9 MONKEYS OF SHAOLIN
Brawler that isn’t short of staff
Sadly, there are no monkeys here. The premise is more po-faced, as Chinese village fisherman Wei Cheng takes up his staff to avenge his friends and family, who were killed in a raid by Japanese pirates. With the help of a group of Shaolin monks, it’s not long before the revenge part is over, only for a Bigger Bad to crop up.
What you basically get is a traditional brawler as you clear enemies from left to right, 1 although a variety of backdrops and baddies keeps things fresh. Learning special attacks also becomes essential to defeating trickier enemies like ghosts or quick-footed ninja, though unleashing these also requires building up energy. A more modern structure appears in between missions as you return to base to spend skill points or equip new gear with different buffs awarded from certain missions.
Local and online co-op is also available, which definitely feels handy when the action gets overwhelming, especially towards the end of most missions. While attacks are telegraphed clearly for you to parry, it’s sometimes hard to keep track of when you’re surrounded, although it’s satisfying deflecting a ranged enemy’s blow dart or rifle bullet back at them. 2 Fortunately, difficulty can be adjusted on the fly, while short and snappy mission length means it’s not a huge loss for the hardcore who prefer to have no checkpoints.
Overall, this is a brief game, though you can replay missions to max out your skills or find secret statues. That these unlock old-school modifiers like Big Head mode at least shows the game’s got a sense of humour. Alan Wen