by Jason Dobson on October 20, 2008

I can tell from the beads of sweat sliding down my forehand that summer, a season rife with movie releases and video game cash-grabs, is in full swing. This year is no different, and while movie-based games have rightfully earned their reputation for preying on consumers blinded by enthusiasm and too much theatre popcorn, True Crime developer Luxoflux has actually put together a game based on Dreamworks’ Kung Fu Panda that is — shockingly — not half bad. It’s not great, either, but the fact that a movie game didn’t send me reaching for the power cord or a bottle of antacid is an accomplishment in and of itself.

Games based on children’s movies tend to generally fall into one of two categories, either being far too simple to hold a child’s attention or too frustratingly difficult for a child to endure. In either case, it’s often the parent who is handed the controller and asked to stomach the game in their stead, a task that I’ve found myself on the business end of more times than I care to admit. Thankfully, Kung Fu Panda is a rare exception, mixing entertaining combat, a shallow learning curve, well-designed levels and a dash of humor for an experience that succeeds not because of its source material, but rather in spite of it.

The game may remind some of Legend of Kay for the PlayStation 2, and while Kung Fu Panda comes up short of Capcom and Neon Studio’s little-known classic, fans of anthropomorphic marital arts antics will still find plenty to appreciate here. With gameplay that favors sticking to basics, Kung Fu Panda does occasionally keep it interesting by changing things up, such as with timed button sequences that smack of more than just a slight nod to God of War. Granted the action fails to live up to Sony’s mythical opus, nor does it rival other, more high profile efforts in the PlayStation 3’s growing library. Still, the game nonetheless manages to pull off one of the better movie-to-game transitions in recent memory, thanks in no small part to gameplay that strikes an entertaining balance of both button-mashery and platforming, along with a camera that won’t leave you climbing the walls for a better vantage point.

There are also multiplayer options, unlockables and minigames; obligatory additions designed to extend the game’s shelf life beyond the short handful of hours it takes to see the core game to conclusion. And while all of this has of course been done before, there is a measure of polish here that is wholly uncommon, and it’s refreshing to see all of these elements come together in a genre that has become known for doing the absolute minimum to get by. Kung Fu Panda may not be a summer blockbuster in any medium, but as a game it’s a welcome surprise.

No related posts.