Kung Fu Chaos

Brief Overview

This title is pretty awesome. It's so awesome I might even consider it to be one of the best titles ever on the original xbox. Although it is no Halo or Ninja Gaiden (>< What am I even saying?!?!? Halo is an FPS and Ninja Gaiden is a hack and slash action adventure...), it is its own little thing amd that's awesome.

The characters, however, are horrendous looking (with the exception of Ninja Fu Hiya and Master Sho Yu). But again, I'm okay about the ugly looking characters because for one thing, this is a budget game and from where I come from, it only cost me 20 bucks. (tbh I would rather pay that much for this than Loco Roco) For 20 bucks I'm given almost endless hours of multiplayer mayhem with my friends and also an acceptable single player experience (which got tiresome and boring once you've played through it and learned how to counter all types of ninjas).

Review

On a mechanical level, the environments looked pretty good for an early xbox game. Personally, I have no problem with its graphics being really choppy - reason being that it somehow gives off a 70s Hong Kong style kung fu movie vibe which is what makes the game iconic.

What I'm most impressed about is transitions within a single level. Take for example: You can go from the top floor of a chinese restaurant to the bottom floor and then onto a small boat and then the top of a tower and then finally onto a wooden raft. Of course, that is only one of the many transitions that you can get from KFC. In addition, there are gameplay transitions; the best which involves changing from brawling to semi-aerial combat involving falling down a deep pit. It's really hard to describe how much fun it is to experience these transitions along with a bunch of friends. (I recommend watching videos on youtube) Again, I like to emphasize that KFC is a party game first and foremost and playing with a bunch of other people is when it really shines. (this is partly because the AI is really easy or super hard).

Speaking of super hard... the reason why I find it super hard at times is because I'm not that good at the game and also because the combos in the game are so hard pull off. What I mean by this is there is constant back-stabbing in this game and also the combos themselves are super confusing. Most players find themselves doing just as well hammering on the x and y button (attack buttons).

Reception

6.5 - Gamespot Rating
6.7 - Press Rating Average
6.3 - IGN Rating
68/100 - Metacritic
76% - Game Rankings

I guess the scores speak for themselves. It isn't a bad game, but I'll admit it's no where near great. But people reviewing in GS or IGN usually looking for longevity in games, which I'll admit that KFC lacks. Although saddened, I do agree with Greg Kasavin (btw thumbs up on unit descriptions in C&C) that the game is not really memorable and contains a virtually non-existent single-player experience; resulting in the ironic comparison to a cheap (with emphasis on cheap) 70s Hong Kong style kung fu movie which KFC, as I believe, tries to imitate.

Personal wishes