Developer – Sloclap

Publisher – Sloclap

Platforms – PC,PS4, PS5

SIFU is one part Absolver, one part classic Kung Fu cinema and developer Sloclap putting all their talent on display for the world to see. From the moment you start his game and turn it off it is dripping with style, martial arts, gorgeous architecture and pure action.

The story is the classic revenge tale. Your father, a master, is betrayed by a gang led by a former students who kill him and cut your throat. It’s pretty brutal.
However, instead of dying, your character lives, bound by a pendant his father owned that brings him back to life when he dies but ages him considerably.

It’s a unique mechanic and a twist on the standard roguelike that has become prevalent as of late. Starting at age 20, you hunt down each one of the gang leaders on a quest for revenge. Using a whiteboard in your dojo, you have the basic set of clues that point you in the right direction towards each assassin.

This format also provides the bulk of the replay value, as doing well in certain stages or exploring the environment unlocks new clues or items that can help you access a multitude of alternate paths and shortcuts in every stage.This helps replay value a ton, as alternate paths usually have completely new paths until you reach the boss of each stage.

The gameplay is top notch. Featuring multiple combos, and extremely simple commands for special moves. Anybody can play this game, A complete novice can pick up a controller and within minutes will be pulling some moves that come right out of IP Man.

The easy access doesn’t mean the game is without depth. Stripping away the layer of complex controls opens up the game to the part that action games don’t get too usually unless you are at a high level. The defensive mechanics.

Do i block? What if my opponent hits me with a sweep? Do I risk the parry for a counter finish at low health? Not since Urban Reign has a simple session turned into 3 or 4 hours vanishing from the clock and then realizing you haven’t blinked for that whole time.

SIFU isn’t perfect, as the campaign isn’t long clocking in at around four hours for my first run. Without endless battle modes or a survival arena, you end up running through the stages and bosses pretty quickly.

SIFU is also missing all the online content Absolver had, and this also limits replay value a bit. Long after beating Absolver, playing online and helping or dueling other players was a great way to test out the mechanics and have fun with some friends.

SIFU is all about mastery, repetition and honing your skills and reflexes to perfection. Although I’ve beaten the game multiple times, beating a whole run on a single life is not an easy task, but one I look forward to trying over and over again.

Sloclap has created something new, fresh and exciting. SIFU’s tight combat focus and gorgeous level design creates a compelling action experience.