Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage combines the over the top martial arts violence of the classic First of the North Star manga and anime with the over the top gameplay of the well established Dynasty Warriors (Musou) series. When this was first announced, an entire niche rejoiced, as this seems like the perfect union. Based on a brief gameplay demo, this may be an even a better idea than throwing giant robots (Gundams) into the formula the last time around. Unfortunately, Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage may be overlooked due to its obscure source material, but what we really have on our hands is the makings of a solid action brawler.
Starting off as Kenshiro (there will be eight playable characters in the final version); I was tasked with beating up a bunch of dudes. Swarms of post-apocalyptic gangsters hindered my progress. Oh, but what a joy it was make their heads explode in a classic Fist of the North Star manner.
Straying a bit from the original Musou (Warriors) formula, the demo progressed in a relatively linear fashion. Judging from the manga’s story, there should be some large scale military style battles present as well. Based on the menu selection, each character will follow his or her original manga story.
One of the first things I noticed that in stark contrast to previous Musou games, each attack was more targeted and deliberate, rather than a flurry of slashes here and there. With each press of the attack button, I could feel each individual attack come, making it easy to modify the combo with a strong attack. With Ken, you can even cancel your combos with an evasive roll, which is especially significant if you are surrounded.
As previously mentioned (surely repeated later in this article), the combos are terribly brutal, as expected. Each flurry of fist or foot may induce especially brutal endings to the lives of your badlander foes: bulging body parts leading to bloody explosions and hemorrhaging craniums and plenty of opportunity to insert “you’re already dead” jokes. Ken can also grab, pummel, and throw his opponents into oncoming hordes. The combat is utterly satisfying – and it looks good too. While prior incarnation of the Musou series have looked like glossed over PS2 games, Fist of the North Star stands on its own. By no means are any feats of technical prowess present in this game, but the presentation serves its purpose better than any Musou game has in the past.
Each character won’t feature the same type of gameplay style, which will help to add a little variety to an otherwise straightforward brawler. In additional to a brawler type such as Ken, you’ll also have the choice of a more evasive character, or even characters sporting specialized weaponry. Equipable skills, a revised blocking system, and a more interactive and destructible environment help to spice things up even more.
A horse and a few motorcycles were sprinkled throughout the mix, allowing for a little variety in gameplay. Neither handled especially well, but they certain got the job done. Still, the opportunity to hop off said transportation device and continue to brawl was more inviting than actually running them over. The boss battle was nicely done. Rather than juggling my enemy along the Great Wall of China for six minutes, I was forced to break his guard and take advantage of openings. Overall, while not perfectly polished, combat is entirely faithful to the source material, especially the special moves. Ken’s move unleashes a flurry of “ta-ta-ta-ta-ta” in a high pitched voice ending in a rather satisfying explosion of violence.
Oh, and don’t worry, a Japanese voice track will be available in the North American release. Appropriate synthesized rock music is present as well. Hey man, those tracks get your blood flowing, even if they’re not especially good on their own.
With a load of more combat options and variety than prior Musou games, Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage should be a no-brainer for fans of prior iterations of Musou or fans of the manga.
