GameSpot

Kingdom of Paradise has somewhat of a steep learning curve and its flashy combat system has a few problems, but the quality of the game's presentation and the generally entertaining battles almost completely overshadow these setbacks.

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Modojo

It has a few nagging issues that keep the welcome mat from being all wide open on the front doorstep, namely the lack of the block option or the ability to see the worlds around you. However, it is a rewarding adventure with an enriched battle system, mixed with upgradeable chi and adhoc/infrastructure support.

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Yahoo! Games

Some of the game's combat moves are very impressive, especially as you don't need to do anything particularly complex to pull them off.

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GamingExcellence

You can easily have more fun with this game than some of the full priced titles on the market.

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Game Chronicles

While not perfect in execution, once you get past the balancing issues in combat and the overly complex game world with hard to find destinations, you will find a compelling adventure and some truly brilliant concepts at work here.

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GamingTrend

While the story is a bit cliché, the setting is much better than your typical fantasy or sci-fi fare. It’s unfortunate that the combat gets bland quickly and camera issues abound.

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IGN

Kingdom of Paradise offers an interesting, complex combat system and blends it with above-average production values. Combat, while not perfect, is rewarding and the 15-hour quest offers a decent story and nice visuals.

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Gaming Horizon

While Kingdom of Paradise does have several faults, the most hindering being the camera and the lack of a proper blocking mechanism, the game is still the best RPG on the PSP, and also one of the handheld’s better games.

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My Gamer

Although there are annoyances that will deter some, Kingdom of Paradise is still fun enough that it's worth playing past the rough spots to get to the good stuff.

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AceGamez

With more thought put into a deeper control system for the combat, and more effort in the sound department, Key of Heaven could have been one of the best handheld RPGs to date. As it stands however, it's best suited to those with a lust for Anime and a craving for a hearty adventure with a typically Japanese storyline.

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GameSpy

The bugei gimmick is really clever, and kept driving me to play more. I can't say as much about the actual gameplay and story, however.

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Deeko

The game almost seems to negate the use of combos at points, which is thanks, in large part, to the infuriatingly poor blocking system.

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1UP

An annoyingly expansive world, and reams of stilted dialogue, have all been squeezed onto a handheld system -- with nary a load time to be found! -- and that is a feat nothing short of miraculous.

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Game Informer

Like a pair of pants that make you butt look big, the tedious exploration and flimsy story just highlight too many unflattering curves to make the adventure truly worthwhile. [Jan 2006, p.156]

Electronic Gaming Monthly

The story never really gets interesting, but the action-heavy combat system is fresh and gets more fun the longer you play. [Jan 2006, p.128]

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Extreme Gamer

An ambitious RPG title that ventures into new territory with customizable combat combos and a full 3D environment. Although using these ambitious features comes at the price of bad camera angles and a lackluster control scheme.

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PSM Magazine

A fun-action RPG with a heavy emphasis on the action. [Jan 2006, p.86]

PALGN

Just what the PSP needs. An original RPG and a template for what other developers should strive for. Too bad it doesn't quite hit the mark in certain respects.

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PSM3 Magazine UK

Satifactory in plot and longevity, while pleasing to the eye thanks to the 3D game engine. But so what? it's not special. [Sept 2006, p.85]

Eurogamer

A game best-enjoyed in short sharp bursts. That way you can appreciate the views, have some fun creating an offensive strategy on paper before briefly hammering it out on the field.

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G4 TV

The lack of any camera controls is somewhat annoying, but seldom intrusive, and the ability to save at any time is especially welcome.

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Official Playstation 2 Magazine UK

Playing Key of Heaven is a little like repeatedly thrusting your arm into a lucky dip filled with equal numbers of gold and emperor scorpions. [Mar 2006, p.95]

Game Revolution

It’s really a shame that a game with so much depth in its combat system turns up so thin everywhere else. It’s the exact opposite of Untold Legends, but that doesn't make it a great deal better.

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Edge Magazine

Approached free of any expectations higher than endless, mindless single-button mashing, the kenpu collecting and scenery spotting can provide some limited enjoyment in smaller doses, but approached as an epic quest, Key Of Heaven is one better left untaken. [Mar 2006, p.94]

GameCritics

In between the unsatisfying battles and the go-nowhere story, there's a lot of searching for the right area or person that will trigger the next cutscene, and a lot of wandering back and forth for the sake of extending the game's playtime.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.0 (out of 10) based on 14 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Nathan Q. gave it a10:
Great game, tons of moves that you can put together to form your own combos and sweet spells for you to level up!

annomous gave it a4:
im not sure what i missed, but i must first state that i play a fair amount of RPG's to know that the story in this game is horrable. it has substance and i give the game credit for that, but after you have spent hours of wandering around, not know that you could walk this path, or not knowing where the heck you are, then you have no choice but to give up and move on. The combo system works, but not the way i expected. you can put any combo that you wish to put together, but you need freestyle scroles in order to do that and i think that there are only 4 of those. oh and don't forgett the constantley respawning enemies. in the beginning its fine because you can tare through them with ease, but later in the game, you encounter over sized beast that seem to have an infinant amount of health. and to add insult to injury, they come in numbers!! this game is fun for a while, but with little to ride upon, then this game isn't worth picking up because its a "good game". but if you should so happen to decide to buy a new game for a familly member or friend, then choose this one because its pprbly dirt cheap. oh, and after your friend or family member begins to hate you for the rest of ur life, you can make it all better for them by buying them a copy finall fantasy 2 and a lollie pop to make it all better. ps, this game is perfect for long trips because it will help you get some shut-eye.

Zem Z. gave it a3:
This game should not be on the PSP. it wants to be a full fledged console game vut knew it would die if it was relesed on any other console. the cut scenes go on forever & when they end you know less then you did in the begining. the plot twists are so pathetc i saw ever single one coming. the combat is dull & repetitive but & sadly the highlight of this game however it takes you a good half hour to get any uninterruptid time with it. also your objectivezs are vague, & ever single character is visualy unapealing. this is quit simply a bad game but if you're game starved, & very patient, you maybe able to sques a couple of drops of fun from this lemon of a game.

sinneroftheworld123 foolycooly gave it a10:
I was hooked to this game as soon as i started it. i gota admit the begining wasnt that great but wen i was able to do more [in a short period of time] it was a blast!

James H. gave it a9:
Very involving game with fantastic graphics, an involving storyline and plenty of action.

Shin-Sekai Samurai gave it a9:
I've been hooked on this game since I got it. The gameplay presents a very Wu-Shu-Stylized combat method that completely enthralled my Asian-fascination. I could ask for more depth but, as compared to something as dull as Untold Legends, I can't really ask for more yet other than a sequal to expand and bring more depth to the game and world! Very enjoyable and more than worth the 39.99. So far this is my favourite game on the psp.

Jay gave it a9:
Under rated. It was a very good game. The plot seems to jump around in places but it was still very nice and rather original. The fighting system is pretty orignal and allows tons of expansion and variety. If you are a fan of action/rpg games a must have.

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Kingdom of Paradise

Game Info

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What The Critics Said

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