Added: 02.12.2013 22:27 | 1 views | 0 comments

It's impossible to look cool playing Fighter Within. I'm not talking about a high standard of cool either, like Arthur Fonzarelli banging on a jukebox. No, while playing Fighter's Within, you will look less cool than some pantless schlub who barely resembles a functional member of society. Frankly, any activity that involves flailing your arms and legs around like an apathetic Steven Seagal impersonator is going to draw some prolonged stares and titters (or in my case, howling laughter from supposedly supportive colleagues). This isn't a problem in of itself; after all, you can look just as foolish playing the likes of Just Dance. The problem is that the flailing is in service to an awful fighting game that lends no joy to your embarrassment.

Unlike in Fighter Within's predecessor,

If you're playing solo, then it's worth noting that you have to subject yourself to one of the most laughable storylines to have ever graced a video game. It's not just bad; it's really, really bad, and the sort of thing you'd hear in a poorly dubbed kung fu movie, only without any of the kitsch charm. It meanders from coming-of-age adventure to fantasy gibberish with little explanation, but it's the dialogue--delivered with all the enthusiasm of a wet sock--that really takes it to the next level of awful. In one exchange, a character exclaims "I've gotta run, someone's waiting for me." The reply? "Yeah, my knuckles!" Lines make so little sense that they swing right back from being bad to being so bad they're hilarious. Case in point: "The only freedom is the fight to conquer for freedom." I don't know how to begin trying to explain that one.

Yes, the motion tracking isn't as bad as in Fighters Uncaged, and yes, at least there's two-player combat this time. But that's pretty much like applying lipstick to an ugly pig. This is a totally flawed game that offers little more than a slow, barely competent combat system and a laughable storyline. And hey, if you're that desperate to experience Fighter Within, get a friend to repeatedly kick you in the shins. It's free, a nearly spot-on representation of the game, and far less painful.

Added: 02.12.2013 22:27 | 0 views | 0 comments

It's impossible to look cool playing Fighter Within. I'm not talking about a high standard of cool either, like Arthur Fonzarelli banging on a jukebox. No, while playing Fighter's Within, you will look less cool than some pantless schlub who barely resembles a functional member of society. Frankly, any activity that involves flailing your arms and legs around like an apathetic Steven Seagal impersonator is going to draw some prolonged stares and titters (or in my case, howling laughter from supposedly supportive colleagues). This isn't a problem in of itself; after all, you can look just as foolish playing the likes of Just Dance. The problem is that the flailing is in service to an awful fighting game that lends no joy to your embarrassment.

Unlike in Fighter Within's predecessor,

If you're playing solo, then it's worth noting that you have to subject yourself to one of the most laughable storylines to have ever graced a video game. It's not just bad; it's really, really bad, and the sort of thing you'd hear in a poorly dubbed kung fu movie, only without any of the kitsch charm. It meanders from coming-of-age adventure to fantasy gibberish with little explanation, but it's the dialogue--delivered with all the enthusiasm of a wet sock--that really takes it to the next level of awful. In one exchange, a character exclaims "I've gotta run, someone's waiting for me." The reply? "Yeah, my knuckles!" Lines make so little sense that they swing right back from being bad to being so bad they're hilarious. Case in point: "The only freedom is the fight to conquer for freedom." I don't know how to begin trying to explain that one.

Yes, the motion tracking isn't as bad as in Fighters Uncaged, and yes, at least there's two-player combat this time. But that's pretty much like applying lipstick to an ugly pig. This is a totally flawed game that offers little more than a slow, barely competent combat system and a laughable storyline. And hey, if you're that desperate to experience Fighter Within, get a friend to repeatedly kick you in the shins. It's free, a nearly spot-on representation of the game, and far less painful.