Gravity Rush Remastered Review Impressions

Flying the dusty skies

I really like Gravity Rush. I only dabbled lightly in its original release on the Vita in 2012, but I played enough to know it was something special - a stylish action-platformer set in a strange open world. This HD Remaster makes all the sense in the world, allowing the Playstation 4 user base to experience one of the Vita's best games.

The game placed me in the high heels of Kat, a gravity shifter with amnesia (of course), who can use her powers to temporarily fly and attach to any surface - shifting gravity to her current orientation. Kat can also battle bad guys - making use of both stiletto and Newton-embarassing power. You'll fly around, gravity-shifting as needed, kicking butt from time to time, taking missions from all around the map. Structurally, it feels a little like like Assassin's Creed on acid - an open world stocked with missions, classic architecture, wild colors and even wilder platforming.

It comes together better than most Assassin's Creed games, thanks to a coherent toolset and a focus on flow. Kat is nimble, her moves are powerful and fun to pull off. The world itself is a joy to explore - wide open, with secret peaks and crevices to explore.

The single best element of Gravity Rush is the sheer sensation of speed and control. It's exhilarating to blast towards a shard of earth, halt mid-air, and fling Kat in the opposite direction on the fly. It's great fun to see a tall building, run up the side and decide last minute to go airborne the rest of the way. The world itself is a tool and a toy in Gravity Rush, designed brilliantly around your sassy superhero.


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If Gravity Rush were a purely mechanical exercise, it would still be a great game. But it has style and personality for days. The whole game is done up in a delicious cel-shaded Steampunk meets cyberpunk style, with gorgeously illustrated motion comics serving as cutscenes. Kat is accompanied by a galaxy-patterned cat named Dusty, who talks to her in meows and purrs, leading her through this brave new world. Even the writing is pithy and fun - with cranky NPCs commenting on everything from your work ethic to your... colorful outfit.

That style and attention to detail led me to prefer the game's take on open world games. At one point, I spent half an hour just running around the city, seeing what goofy conversations I could trigger. I wanted to see if Dusty would interact with the cel-shaded dogs roaming around the streets - sadly, like a real cat, Dusty was indifferent. But I could send people flying around with me if they were close enough when I started playing with gravity. It's like a nicer version of messing around in a GTA or Saints Row title - the systems are nowhere nearly as complex, but they lead to plenty of little unexpected moments and supported the game's playful tone.

If Gravity Rush was overlooked due to its landing on an under appreciated platform, this version is exactly what it needed to stand out. This is a weird, wonderful game - one of the brightest gems in the Vita's library, now ready to strut out on a wider field.

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