Okami impressions

Capcom stopped by yesterday to give us another taste of Okami, its stunning-looking Zelda -style adventure game for the PlayStation 2. We've alreadycovered the general gameplay elements and story (you're a goddess in the form of a wolf, trying to bring back life to a world soaked in darkness), but this time, we were able to get a better look at one of the game's most potentially exciting facets: its boss battles.

Like the Zelda games the developers so clearly cherish, elaborate boss battles are going to be a big part of Okami. These are no tacked on afterthoughts. The encounter we were a party to involved the Spider Queen, a huge and cruel monster with rows of teeth, giant pincers, eight legs and plenty of hate.

The Celestial Brush, one of Okami's most unusual features, was important in taking down this boss. As with other points in the game, you press down the R2 button on the controller to turn the screen into a sepia-toned canvas; then, by drawing, you can affect the world.