5/5/2023 0 Comments Jump force review metacritic![]() The joy of this system is in the fan-service provided here-it’s incredible to see a character launch a combo, then switch out and have another favorite take their place and perform a flashy signature attack, then switch out and have a third one finish the match in style. "The actual fighting system, contrary to the story, is incredibly fun, and arguably the game’s biggest strength." Knowing, then, just how to leverage the character switches, and assist maneuvers, to your advantage, can add yet another layer to consider into proceedings. In and of itself, the various mechanics and checks placed to prevent abuse of each can feel like enough to keep each battle exciting (and it is), but the game goes one step further by making each battle a 3v3 affair, throwing tag team mechanics into the mix. The whole system feels incredibly well balanced, and you get as much out of it as you put into it-theoretically, it is possible to mostly stick to your basic attacks and do well (at least in singleplayer multiplayer does demand a better grasp of the game’s various mechanics), but the true joy of the game, mechanically and aesthetically, comes from getting a grip over each character’s unique attacks, and joining them into a beautiful, unstoppable flowing dance of destruction that you dish out to opponents. ![]() Every character also gets dodges, dashes, grabs, and blocks, which can be used defensively to maneuver out of an incoming attack, or aggressively to bait the opponent into giving you an opening. Every character comes with basic light and heavy attacks (which you can basically string together for auto-combos), as well as four special and unique moves that you can access at any time by pressing the right trigger. Combat is extremely easy to pick up, but nuanced enough to keep players engaged, and flexible enough to accommodate the extraordinary powers for every character on the roster. The actual fighting system, contrary to the story, is incredibly fun, and arguably the game’s biggest strength. It’s just a shame that they are often shoved aside to make room for the next generic contrivance to justify the next fight. Bandai Namco have maintained the spirit and essence of each of the characters extraordinarily well, and their interactions feel genuine and authentic, and incredibly satisfying for long time fans to see unfold. The one area the story does really well, and this may be enough for a lot of fans of the various IP represented in this game to jump in, is the character interactions. "The one area the story does really well, and this may be enough for a lot of fans of the various IP represented in this game to jump in, is the character interactions." The actual story is the tropes of shonen tales made manifest, and while that makes sense given the game and its source material, it doesn’t feel like an homage as much as it feels lazy and predictable-especially given the rich array of possibilities that Bandai Namco could have offered given the canvas they are working with. Thus, it needs to come up with contrivances for all of its cast to engage in brawls all too often, and ends up having incredibly odd pacing, including a whole section near the middle where literally nothing seems to happen. The story itself ends up being a fairly generic one, with an ordinary child thrust into a world where all of these universes have collided, and slowly growing their own powers to try to uncover the evil that is behind this collision of worlds.īeyond being generic, the story suffers greatly from being, in the end, a story for a fighting game. Jump Force is not up to the task of meeting all of those requirements and expectations. This was always going to be tricky-the narrative would have to justify all these extraordinary individuals from so many discrete universes all coming together in one story, while respecting the rules that govern each character, while coming up with a compelling reason for the player to remain invested in the narrative and its movement once the novelty of the crossover wore off, while somehow being coherent. The primary problem is the story in the campaign. ![]() There’s a really great game buried somewhere in here-but Jump Force isn’t it. Released to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Japan’s legendary Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, and bringing together over 40 of the most beloved manga and anime characters in history in one grand crossover, this should be an event on par with Super Smash Bros. Where else will you see Deku, Naruto, Goku, and JoJo all share the screen? But there are some surprising ways that Jump Force ends up faltering, and squandering its potential. ![]() Jump Force should, in theory, be a slam dunk. ![]()
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