JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R, tested at the Summer Game Fest
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Even if you're a huge fan of JoJo's Bizarre Aventure, there's a good chance you've never played JoJo's Bizarre Aventure All-Star Battle. Released in 2013 exclusively on PlayStation 3, the fighting game developed by CyberConnect2 sparkled in Japan (Famitsu gave it a resounding 40/40), but was largely ignored in Europe and the United States.Today, thanks to the arrival on Netflix, the series has continued to gain popularity, and it is precisely with the intention of reaching a new and wider audience that Bandai Namco has decided to revive All-Star Battle on all modern platforms and in a much better edition in terms of aesthetics and content. The result is JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R, a remastered version of the original fighting game, which will arrive next September and will be anticipated on June 16 by a multiplayer demo.
In the meantime, we previewed JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R at the Summer Game Fest in Los Angeles.
Warriors, Stands and Assists
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R The definitive version of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle R will feature a roster of fifty characters. The cast of fighters draws, in fact, from all the narrative arcs of the series, alongside the thirty characters present in the original game with other minor or more important ones, allies or opponents, who have gained space and popularity in more recent times. The demo tested at the Summer Game Fest (as well as the one that will be made public in the coming days) was however limited to four fighters: Jotaro Kujo, Dio Brando, Jonathan Joestar and Jolyne Cujoh.For each of them it was also possible to select the respective Assist fighter to call for help during a fight. This is a useful function above all to get out of uncomfortable situations, but which in All-Star Battle R adds a not indifferent level of spectacle and chaos. Those who know JoJo know in fact that every character can evoke his Stand, an entity born from his psychic energy. In All-Star Battle R, the Stand does not fight in its place but allows its bearer to access an even richer arsenal of techniques. Between the two fighters, their respective Stands and Assists, in some moments a round can reach important crowding levels, becoming quite chaotic when you launch into unbridled combos and special attacks.
In this regard, precisely for to make the game more welcoming even to those who adore JoJo but are not familiar with fighting games, the development team has included an alternative and simplified control system, in which you can ring combos and attack you simply by continuing to press a single button and without paying too much attention to timing . More experienced players will want to continue using the classic system however, as by doing so they have access to the full repertoire of techniques and attacks. Among these there is a special cancel which is used to interrupt a chain of combos in progress at any time, perhaps to avoid an opponent's counterattack or simply to make the action more complicated and unpredictable.
Action over the top
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R wants to be a perfect homage to the series, pleasing both historical fans and new arrivals In line with the anime on which it is based, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All- Star Battle R is absolutely over the top. The choreography of the special attacks and the constant jokes of the fighters are accompanied by some dynamic elements in the arena: during a round, for example, a character began to sabotage the candlestick on the head of the challengers. At that point you only have a handful of seconds to avoid finding yourself exactly under the candlestick when it falls, but at the same time you try to set a trap for the opponent to block him for as long as possible within the danger zone.In battle, you can feel the heaviness of the characters, who slowly move back and forth while maintaining "cool" poses between an attack and a parry. At the end of a special trick you can also make fun of the opponent, and if you do it with the right timing you are rewarded by decreasing the opponent's special attacks indicator. The ability to dodge deep into the screen as in Tekken and other similar games lends a more strategic approach, with players often waiting for the moment to dodge an opponent's attack and go on a counterattack.
Net of actions a times so chaotic as to be hard to read, this All-Star Battle overhaul seems to be more than just a remaster of the original. While not entirely original, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R wants to be a perfect tribute to fans of manga and anime. Fans who will be able to try the demo firsthand starting June 16, launching themselves in online warm-up challenges to prepare for the release of the full game, scheduled for September 2 on PC and consoles.
