![]() ![]() While the cel-shaded characters can occasionally look like crude caricatures (what is the hell is going on with the face on the 70-year-old protagonist?), there are moments of virtue. Nestled within each milieu are elements of elegance, from a bamboo forest to a tranquil evening showered in brilliant moonlight. Explore SIFU’s housing complexes and neon-drenched night club, and you’ll see grime gradually give way to beauty, revealing the dichotomy of many urban cities. Yes, that means there’s some repetition as your traverse the same stages, making SIFU’s procedural clue collecting (complete with a stick-pin crime board) a bit redundant.Īt least there’s some deft level design. Alternatively, you can pay roughly fivefold for a permanent ability or upgrade. You can spend these resources on the current run and forfeit them when your character ages out. Continue to kick ass and you’ll increase a combo meter, with fights paying off experience for grow your abilities. On the upside, SIFU does provide some boosts, but it’s a little cagey on explaining the details. Mostly, groups caught me in a flash of distraction, as I tried to move the camera’s perspective when caught in a corner. ![]() Here is where I admit that having to restart the game multiple times delayed this review. There’s a legion of gamers who grew up on Jet films but their work schedules prohibit the time-consuming mastery of digital Pak Mei. I know it’s a controversial point, but I would have preferred if SIFU offered an easier mode. But those accustomed to spamming their way through martial arts titles will probably give up on their quest for vengeance by the second stage. If you’ve been on a steady diet of Soulslikes that have little margin of error, you’ll probably appreciate SIFU’s elevated challenge level. Yes, the blocking is going to be a contentious mechanic. And SIFU is much, much pickier about the timing of its parries that more of it’s pugnacious peers. For one thing, blocking is a gauge-driven resource, forcing you to sporadically evade Ryu Hayabusa-style. But you won’t be able to button mash like you could in the Batman: Arkham series. But your heart bar shrinks, forcing you to play more defensively. When you get older, your attacks grow more powerful. ![]() I always assumed that the old masters of cinema, with long, flowing white hair and long facial hair were converging on a hundred.Īging introduces an interesting wrinkle into SIFU. Every decade uses one of the coin-like ornaments on your amulet, with death often arriving for septuagenarian martial arts masters. Before long you’ll be adding six or seven years. You’re lose a year of life the first time you’re revived, and two years the second time. ![]() But there are a few idiosyncrasies associated with dying. Instead, you’ll probably repeatedly die in SIFU, where you can opt to be resurrected by your magical talisman. So much for learning Kung Fu as quickly as Keanu did in The Matrix. SIFU wants you to know that mastering a martial art master is no easy task and might take multiple lifetimes to full grasp. You’re faster, smarter, and more powerful that your opponents, offering exhilarating power fantasy. Initially, the action feels like other games inspired by HK cinema, such as Jet Li: Rise to Honor, Stranglehold, and Sleeping Dogs. Occasionally, there’s even a hint of stealth with SIFU setting up lone guards for quick and satisfying takedowns. Occasionally, you can use environmental objects, punting a footstool at foes like Jackie would, or catching a tossed bottle and instantly flinging it back at adversaries. And it’s a blast to catch them off-guard with a punishing fist or foot to their temple, just as they’re mouthing off to you. Getting the jump on your opponent offers a clear tactical advantage. Strike Decisively in the Name of VengeanceĪnd while it probably violates some of the core principals of wude (translated as martial morality), striking an unsuspecting character is quite invigorating. Draw closer and they’ll punch, kick, or swing at you with an improvised weapon like a glass bottle or rusty pipe. It’s here that SIFU shines, with thugs idly standing guard until noticing their presence. Your first target, known as the ‘Botanist’, sends you into through the innards of the seedy drug den. Brought back to life through the power of a magic talisman, you master the art of Pak Mei Kung Fu, preparing for the day you hunt down and kill each of the assassins, Kill Bill-style. The introduction details a group of five assassins who storm your father’s academy, killing everyone including you. You play as either the male or female descendant of a Sifu, the Cantonese word for “master”. Price: $39.99 via the Epic Game Store or PlayStation StoreĪt its best, SIFU makes you feel like you’re in Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy, Gareth Evans’ The Raid, or almost any of Jackie Chan’s classic Hong Kong films. ![]()
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