The Foreword: Let me start off saying I for one have not played the original Fist of the North star:Ken's Rage. I have decided to review the Wii U version because I am having a blast playing it.I have been a fan of this franchise (mainly the movie) since the 1990's with my ole' VHS copy of the film. I said that to say this, this game doesn't need you to have experience the previous installment of this game to understand what it's trying to get cross to you.This game has so much content rather it be the story line,extra characters with their bridging story arcs you have a lot to chomp down on.
The Breakdown: There are two major modes in this game one in which has an additional three within it. Let me start off with the 1st of the two, Legend Mode. This mode is pretty straight forward here you will find the story mode which will first start off with the lead protagonist Kenshiro. If you are wondering how the game play mechanics are similar to just think no further than Dynasty warriors or any arcade beat-em-up game ever created. This game does have more depth than those previously stated. For instance the combo move set for each character is around 2-5 different combos, which in my experience is kinda above normal for this genre.
This game does have a small bit of RPG it it also. They bring this to you via the Scroll system. This is comprised of a grid of 5 slots as a representation of the scrolls and on each scroll it has 3 notches which can vary on many defensive/offensive skill sets. These skill sets are Life, Aura, Attack, Defense & Technique. When you unlock upwards of 50+ scrolls you will eventually find the most dangerous scroll collection. This system is perplexing at first to understand yet, in time and several scrolls acquired you will get the jest of how it works. As you progress through the game you will either unlock it after an intense battle or find them in a battle chest among other goodies.
One thing I must get out the way is how the game could seem mundane. Though there is some variety that doesn't make it shine rather it is more of a blemish. This is what I mean, the amount of enemy types are no more than roughly 6 to 8 different ones with a game so vast you would think it would have atleast 20... or maybe NOT. Now that I got that out the way lets chat about what makes this game the belle of the ball The story. This is where this game shines the most yes, in era of beast graphics its the story that seems to suffer lately in this game it does not. This game by far in my opinion has the most rich, deep story line with additional story arcs spanning upwards of 8 different characters for a beat-em-up ever, I love it!
There is so much to talk about in this write-up about the story all I can say are two things, a woman sure can turn the world upside down and if you thought this game is repetitious and bore you will be only half right. Right that it can see repetitive at time though, the beautifully done manga style interludes and even better cut-scene really break up the monotony quite well. You'd be totally wrong to say that this game is a bore. This games story is so deep and intriguing and emotionally revealing you'd never guess it if you weren't a fan of this 3 decade old saga... this is something I had to find out 1st hand because if you thought what I thought initially you too will be pleasantly surprised. When you add a roster of 14+ different character selections that should be enough variety to sink your jowls into.
There are 4 different warrior clans;
Hokuto Shinken;*Kenshiro & his brothers *Toki, *Raoh, *Jagi
Nanto Seiken;*Rei *Shin *Thouzer *Juda *Shew *Fudo
Lone Warriors;*Mamiya *Ryuga *Juza
Then you have sub-class titled blandly "Others" in which I only have a generic named guy named outlaw.That's a lot of people right? Yeah, for some reason I think I will unlock 4-5 more characters.
The second mode is called Dream Mode this is the one that I mentioned before that consists of 3 additional modes (Story, Free mode & Online) The story mode lets you tap into the talent pool of the characters you've unlocked while playing through it's Legend mode. This lets you play all new stories based on characters from the manga series that consists of upwards of 60+ quests. Free mode lets you play a quest of your choosing after you have unlocked it in another mode. At the time of this writing I unlocked 14 characters with about 7:52 hours in. I am probably halfway through that maybe this game seems to keep giving it to you more when you thought you wrapped it up. Online is broken down into Co-op play & Team match. I think you get the idea what those do, the plus side to online play you run the delight of finding/unlocking more powerful scrolls for maximum damage! The downside is there isn't many people online though, the community is more active during the late afternoon early evening hours. The consensus I obtained through my friends list is that they want to finish the Legend mode before venturing onto the online battlefield though, I believe they both work well in tandem.
Here's my final wrap up with a pros and cons list;
PRO's
-Great deep story.
-Nice flow of cut scenes.
-Good choice of art direction w/ the manga interludes within the game.
-excellent character inclusion I've experienced.(those extra characters take on their own lives within the game world)
-The inclusion of off-TV play using the gamepad
CON's
-Repetitive opponent types.
-Graphically, the in game world could've been slightly more polished. (mainly the back drops)
-Sometimes awkward camera positioning.
All in all this is game has it's flaws but, cleans up the back end with a very solid story & story mode that carries well onward to online, when you actually have someone to play with. This I must say is a must pick up I scores it a...
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