Years ago, this game reached cult status with its frantic combat, great multiplayer, beautiful sprite animation, memorable soundtrack, and delisting from online stores. Now that it's back and I can actually play it, I get to become aware of the flaws nobody felt like telling me about apparently.
To start with something that's less of a problem and more a personal gripe, I didn't like the blocking in this game. It encouraged turtling too much while waiting for an opening, and I especially don't like enemies doing it either. It feels like enemies dictate the pacing of the combat too much. Things got better once I acquired the dodge move. Being able to reposition myself made defensive play more engaging. Parrying also feels great when I can pull it off.
It's a shame then that dodging and a lot of other moves are locked behind level progression. While this helps players learn and appreciate the moves as they get them, it means I have to work to get characters who are really fun to use. It's not bad to the extent of, say, Sonic and the Secret Rings, but a lower level-cap and more moves available at the start would have made them feel more fun more quickly. I will say, I completely understand locking grapples behind level progression, along with other guard-breaking moves.
Stat upgrades have a similar issue to level progression. Improving the characters' stats with food or items from shops is a good way to encourage players to revisit earlier stages to strengthen their character (especially if they're struggling with the current stage). It didn't stop the process from feeling like grinding though.
Every person I talk to about this game gets why the lives system sucks. I get that lives encourage consistency. The game's not going to let me struggle and flounder my way through to the credits; I have to show some level of competence. It also makes sense in the context of multiplayer, where players can revive each other and share lives. I'd be 100% fine with it if you started every level with 3 lives (or more/less depending on difficulty); however, lives carry over between levels and can only be farmed from a boss, buying overpriced items in the first level, or game overing. Needless to say this is a serious pacing killer if you enter a level with no extra lives and die midway through.
These issues are understandable, since it is a budget game made to tie in with a movie that released around the same time. Ubisoft probably rushed this game. It doesn't feel rushed in a way that it's super buggy (it's only kinda buggy), but in that issues caught in playtesting couldn't be fully addressed.
It says something then that, despite these issues, the game is still so beloved and well-remembered. And there's a reason people latched onto this game. The combat can get enjoyably hectic. Crowds of characters and enemies flood the screen. Bosses have large, flashy attacks. Up to four players, each using characters with unique special moves, can send enemies flying across the stage, coins spilling out of them as they fade away. The fact that the action still manages to be (mostly) readable is impressive.
Its readability is due to its simple, yet wonderfully animated, sprite-work. Despite the stylized proportions of the characters, their poses are clear enough to sell their attacks and reactions. And their larger heads give the characters more opportunities to show their personalities through their expressive faces.
And the game's sound. The sound effects have a satisfying, old-school level of crunch to them. The loud "KO!" shout at the end of a boss is like something out of the best fighting games. The music is brilliant blend of chip-tune and rock that suits the rest of the game so well that it feels like Anamanaguchi and Scott Pilgrim were made for each other.
This game suffered a bit from being over-hyped, as many hard-to-get games do (e.g., Sonic CD, PT, Saturn games, etc.). I'd hear clusters of fans discuss their love of the game, but the conversation never got big enough for me to hear the problems with it. I'm glad the game is widely available again, and I'm glad I got to play it myself.
To start with something that's less of a problem and more a personal gripe, I didn't like the blocking in this game. It encouraged turtling too much while waiting for an opening, and I especially don't like enemies doing it either. It feels like enemies dictate the pacing of the combat too much. Things got better once I acquired the dodge move. Being able to reposition myself made defensive play more engaging. Parrying also feels great when I can pull it off.
It's a shame then that dodging and a lot of other moves are locked behind level progression. While this helps players learn and appreciate the moves as they get them, it means I have to work to get characters who are really fun to use. It's not bad to the extent of, say, Sonic and the Secret Rings, but a lower level-cap and more moves available at the start would have made them feel more fun more quickly. I will say, I completely understand locking grapples behind level progression, along with other guard-breaking moves.
Stat upgrades have a similar issue to level progression. Improving the characters' stats with food or items from shops is a good way to encourage players to revisit earlier stages to strengthen their character (especially if they're struggling with the current stage). It didn't stop the process from feeling like grinding though.
Every person I talk to about this game gets why the lives system sucks. I get that lives encourage consistency. The game's not going to let me struggle and flounder my way through to the credits; I have to show some level of competence. It also makes sense in the context of multiplayer, where players can revive each other and share lives. I'd be 100% fine with it if you started every level with 3 lives (or more/less depending on difficulty); however, lives carry over between levels and can only be farmed from a boss, buying overpriced items in the first level, or game overing. Needless to say this is a serious pacing killer if you enter a level with no extra lives and die midway through.
These issues are understandable, since it is a budget game made to tie in with a movie that released around the same time. Ubisoft probably rushed this game. It doesn't feel rushed in a way that it's super buggy (it's only kinda buggy), but in that issues caught in playtesting couldn't be fully addressed.
It says something then that, despite these issues, the game is still so beloved and well-remembered. And there's a reason people latched onto this game. The combat can get enjoyably hectic. Crowds of characters and enemies flood the screen. Bosses have large, flashy attacks. Up to four players, each using characters with unique special moves, can send enemies flying across the stage, coins spilling out of them as they fade away. The fact that the action still manages to be (mostly) readable is impressive.
Its readability is due to its simple, yet wonderfully animated, sprite-work. Despite the stylized proportions of the characters, their poses are clear enough to sell their attacks and reactions. And their larger heads give the characters more opportunities to show their personalities through their expressive faces.
And the game's sound. The sound effects have a satisfying, old-school level of crunch to them. The loud "KO!" shout at the end of a boss is like something out of the best fighting games. The music is brilliant blend of chip-tune and rock that suits the rest of the game so well that it feels like Anamanaguchi and Scott Pilgrim were made for each other.
This game suffered a bit from being over-hyped, as many hard-to-get games do (e.g., Sonic CD, PT, Saturn games, etc.). I'd hear clusters of fans discuss their love of the game, but the conversation never got big enough for me to hear the problems with it. I'm glad the game is widely available again, and I'm glad I got to play it myself.