Bloody Roar: Primal Fury review

With the debut of the Cubes first proper beat-em-up - bugger off Mario, Smash Brothers doesnt count you can now take part in some much needed one on one scrapping (something all to scarce on the N64). While effectively a remake of the Playstation 2s Bloody Roar 3, Hudson has gone beyond the call of duty and delivered more than a straightforward port (other developers take note). Primal Fury has been improved beyond recognition when compared to its aging Sony sibling. You want more fighters, a smooth as silk frame-rate and stunningly detailed characters? well youve got it and so much more besides, its just a shame that the end result doesnt offer quite as much in the gameplay stakes. Bloody Roars lack of depth is a real shame as there is plenty to please Cube owners; the presentation is pretty good throughout with gorgeous looking character screens and plenty of different options to change to your hearts content. Having plenty of play modes including Arcade, Verses, Team Battles, Survival and more there is always something for you to do, the question though, is whether youll want to or not. If anybody out there has never heard of the Bloody Roar series the basic premise is pretty straightforward. Initially controlling 1 of 12 characters - dont worry you can unlock more as you play - you must compete in a generic fighting contest; luckily all the combatants have a few tricks up their sleeves, namely being able to transform into slathering beasts. To transform into your alter ego you simply have to build up your beast bar, once this has been accomplished a simple stab of the x button will see you transform into a number of specific forms. While many of the lycanthropes (shape changers to the non-literate out there) take on the expected forms of lions, tigers and other predatory beasts, there are also more unlikely battlers that range from a cute white rabbit to a Strider lookalike who transforms into a monstrous mole. When in your new form you can gain access to more powerful moves and are able to regain energy at a slow (but steady) rate.Now as fun as all this shape shifting may be, it is not too long before you notice quite a few cracks in Roars glossy veneer. First off the beast mode itself can be very frustrating as your human/computer opponent is immediately placed at a huge disadvantage whenever a character successfully transforms. The game also quickly degenerates into random button bashing as many of the special moves do not give you any sort of advantage when compared to other 3dimensional battlers. One good thing that Hudsons latest brawler does offer is plenty to unlock, should you wish to repeatedly go back to the game. Not just content with unlocking extra characters, you also get rewarded with extra levels, new playing styles and all sorts of funky features. In fact the reward system is fairly well put together and will help persuade you to repeatedly visit the game, if only to see what bizarre extra you will get next. Graphically, Primal Fury is pretty well polished, while it may not be up to the standards of Tecmos Dead or Alive series, it does feature some highly impressive characters and rock solid animation. The animal forms themselves are very good with great textures and fluid movement; this is further enhanced by everything running at a solid 60fps, resulting in fast frantic bouts. Engaging the beast mode will see your character transforming and sometimes turning into a blurring mass of claws and teeth that results in some stunning finishing screens that will make your retinas bleed. With all this visual splendor being applied to the characters the tradeoff is that the backgrounds end up looking very nondescript and plain. They may apparently feature interactive levels but when compared to the current king (Dead or Alive 3) they are laughably basic and never give you the impression of fighting in a real environment. Bloody Roars music has nowhere near the quality of its fantastic visuals. Though the music is by no means bad, it is pretty formulaic and does not enhance the action in any way. Similarly the games sound effects also tend to fall into the heard it all before variety, however once you transform, the various squeals, roars and general yelps of pain are highly amusing with the catlike Uriko sounding particularly hilarious as she yowls, purrs and mewls her way about the screen.Overall, Bloody Roar is an extremely polished but ultimately shallow fighter. Its shape changing gimmick is not enough to hide the fact that beneath all its flash is a very dull, basic battler that will soon have you transforming your game for another at your local shop. Should you be a fan of the genre you will at least get a few weeks enjoyment out of the game (unlocking all the extras will take a fair amount of time). Ultimately however its simplicity will soon see you reaching for the likes of Virtua Fighter 4 and Dead or Alive 3 for all your fighting needs. Bloody Roar? Bloody average!