Sloclap’s upcoming project,Sifu, has garnered the attention of a lot of gamers. Announced recently during theSony’s State of Play, the game looks to be a ton of fun and could very well turn out to be a delight for kung fu-loving fans.
Sifuhas drawn many comparisons to Jackie Chan’s movies, and the developer has given affirmation that a lot of the design behind the game’s fighting systems originate from the movies. There’s certainly more toSifu, and there’s a lot of not-so-obvious similarities to a PS2 underrated gem,Jet Li: Rise to Honor.
RELATED:Players Excited for Sifu Should Check Out This PS2 Classic
The Underrated Gem That Is Jet Li: Rise to Honor
Foster City Studio’s Jet Li: Rise to Honoris quite the cult-classic that many gamers seemed to have missed back in the day. Releasedexclusively for the PS2in 2004,Jet Li: Rise to Honoris a great video game adaptation of Kung-fu-themed crime thriller movies starring the famous martial arts actor Jet Li.
The game has a quite unique cinematic presentation, with well-choreographed cutscenes and animations. The gameplay revolved around beating foes with the flashiest moves possible and engaging in gunfights every now and then. It featured a breakneck pace with no loading screens and a beautiful sense of momentum which urges the player to keep pushing forward.
WhileJet Li: Rise to Honorhadimpressive visuals for a PS2 game, much of the gameplay mechanics were mediocre at best. However,Jet Li’s merit lies in marrying all these elements together to create quite a decent impression of being in a movie and that too, within the constraints of the PlayStation 2. It may not have received the best critical or commercial reception, but it still is a solid game with a ton of potential to build upon.
Sifu Might Carry The Legacy Forward
Sifumight not have the cinematic presentation ofJet Li: Rise to Honor, but it certainly imitates the game in terms of its combat. Sloclap has stated that a lot ofmoves seen inSifuare actually derived from real Kung Fu and what fans might see in a Jackie Chan movie. Coupling that with the developer’s admiration for the art form, there’s quite a bit of potential to capitalize on in this regard.
The focus on hand-to-hand combat in scenarios that require the player to focus on multiple enemies at once along with environmental takedowns is also similar toJet Liand by extension,God HandandSleeping Dogs. That’s not to suggest thatSifulacks any original ideas, far from it. The game features a unique take on player mortality, as every death ages the protagonist and makes him more skilled. While it remains to be seen how it translates over to changes in gameplay, it seems to be quite a unique gimmick for a game. Hopefully, fans ofJet Li: Rise to Honorfind something to love withSifuand it opens the door to many more Kung-Fu styled games in the future.
Sifuwill release in 2021 for PC, PS4, and PS5.
