Do you remember those old kung fu movies we all watched as kids that had terrible English dubbing? Did you ever wonder if that would ever be made into a game? Wonder no more as Bitmash Labs has created one by the name of Hero of Shaolin. Contrary to what you might be thinking though, it’s not a fighting game, at least, not in the conventional sense.
Hero of Shaolin does its best to harness the corniness from old kung fu movies. The best (and worst) thing about these old kung fu movies is the horrific English dubbing that was so common and dialogue so awkward you wondered if the translation was even moderately correct. All of that awkward, goofy goodness is captured in Hero of Shaolin.
So how exactly is Hero of Shaolin played? Imagine guitar hero crossed with kung fu and you’re almost there. Throw in a dose of memory games and you’re pretty much there. The game begins with an overly melodramatic exchange between yourself and your opponent and before long, you enter combat. “Combat” isn’t quite what we’re used to as you’ll be required to hit the directional buttons on the left and right sides of the screen as the appear on screen. These directions will be vaguely reminiscent of the moves being shown on screen though should you make one wrong move, you will lose.
What ensues then is actually more memory than it is reactionary (note: if you can complete this game the first time through, kudos to you); to actually progress further, you will find that you have to concentrate quite hard, have a distinct strategy and practice. It’s actually a refreshing change to see a game require you to practice and play a few times through just to get competent at the game mechanics rather than hold your hand and make everything disturbingly easy.
There’s not much else to the game, though I could be wrong as I’m still struggling to get past the first stage. That said, it will definitely be a game that takes you a very short time to understand but can potentially take up your entire day trying to actually do decently at. For a better idea of how this all fits together as a game, check out Bitmash Labs’ trailer for Hero of Shaolin:
Game: Hero of Shaolin: Kung Fu Fun
Price: Free
