As an action movie junkie,
I grew up watching the classic 1970s kung fu movies on the BBC and enjoying
every campy minute of the badly dubbed, high-kicking and high-flying action that
was Kung Fu Theater. So you can imagine the smile Kung Fu Chaos put on my face
when I first heard of this game that spoofs these movies in all their badly
filmed glory.
Kung Fu Chaos allows
gamers to be the star of a 70s kung fu action film under the direction of Hong
Kong action director Shoa Ting who just so happens to be shooting his latest
big-budget blockbuster. You can choose to be any of the available nine
characters such as Ninja Fu Hiya to the mad kung fu fighting primate Monkey. As
an action star, your job is to give the performance of your life and grab the
spotlight before the other performers steal your thunder.
Initially a party game
that allows up to four players at a time, the game’s most entertaining and
strongest point is the single player mode. Ninja Challenge, the game’s main
playing mode, takes gamers through a slew of levels that have you knocking ninja
warriors about as well as fighting that obligatory level boss. To top it all of
you are competing for star status so following Shoa Ting’s direction is
essential to increase the star meter–a meter that fills up due to your
performance and opens up new levels. The levels are designed as sets, many of
them taken from actual films such as Titanic to Jurassic Park and finally to
films such as Independence Day or Night of the Living Dead. There’s also
Miniseries, a mode that unlocked for every successful completion of specific
Ninja Challenge levels.
Kung Fu Chaos plays very
much like Infograme’s Loons: The Fight for Fame in that the variety of
characters battle it out on the particular set while the director shouts either
words of encouragement or throws in new challenges like poisonous gas. You are
given a specific number of lives in this game. Gamers will often get killed by
either the set itself that always seems to be falling apart around you or during
the more trickier levels that have you trying to jump the spinning crane that
threatens to toss you into the sea. Many of these levels are indeed highly
fun–such as the Princess rescue level–and often comical–such as the level
where you’re trying to catch falling stuntmen while trying to avoid getting
flattened by falling cows.
Since this is a party
game, there are a large number of multiplayer modes such as Battle Game–where
you select a character and fight against co-stars. Championship has you
fighting against friends through twelve rounds of fights and where the player
with the highest points wins the championship. There’s also an open area battle
royal known as Freestyle where you can practice your moves. The problem with
the multiplayer mode, though, is the fact that on a single screen gamers will
often find themselves overwhelmed by the number of obstacles on screen at once.
With everyone moving at once, it is very easy to lose track of what going on . .
. especially if the set is breaking apart during the intense action.
The other major fault this
game possesses is the fact that the fighting mechanics lack that true kung fu
feeling. Your character kicks and punches fine, but the combo moves are very
limited. To top it all off, each character doesn’t really feel very different
even though each character has his or her individual martial arts style.
Monkey, for example, has his Mad Monkey Kung Fu style while Master Sho-Yu has
Agile Panda. These moves would have been a lot more impressive if they were
used in a combo. Instead your characters learn similar fighting techniques such
as the taunts that work as a move (the string of insults literally keeps an
enemy pinned down) and the Super Attack that results in making three successful
taunts.
The graphics in Kung Fu
Chaos are actually not that bad looking at all, although it’s not overly
impressive as well. Most of the environments look amazing–especially those
sets that add multiple props such as the Jurassic Park-inspired set or the
Titanic set with it’s amazing water effects. The fighters themselves are
designed rather strangely and move about somewhat stiffly, particularly when
they’re being knocked down. One visual highlight, though, comes from watching a
replay of a battle. The replay uses different camera angles and camera editing
tricks that look wonderfully cinematic.
At least Carl Douglas’
“Kung Fu Fighting” is put to good use in a brawler as is the theme from the
Bruce Lee film “Enter the Dragon.” It’s rather amusing to hear the retro 70s
soundtrack that playing during the action, but it is stifled by the cartoon-like
special effects of things breaking and the sounds of the hurt you’re currently
inflicting on a lowly ninja. Another reason you won’t hear much of the
soundtrack is due to the director’s constant direction and insults aimed at your
performance. Shao Ting isn’t an incredibly annoying director; in fact, he’s
rather amusing at times and has better dialogue than your fighter’s almost
incoherent taunts.
Like the campy 70s kung fu
movies it so lovingly spoofs, Kung Fu Chaos has its share of outrageously fun
moments but, in the end, it’s also a forgettable experience. For a party game,
the multiplayer scheme really works against the gamer and will have your friends
and yourself wondering what’s going on. Still, there’s fun to be had here so
you can’t go wrong with a rental.
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#Reviewer’s |
Gameplay: 6.4
The game’s true weakness,
unfortunately, is directed at the kung fu itself. The move set is limited to a
few punches, kicks and blocks that really do not feel like kung fu at all. The
string of combos each character knows is very limited, but if done right is
highly satisfying to see . . . especially during the neatly edited replay. It’s
also unfortunate that each character doesn’t really distinguish themselves
through their own unique styles. Monkey does grab his opponents and plants a
kiss, but this really does not make up for some great-stylized moves.
The levels found in this
game are really fun, particularly if you decide to play this game as a single
player game. There are levels that are fun to go through more than once too.
One of the most entertaining levels is where you throw a princess at ninja to
knock them off the pole they’re standing on while trying not to get knocked off
yourself if the ninja just so happens to catch the princess and toss her back at
you.
Graphics: 8.0
Visually the game is sharp looking
and contains a great deal of eye-catching details. The environments are filled
with things such as waterfalls and plenty of props that break into dozens of
pieces when you toss them at your enemy. Many of the sets practically fall
apart as you move your character and the special effects found here–such as the
poisonous gas in one stage–really works nicely.
The characters themselves
are the perfect homage to this genre and you’ll find everything from the old
kung fu master to the sexy female fighter and her deadly fan. Some of the
characters really don’t work well here, such as the girl with the rollerblades
or the Mexican wrestler-type. They’re also pretty stiff when it comes to
movement.
Sound: 6.8
The 70s soundtrack works wonderfully
here and oddly enough gamers won’t get tired of hearing “Kung Fu Fighting”
almost in every stage. However, you do have the option to rip your own tunes
and use them here just as easily. Still, much of what you’ll hear in this game
are the special effects that can be heard over the music. The sound effects are
done right and listening to the breakable props shatter or crumble is better
than listening to the kicks and wild kung fu cries.
The voice acting found in
this game are minimal, as it should be considering that this particular genre of
film isn’t exactly very chatty. Director Shoa Ting can be heard throughout the
level and the voice acting is done in a stereotypical Asian manner (almost
exactly like the Asian character in the cartoon King of the Hill). The rest of
the characters have voices of their own and they are mostly taunts that are
hardly understandable.
Difficulty: Medium
Many of the challenges found in this
game are not very difficult to get through but the true challenge is in
increasing your star meter in Ninja Challenge. You’ll also find a large number
of ninjas that range from some pretty weak fighters to ninja warriors that are
really hard to knock down. Some of the ninjas even come three at a time, making
it difficult for you to keep from overpowering you. There are also the
Miniseries games that have their own different challenges.
Concept: 8.0
Kung Fu Chaos contains all the right
elements for a good brawler big enough for multiple players; it also has a large
number of actual movies inspired levels that are quite entertaining and
outrageously funny. There are also a nice amount of gameplay modes that also
include the Miniseries games gamers unlock while playing the Ninja Challenge
mode. The biggest disappointment, though, comes with the fighters themselves
that don’t have really unique fighting styles.
Multiplayer: 6.0
One of the game’s weakest points,
strangely enough, is the multiplayer aspect. While up to four players are
allowed to be on the screen at once, the game becomes an uncontrollable mess
thanks to the camera angles. Certain levels throw various obstacles at you and
making heads of tails of what exactly is going on is nearly impossible.
Overall: 6.6
Kung Fu Chaos possesses a number of
things that work against it, but the game is still fun and amusing enough to
keep a gamer busy. Those expecting a highly addictive party game in the same
vein as Nintendo’s Super Smash Brothers will find nothing but disappointment,
but all is not entirely bad. There are single-player levels that are just too
fun to pass up so it’s worth a weekend rental.
