Urban Reign review

DING DING DING! “And we’re underway. In the smart jacket and trousers we have Brad, and in the blue hoodie we have Busta. What a fight this should be – Brad, who can take ridiculous amounts of punishment to the body and face – against Busta, who can defy gravity in order to escape being hit. Wow, look at those vicious right hands from Busta…and again…and again…and again. But Brad’s starting to fight back! Look at those kicks and punches, surely Busta doesn’t stand a chance! Brad’s going for a powerbomb to finish him off…but wait! Busta’s somehow managed to somersault in mid-air, and in the process break all laws of physics to escape the move! Nice…”

Ok, so Urban Reign doesn’t have commentary, but if it did, that’s probably what it would sound like. The game’s developed my Namco, the creator of Tekken and Soul Calibur, and is a fighting game in which players take on the role of Brad Hawk, a brawler who’s been summoned by a gang leader in the city of Green Harbor. It’s not your traditional one-on-one or tag team fighter though, as you’ll be up against numerous opponents, with the use of weapons and your environment to kick some ass.

Hard Knocks

The heart of the game is the story mode, which follows Brad as he comes to the city. There are over 100 missions here, which we like, but whether you have the desire to play through all of them is another matter entirely. The story is rubbish, to be frank, and just seems like an excuse for repetitive fight after repetitive fight. It might not be so bad if the fights were varied, enjoyable and a fair challenge, but they’re not.

Each ‘mission’ consists of you beating up alarmingly similar goons, with the occasional boss here and there. Sometimes it’ll be a one-on-one fight, and other times you might be facing five opponents, but the AI characters always look the same, say the same things and just make the fights seem boring.

Beat It

The difficulty level is frustrating as well; as you progress through the missions, the game just throws more and more dull opponents at you, or pits you against super-human androids with lightning-quick reflexes and the ability to do all manner of impossible combos.

This feels cheap, and you’ll often find yourself struggling to beat one mission, and then waltzing through the next first time without any problems. In some bouts, fighters will happily stand and wait while you pummel their mate before they try and attack you. This inconsistency would have been better replaced with a steady increase in the AI’s ability, presenting more of a challenge and a fair game, instead of the difficulty spikes that players are faced with.

It’s a shame, because the actual fighting engine is pretty deep. There are strikes (punches and kicks) and grapples (throws and slam moves) to attack enemies with, and the ability to block, evade, run and bound off walls means that you can create some cool-looking combos when these are all combined together. It’s also possible to target certain body areas and bring weapons into the mix. More moves can be unlocked in the story mode, and attributes such as toughness, grappling and striking can be increased after each victory. Each character has their own fighting style, such as boxing, wrestling or street fighting, and special attacks can be obtained as well.

With the poor AI though, and the repetitive nature of the game, it leaves little fun to be had. The unlockables might keep you going, but only if you’re really intent on having all the available characters and moves. The multiplayer side of things is slightly more enjoyable, thanks to the fact that you’re fighting a human opponent, but again this can’t rectify the faults in the gameplay, and the feeling of déja vu will come along all too quickly.

The game’s visuals aren’t especially impressive, but they’re solid enough and look relatively good. The same can be said about the sound effects and music; decent, but pretty unremarkable when all said and done.

If you’re after something to play with your mates after the pub, or are looking for a short burst of knuckle-cracking violence, Urban Reign might be worth looking at if found going cheap. However, if you’re wanting a deep fighting game with long replay value and challenging, rewarding gameplay, you’re better off looking elsewhere.