Sifu

Sifu is a game about kung-fu and revenge. You follow the story of a young martial arts adept who spends their time tracking down the group of 5 people responsible for the murder of their family, a Sifu (or teacher) of the kung-fu school they were raised in. At the head of this group is the mysterious master Yang who orchestrates the death of the protagonist after defeating their father in single combat. It is here that the protagonist learns about the ancient power of a 5-coin talisman they hold while dying. With it, they are given temporary immortality. Using this newfound strength, the protagonist spends 8 years training to gain martial arts skills to take on Yang and his powerful and eccentric group of warriors, each master in their own right. It is here that the player takes control as the protagonist follows a lead on the first target, The Botanist.

The gameplay in Sifu is deceptively simple. Pick between a male or female version of the protagonist. Then fight your way from point A to B and take down the boss using your deep knowledge of kung-fu. In terms of fighting, there are two buttons for attacking, and another to block and parry. You can mix and match two light and heavy attacks to create combos alongside a final button that lets you slow down time and pull off Focus Moves, essentially unblockable attacks. The fights start off as simple affairs usually you versus a small group of fighters. They progressively get harder with the addition of more difficult enemies and in greater numbers. You are often outnumbered and must learn to quickly prioritize attackers in order to make it out of each encounter alive.

The player can also use weapons like bats, staffs, bottles, chairs, and knives to disrupt enemy attacks and change the flow of battle. Aside from your small health bar the player has another bar on the bottom called structure. Structure decreases each time you block or when an attack connects. If the bar is allowed to completely break you will be open to further hits. Enemies also have structure bars which if broken, leave them open to a finishing Takedown. These are a delight to pull off. A flashy finisher to an especially difficult fight is the kind of catharsis I didn't even realize I would need while playing. On top of that, in group battles, enemies will react with shock and awe to your final attack giving, at times, a much-needed morale boost during a particularly rough encounter.

When you are killed a screen appears that allows you to unlock new abilities using the points accumulated thus far. Unlock an ability once to use it on that playthrough but pour more points into it to permanently unlock the skill for all future runs. You can also find shrines scattered around that will give you buffs like increasing your structure bar or letting weapons take more hits before breaking. All of these together help to give you the edge in your next fight.

Death in Sifu is an interesting affair. Once you activate the talisman's power and come back to life a Death Counter rises next to your health bar. The higher this number goes up, the higher your age will go depending on that number. And you start the game at 20 years old. For example, let’s say that your death counter is 5. When you fall in battle and come back your age will be 25. The incentive is to fight well enough that your counter stays low or at 0 throughout your run. You can lower the Death Counter with shrines or by fighting glowing stronger enemies that appear at intervals throughout the level. And when you beat a boss and unlock the next level you will start at the age you were when you beat that boss if you decide to abandon the run. You can reach 80 years old before the game ends. Then it’s game over for real.

I am having a great time playing this game. As of this writing, I still have not beaten the final boss but the game makes me want to keep trying. Personally, I don’t much care for repetitive gameplay loops that force you to redo levels or grind for items and abilities. Unless it has a strong story component like Hades, an arcade-like game with similar elements. And Sifus's story is pretty simple as far as campaigns go. It's a story about kung-fu and revenge. But it really just serves as a backdrop for the stellar gameplay.

There are five levels in the game making it pretty short. But you will be revisiting levels multiple times to sharpen your skills and start the next level at an even lower age. The levels themselves are beautiful to look at, lovingly crafted with a cell-shaded design and great use of color. And if you’re a martial arts movie buff then you’ll enjoy all the references and costumes from classics like The Raid, Oldboy, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Ip Man, and The Grandmaster.

The soundtrack is muted for some levels, but purposeful, serving to accentuate the atmosphere of the levels and fights. From the first level, which is a direct reference to the infamous long hallway fight scene in Oldboy. To the last level, an off-putting sanctuary hidden in the mountains with even stranger denizens. I knew I would enjoy this game.

The developers, Sloclap, are the creators of another fighting-based multiplayer game called Absolver back in 2017. I’ve played Absolver and I can tell you from experience that this is a huge step up from their last title. not only in the graphics but in gameplay as well. It’s not hard to tell that this french based studio has a deep love and appreciation for all things martial arts. It comes through in the game's presentation and execution. The controls are responsive, the punches and kicks are snappy, and nothing feels slow or drawn out. The game moves as fast as you can play.

There's just something exciting about this game that's hard for me to put into words. With enough experience, you can get to the point where you fall into the flow of battle and things just seem to click into place. Like a scene from the Matrix, the world slows down and the next action becomes clear as day. Step here, kick there, throw that bottle, dodge that punch, parry, takedown. There is a visceral satisfaction when overcoming your opposition. And even then, to continue the Matrix analogy, there are still Agent Smiths out there who are faster, stronger, and just better fighters than you. Just like martial arts in real life, there's always another level to reach. As you live, fight, die, and live again the game repeatedly asks you: Is one life enough to master kung-fu?

If you appreciate the art of fighting in any capacity and want to know what it would feel like to be a martial arts master in the middle of your own movie then this game is for you. You can pick Sifu by Sloclap on console (Playstation) or PC for $40.