Kung Fu Chaos

If you've been looking for a new, entertaining Xbox title, look no further. Kung Fu Chaos is an extremely fun and hilarious hit for gamers of all ages.

	Version Xbox	Developer Just Add Monsters	Publisher Microsoft	Genre 3D Fighting

By Rick Larson

When I first read about this game, I thought it would be mediocre at best. Boy was I ever proven wrong! This title is truly unique and offers a wonderful experience for anyone willing to give it a try. It has hours upon hours of enjoyment packed into it.

Kung Fu Chaos is basically as its name describes. It's Kung Fu... CHAOS! There is so much action packed into this game that it could overwhelm a pack of blood thirsty ninja assassins. KFC (not the fast food restaurant) is director Shao Ting's newest masterpiece. He hopes to create the biggest and best action movie ever created. In order to do this he hires 9 actors to play out the heroes against an evil group of ninjas.

The journey through the movie takes you through several familiar, yet slightly distorted, scenes from real box office hits. These levels range from a bar brawl known as "Legend of the Drunken Bastards" to a scene where the ship Gigantic is sinking called "Gigantic Crack", which Ting thought of while he was sitting on the toilet. Just the titles of the scenes provoke laughter.

Kung Fu Chaos basically plays out as a 70's martial arts movie. There is a lot of fighting, throwing of objects, and destruction of scenery. To accomplish all of this I was expecting a very difficult control scheme. I was happily surprised to find that I was wrong. The controls in KFC are very simple and seem easy to get acquainted with. In no time at all I was smashing my way through levels taking out every ninja in site. The basic layout for the controls is that all the face buttons are attacks aside from the A button which is jump. The back triggers block and taunt. When you have successfully pulled off three taunts you can execute a super attack. The super attack basically demolishes every character on the screen in a very flashy fashion.

This game has a great multiplayer experience with the ability to play with up to three other players. Playing with my buddies was an absolute blast! Fighting each other was very fun but the game also offers some other variations to the gameplay such as a bumper car style game on an iceberg, or trying to stay on a little platform while dodging an ugly princess being thrown at you by friends. The game offers hours of multiplayer enjoyment but that doesn't mean you should overlook the single player aspect.

In single player you go through the game creating Ting's masterpiece. After each scene you are ranked from one to five stars. Based on the stars you manage to gain you can unlock the next level or bonus features such as characters or costumes. Also, in order to play most of the levels in multiplayer you must unlock them in single player first. This gives the game a lot of depth and longevity.

The graphics fit this game perfectly. They are a little cartoonish but it just adds to the overall hilarity of the game. For each scene it is amazing how much detail was added to make everything perfect. The whole scene acts out before your eyes while you supply the fighting action. Some great yet subtle details were added as well.

In one of the later levels where aliens are attacking earth you have to jump from skyscraper to skyscraper. During your jumps that span great distances you can see the wires that are suspending you across the gap. It is a very small detail but caused a lot of laughter amongst my friends and I.

The sound is top of the line in this game. It sounds exactly like a 70's kung fu movie would, which can be a good or bad thing. The sound effects are great and the dialogue is perfect. It's horrible voice acting on purpose, never thought that would happen. In the replays you have the ability to choose your own soundtrack which can make the scene even better than before.

To finish this review I'd like to tell you my favorite part. The replays are just amazing! I found myself working my butt off just so that the replay would look cool. The final cut shows it like an actual movie would. It shows highlights, cuts into slow-mo, and even has that tanish shade with the lines that appear on the screen just like a real 70's fighter.

With the addition of choosing your own soundtrack it causes the whole game to come together in one amazing scene! It was superbly done. This game is a classic and kudos goes out to Just Add Monsters and Microsoft for this hilarious hit. Just so that you know, it's out now in North America, April 11th in Europe, and May 29th in Japan.