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Platform: Xbox Genre: Fighting Publisher: Microsoft Developer: Dream-Publishing ESRB: T (Teen) Released: Q4 2002
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Kakuto
Chojin
Score: 6.1 / 10 |
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Pros: -
Good character graphics -
Controls are reasonably responsive -
Survival mode can be entertaining for a while
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Cons: -
Laughably horrible single-player story mode; feels more like a demo than
a full game -
Generic selection of characters - Won’t keep you interested in playing more than a day or two
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Related Links: Review: Dead or Alive 3 (XBox) Review: Tekken Tag Tournament (Playstation 2)
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"...a game without too many other redeeming qualities."
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After
playing (and completing) Kakuto Chojin’s single-player story mode in
about 10 minutes or so you will you find yourself incredulously asking
no one in particular, “This is all there is?” If the game’s
developers were physically present you might have more than a few choice
words in addition to that once the reality set in that you just blew 50
bucks. Kakuto Chojin (KC) is so short-lived and shallow in its gameplay
options that you’ll swear that a demo disc somehow mistakenly found
its way into the Xbox storage case you just unwrapped.
As
fighting games go, KC has one of the most laughably awful single-player
story modes ever to appear in a fighting game. I’m not kidding, you
can get through one character’s story mode in about 10 minutes. The
only “story” here is a few paragraphs of text that scroll down the
screen once you quickly dispatch the required opponents to complete the
story-less mode. The cut-scenes that supposedly tie any semblance of a
story together are horrible too, not making any sense whatsoever. KC’s
story mode and done-as-an-afterthought background of each character are
so ridiculously bad that it really seems that it was solely created for
E3 2002 to only showcase some of Xbox’s graphic horsepower and nothing
more.
Making
matters worse, KC contains a generic cast of characters that seemingly
borrow a little bit of this and a little of that from every fighting
game that has preceded it to create their appearance, especially the
Street Fighter series. You would swear KC’s Asad is Dalsim, Vegard
could be a doppelganger for Vega (the name is shamelessly almost
identical), and Sabre bears a resemblance to Ken. Going for the Dead or
Alive 3 (DOA3) impersonations are KC’s Roxy, Vittoria, and Reji. The
inspiration for the other remaining characters could be right out of
other big-name fighting series including Mortal Kombat and Tekken. The
KC character with the most hilarious similarity is J.D. Stone, who looks
strikingly like Brad Pitt from the movie The Fight Club. (Edward Norton
is nowhere to be found, however).
But
at least they look good while ripping off character traits from the
casts of other more famous fighting games. The graphical treatment of
KC’s fighters is one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dim
overall game. Surprisingly, as good as the characters look, the levels
don’t have the same visual appeal and are nowhere near the variety or
quality of DOA3’s.
That’s
not to say that the game isn’t enjoyable – because it can be – but
only in a completely short session before being quickly relegated to
collecting dust on your game collection shelf. The best mode for a quick
fighting fix is Survival, which pits your selected character against
three opposing fighters at the same time. The goal is to go knock out
the others in multiples of ten before they can knock you out. Good fun
for a half-hour or so at a time, but that’s about it. The only other
interesting draw to KC is the four-player Battle Royal, allowing you and
three other human adversaries to fight each other all at once. Again,
good fun for a brief while, but not much more than that.
While
the controls aren’t exactly DOA3 quality, they do the job better than
what you would expect from a game without too many other redeeming
qualities. Having specific combos to learn for each individual character
and being able to perform the move you want within an acceptable
timeframe save KC from being an all-out coaster.
For
those looking to pick up a fighting game from the sparse titles
available on the Xbox, do yourself a favor and stay away from KC. DOA3
is your best choice right now or if you already have DOA3, the
surprisingly excellent Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance is worthy of
purchase. With the disaster that is KC, Microsoft needs to make sure
that its upcoming in-house developed fighting games Kung Fu Chaos and
Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus turn out much better. They certainly can’t
get any worse.
Kakuto
Chojin's unbelievably fleeting gameplay makes this title nothing more
than an overblown demo that gives the gamer a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it
glimpse of the Xbox’s graphical power. While it has some decent
graphics and reasonably responsive controls, only those bored with DOA3
might consider renting KC on some rainy weekend. I can’t recommend
anything more than that for this completely disappointing game.
-
Lee Cieniawa (January 15, 2003)
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