Kung Fu Strike: The Warrior's Rise

61%
Game Brain Score Based on 309 reviews
  • gameplay
  • graphics
  • story
Kung Fu Strike: The Warrior's Rise Game Cover
Get this away from me before I hurl the controller at the screen and maybe kick puppies.
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"Kung Fu Strike: The Warrior's Rise" is an arcade-style beat-'em-up game with 28 stages of combo-based combat, inspired by ancient Chinese tales. The game offers customizable fighting styles, online leaderboards, and local co-op multiplayer. Its fluid combat system allows for impressive combos and challenging gameplay, even on lower difficulty settings.

  • PC
  • Windows
  • Xbox
  • Xbox 360
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

61%
Audience ScoreBased on 309 reviews
gameplay20 positive mentions
grinding7 negative mentions
  • Fast-paced gameplay with modern graphics and easy controls, making it accessible for players.
  • Engaging combat system that allows for a variety of combos and special moves, providing a satisfying experience.
  • Local co-op mode enhances the fun, allowing players to team up and tackle challenges together.
  • Unfair difficulty spikes, especially in boss battles, can lead to frustration and repeated grinding.
  • Inconsistent controls and unresponsive button presses can hinder gameplay, making it feel less polished.
  • Limited health pickups during battles and a lack of customization options detract from the overall experience.
  • gameplay68 mentions

    The gameplay is characterized by a mix of simple mechanics and challenging difficulty, reminiscent of classic beat 'em ups with modern touches. Players appreciate the satisfying combat and variety of enemies, though many note a steep learning curve and occasional unfair design choices that can frustrate. Overall, while the mechanics and animations are praised, the gameplay experience can be inconsistent, leading to mixed feelings about its accessibility and enjoyment.

    • “The game mechanic is simple; we have WASD for directional keys, and J, K, L with J for normal attack, K for jump attack, and L for evade (rolling). There is also space for blocking, but blocking isn't like in other games where holding the block key will make you immune to attack; it is a tapping, not holding, the button to execute a blocking move.”
    • “The combat is far more in-depth than one would assume. The game cheats to ensure you remain challenged, and it always has a new mechanic, trick, or challenge up its sleeve that keeps fighting interesting.”
    • “It's a great game in terms of mechanics; the non-locking multi-directional combat is rather similar to classic beat 'em ups, and the gameplay is very satisfying.”
    • “The gameplay is horrendously awkward.”
    • “The gameplay isn't hard like other reviews wrote, it's just bad.”
    • “The mechanics of the game shine early on, where you're facing a handful of tough enemies and mobs of weaker ones, but as the game progresses and throws more and more boss-type enemies at you simultaneously, players may begin to get the impression that the player character was made for an entirely different game than the one he stars in.”
  • graphics45 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the vibrant art style and smooth animations reminiscent of classic beat 'em ups and modern titles like Street Fighter. While some players appreciate the aesthetic and find it visually appealing, others note limitations such as a lack of adjustable settings and lower texture quality. Overall, the graphics are generally considered decent to good, contributing positively to the game's engaging combat experience.

    • “Super fluid and fun combat alongside a lovely art style.”
    • “The graphics and effects are great and pay a lot to the anime genre of filmmaking.”
    • “A surprisingly very fun and addicting 3D brawler that really reminds me graphically of Street Fighter 4, which isn't a bad thing.”
    • “This game has not the best graphics and not a long campaign, but this old-school beat-'em-up is highly addictive.”
    • “Graphics are average and do not expect it to run in 1080p right from the start - you have to do some voodoo magic with config files.”
    • “[repetitive combat. cheap and downright thuggish difficulty. complete lack of plot and story presentation. little replay value. sub-par graphics and art-style.]”
  • story33 mentions

    The game's story has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it mediocre or poorly executed, often likening it to a low-quality B-movie. While some appreciate the engaging atmosphere and humor, others criticize the lack of depth and coherence, suggesting that the focus is primarily on combat rather than narrative. Overall, the story serves as a backdrop to the gameplay, which is enjoyable for those seeking action rather than a compelling storyline.

    • “Interesting storyline + each fight is interesting in its own way.”
    • “The storyline is rich and well-illustrated; reminds me of all those late-night kung fu movies I stayed up to watch as a teen.”
    • “The story is simple but engaging, and carries atmosphere/urgency into the fights.”
    • “The story is a mess of martial art stereotypes and goes from simply bad to hilariously stupid.”
    • “The art style of the game is amazing, the story is poor (I didn't get it at all), the controls are okay, if you consider what I mentioned before.”
    • “Just don't buy it unless you want a bottom smash game that has boring gameplay and story, and is also unfair.”
  • music11 mentions

    Overall, the music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players finding it generic or unremarkable, while others praise it as excellent and well-suited to the gameplay, particularly during key moments like battles. A few users noted that they prefer to listen to their own playlists while playing, indicating that the game's music may not be engaging enough for everyone. However, there are standout moments where the soundtrack effectively enhances the gaming experience.

    • “Amazing gameplay and kungfu styles, freakingly awesome combo strikes, playable music which suits the game-grounds.”
    • “Good graphics with amazing music.”
    • “The music is excellent and is used to signal turning points in the battles.”
    • “I usually play this listening to a music playlist and that works pretty well.”
    • “Music is ok.”
    • “This is complemented by an exceptional amount of enemy variety, decently artsy graphics, and a decent if generic soundtrack that changes tunes at just the right moments during enemy and boss encounters.”
  • grinding7 mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game receives mixed reviews; while some players find it tedious, boring, and poorly designed, others appreciate the strategic elements that replace traditional button mashing. Although grinding can feel repetitive and frustrating due to uninspired difficulty and enemy quantity, some players feel that the game manages to make the experience more engaging by rewarding observation and skillful play. Overall, opinions vary significantly, with some players enjoying the grind while others find it a chore.

    • “Unforgiving, difficult, tedious, boring, badly designed, not fun!”
    • “- gets tedious with uninspiring difficulty: quantity instead of quality of enemies”
    • “- some parts are tediously difficult.”
  • replayability7 mentions

    Overall, the game's replayability is viewed positively by many, with users noting hundreds of hours of potential playtime due to unlockable items and engaging mechanics. However, some critics point out limitations, such as a lack of an open world and repetitive combat, which may hinder long-term enjoyment. Local co-op adds to the replay value, but concerns about the game's longevity persist due to its limited modes and narrative depth.

    • “Hundreds of hours of replayability.”
    • “Perfect game mechanics and tons of unlockables give a vast replayability since all new items provide new mechanics to work with, not just +damage upgrades.”
    • “Fairly long campaign, replay value extended with local co-op, which is very entertaining.”
    • “Arena limitation = not much replayability since it isn't open world.”
    • “Repetitive combat, cheap and downright thuggish difficulty, complete lack of plot and story presentation, little replay value.”
    • “Sub-par graphics and art style.”
  • humor6 mentions

    The humor in the game is a standout feature, with players enjoying the absurdity of its martial arts stereotypes and over-the-top action, leading to frequent laughter. The combination of chaotic gameplay and witty dialogue contributes to a lighthearted experience, despite the game's challenging difficulty. Overall, the humor is described as both entertaining and intentionally ridiculous, enhancing the overall enjoyment.

    • “I definitely recommend buying this game; I spent the first 10 minutes laughing because I easily flung opponents in the air and beat them with a chain of combos.”
    • “That being said, this is the 'bloody running nose beat you in the face while poking your eye and emulating the feel of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon mixed with some John Woo shizzle and good humor.'”
    • “The story is a mess of martial art stereotypes and goes from simply bad to hilariously stupid.”
  • optimization3 mentions

    The game is highly optimized, allowing it to run smoothly on a wide range of computers despite offering limited video settings. While the lack of restart options may be a drawback for performance-focused players, the fast loading times mitigate this issue.

    • “The game is also optimized incredibly well, which is good considering the extremely limited amount of video settings they give you.”
    • “Runs smoothly on almost any computer.”
    • “The game loads fast, which is a minor annoyance despite the lack of restart options, especially in a game that emphasizes score and performance.”
    • “There are no restart options, which is disappointing for a game that emphasizes score and performance. However, the fast loading times make it a minor annoyance.”
    • “The optimization is lacking, leading to frequent frame drops and stuttering during gameplay.”
    • “I encountered several bugs that hindered my progress, making the overall experience frustrating.”
  • stability2 mentions

    The game has notable stability issues, with some users experiencing freezes that prevent progression, particularly on the first level. While it supports both xinput and direct input gamepads, the configuration for direct input is reported to be problematic.

    • “Cool little game; unfortunately, it freezes my computer on the first level, and I cannot proceed.”
    • “Both XInput and DirectInput gamepads are supported, but you'll have to configure DirectInput gamepads through the buggy config.exe. XInput works by default.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    The emotional response to the game is overwhelmingly negative, with users expressing frustration over its repetitive gameplay, lackluster story, and overall poor quality, leading to feelings of disappointment and regret even at a low purchase price.

    • “The gameplay feels repetitive and annoying, with a boring story that fails to evoke any emotional response.”
    • “The overall experience is marred by ugly graphics and a lack of depth, making it hard to connect with the characters or story.”
    • “Even at a low price, the game feels like a waste due to its lack of emotional engagement and poor execution.”
  • atmosphere1 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is characterized by a simple yet engaging story that effectively conveys a sense of urgency during combat encounters.

    • “The story is simple but engaging, and it carries a sense of atmosphere and urgency into the fights.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

50% average critic score

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Play time

2hMedian play time
2hAverage play time
1-2hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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