Kabuki Warriors

UPC: 650008499018

Platform: Xbox

Publisher: Crave Entertainment, Inc.

Developer: Lightweight Co., Ltd.

Category: Fighting

Style(s): 3D Fighting

Synopsis: Inspired by the traditional Japanese theater, Kabuki Warriors charges players with the task of traveling from Edo to Kyoto, while earning money from performances and decimating opposing troupes in the process. A single attack button is used in conjunction with directional pad movements to create a handful of attacks, while jump, roll, and block buttons perform their respective functions. During a bout, players can perform taunts and poses to increase their popularity with the crowd. As you become more popular with the crowd your popularity meter increases, which, once filled allows your fighter to unleash a powerful special attack. Taunting your opponent serves a second, yet very important function, in that pleased show goers will shower your warrior with money which can then be used on your travels (the more money you have, the further you can travel each round). Your traveling group of fighters/actors consists of three people, one of which can be traded to another group after besting them in combat. In this way, it is possible to build a formidable group of fighters before reaching Kyoto -- the heart of the entertainment circuit. A total of 24 fighters are available in the game, from the subtle to the strange. A number of different "arenas" are present on which to perform, but changes are limited to backgrounds and objects as you're always expected to duel on a stage. Players can select from four different game modes: Adventure, Time Attack, Tournament, and Versus. ~ Gavin Frankle, All Game Guide

Package Contents: 16-page Instruction Manual

Controls: Joystick/Gamepad

The manual offers six pages of actual instructions, which should give you an idea of the game's complexity. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Individual fighters look great and offer a nice diversity in appearance. Some wear ornate robes and have painted faces and long flowing wigs, while others sport intricate tattoos. The characters look the part, but the animation isn't as fluid as in most fighting games, with slight pauses in between attacks. Backgrounds are bland. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The Xbox system's second fighting game is a memorable one. Not because it is fun to play, but because it is so bizarre. Kabuki is supposed to be a form of entertainment that relies on puppet-like dance movement and acting, not fighting to the death. Yet here you are skewering opponents on a wooden stage. The resulting swordplay earns an audience's applause, which translates into them throwing coins up on the stage. The more the audience is pleased, the more agile your fighter becomes during the battle. The fighting system could not be more basic. Each combatant wields an edged weapon, but there aren't individual buttons for high slashes, low slashes, kicks, or punches: only one attack button is used in tandem with the directional pad. Fights are over within seconds, as you can use the same basic move over and over again without the computer reacting. Special moves are also bound to a single button, so there's no skill involved in performing the most powerful attacks in the game. The Tour Mode sounds interesting, but ends up being extremely limited. Basically you pick three fighters to fight against a team of three computer opponents, only one of which may be a main character (the rest are faceless drones). By winning two of three fights, you can swap one character with the losing team, a process involving no strategy whatsoever -- simply take one of the main characters to replace an earlier character. If all three opponents are drones, you can skip the switch process and continue on. While there are several cities to fight in along the route, there's no point in visiting each one. Since fights can be won with minimal effort, you'll easily rake in the coins, which are spent moving to the farthest destination you can afford. This is repeated ad nauseam until the final battle in Kyoto. All of the locales look identical with just a different painted backdrop behind the stage. More time was spent in the character introductions than on the environments. Modes of play are as limited as the fighting engine. You get the aforementioned Tour Mode, a one-on-one Versus mode (which must be played against a human opponent), and a Time Attack. That's it. While Tecmo's Dead or Alive 3 is the only competition on the Xbox at the time of this game's release, there's simply no comparison. Players remotely interested in the genre should boo these Kabuki Warriors off the stage and wait for a more promising title to appear. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The game could have been better in this department if the coins could also be used to purchase new costumes, characters, backgrounds, and weapons. As it stands, there's no point in replaying a game when you can win without looking at the screen. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

All of the voices are in Japanese, but only the sound of clinking coins stands out. The music fits the theme. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Battles are over within seconds and there's no depth to the fighting engine. The entire game can be raced through in under an hour. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

the game requires Joystick/Gamepad.