Kung Fu Panda (Nintendo DS) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

Kung Fu Panda is the latest offering from Dreamworks who have been going head to head with PIXAR for some years now, and just in case you haven't seen it yet, here's the plot: Po the Panda lives a simple life working in his father's noodle restaurant but dreams of becoming a Kung Fu Warrior. Unfortunately, he's a little overweight and clearly unlikely to be embraced by any Kung Fu Master. Telling you anymore would simply be treading into plot spoiler territory so we'll leave it there for now (just in case you do decide to see the movie). As for the game, you're clearly tempted by that otherwise you wouldn't be reading this review.

Gameplay

The first thing which strikes you on playing Kung Fu Panda is just how like Metroid it is with each part of the story split into one or occasionally multiple screens of action ( up and across), which is in turn shown on the map below as a unit or room. This makes for a rather linear experience and once you've completed a given chore, whether it be disposing of henchmen, rescuing a member of your clan or simply pressing a button to open the exit, you can move on. There are also collectables to contend with and because Po breaks an urn containing the souls of 100 fallen warriors, at the beginning of the game, he naturally has to locate and recover all of them. It's imperative that you seek them out too, because if you don't have enough it will either stop you from entering some areas or, even worse, hinder your acquisition of skills as the game progresses. The most important of these skills are passed down to you from the members of the Furious Five and these include such moves as the Viper Crush that allows you to squeeze an enemy out of their protective armour, or the Monkey's ability to grab and launch objects. You can even increase your jumping distance with the aid of the Crane. All these are delivered as and when you need them and the learning curve is perfectly pitched for the younger gamer so while the game always represents a challenge, it never becomes frustrating.

Controls

The control couldn't be simpler mostly due to the fact that the first section of the game has an enforced tutorial with each move fully explained and the player given an opportunity to demonstrate it. You'll also be given a few basic fighting moves to be getting on with although the true Kung Fu doesn't begin until you master the d-pad in conjunction with the touch screen.

Graphics

If you've seen the movie you were no doubt bowled over by the lush visuals and design and while the DS is clearly lagging behind the latest in multi million dollar CGI it does go someway to replicating the 'feel' over the movie and the end result is very pleasing indeed. Elsewhere the animation is very good as are the 'drawn' cut screens.

Sound

The voice acting is very good indeed and there's plenty of it, helping to push the story along, unlike similar titles which seem to put all the spoken audio at the game's front end. Elsewhere there's a smattering of Kung Fu inspired music which, while not outstanding, is still a suitable background to the on-screen action.

Dual screen

Given that this utilises the same games engine as Spiderman and Shrek it also 'borrows' from the touch screen combat and while you'll start out with very basic moves you'll quickly graduate to more complicated and effective means of taking down your enemy. This is never really a case of working out their weak points though as most foes armed with a shield simply require you to throw an object at them, in order to dislodge their armour, whilst others can be disarmed with a simple kick or punch. This touch screen interaction increases as you progress though the game with Po generally following where ever you decide to press the stylus on the screen.

Final comments

Above all Kung Fu Panda is the fact that it in no way feels like a rushed tie-in which was thrown together in the weeks before the movies release. Instead you are treated to a game which not only features the best part of the movie but also alters your perception of these types of games being a waste of time although, generally speaking, they still are, most of the time. What we have here though is a mixture of great sound and visuals mixed with a generous amount of rewarding gameplay which is actually fun to play. If you've encountered a few movie tie-in's you know just how disappointing they can be so if you did enjoy the movie or are on the lookout for a Panda brawler then you'd probably best invest in Kung Fu Panda now.

Pro: Great Sound and Visuals
Con: A Little Too Short,
Final score: 7.6

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