With the roguelike genre dominating the gaming space as of late, evolution in gameplay is something that each one tries to do. Whether it’s the combat, progression, skills, or level design, each one has to offer something different in order to differentiate itself from the pack.

Sloclap had dug out their own space of the roguelike genre with their announcement of Sifu, a kung-fu title where its roguelike aspects are baked directly into the fabric of its being. And with insane hand-to-hand combat, organic progression of mechanics, and the addictive nature of its gameplay loop, Sifu has not only something for roguelike players but action players as a whole.

Story

This title isn’t one of very much dialogue, being very clear on the characters’ actions and intentions through visuals. You play as a young warrior who’s on a path of revenge after the murder of their Sifu. You battle your way through the 5 people behind the death of your him, bringing an end to their criminal empire. As you die, you are brought back to life by the magic pendant that uses your regeneration as a way to take years off your life, aging you in the process.

It’s a great tale that very much so matches that of the Kung Fu films of the past. The gameplay itself lends itself to that very much so as well with camera angles and moments feeling ripped right out of those old films. It’s an insanely entertaining and rewarding story as you slay your way through an army of rotten gangsters.

Gameplay

When it comes to the gameplay surrounding Sifu, it’s simple in appearance yet very complex behind the scenes. The star of the show, combat, is an extremely smooth experience from start to finish. And it’s something that you’ll have to become comfortable with and grow with as you play.

When I first started playing, I hated the game because of that aspect. It’s a pretty intense game from the start and until you really hone your skills, you are going to die a lot. It’s definitely a title that will take you a bit of time until you find your groove as it is relentless but keeping with it is so worth the while.

Rushing in and fighting enemies offensively does more harm than not because enemies have great accuracy and will destroy you if you aren’t parrying, blocking, or dodging correctly. Once you either beat down their defense meter or find openings, the game is more than rewarding at allowing you to pummel enemies with flurrying combos and swift attacks.

There’s also a focus meter for you to build up that allows you to hit enemies with certain attacks that they have no chance of blocking. The environment is also at your disposal too with items to pick up as weapons, furniture to use as projectiles, and even walls to bounce enemies off of. The world works with you to create the ultimate cinematic brawls.

All of this is tied together by the ever-growing threat of dying. Death in this roguelike doesn’t mean you start over. As you die your pendant starts to wither away and eventually break. With each death, your death meter grows and takes more years off of your life as you go. Killing your murderer can help subtract a year but the more you die in a fight until then, the more years that stack.

This may not sound too bad at first but the problem is that as your progress through the game you have to take into account that as your trek further into it, your character grows older with each death. But you always have the chance of going back to a specific level you want to try and get the least amount of deaths in. As the game becomes increasingly difficult it becomes a choice of “oh I’ve died X amount of times on this level, should I start over now or beat it and start over later?”.

Then comes the new move sets, skills, and other spices that get tossed into the game to entice players to keep trying. There are things such as combos that enable the player to hit faster, the chance to clean your slate clean of deaths, and the chance to allow for your weapons to have more durability, just to name a few. These are purchased with XP, level points, or even age as you make your way through each level. Some can even be unlocked permanently, eventually.

Lastly, you have the levels themselves that are expertly crafted. They have branching paths that can lead to the same spot or open the door to even more possibilities. You can easily miss an entire part of a level without noticing it just by walking right past a ledge to jump up or a door to open. There are even some RPG elements tossed in on some levels that can actually change the direction of the flow entirely too.

Audio and Visuals

Sifu does a fantastic job with its audio and visual design. Each location has unique sights and sounds that make each one feel entirely different from one to the other. It also really helps to make the game feel like an entirely new experience with each one coming. I never got tired of going into the same location time after time and part of that is because of how it felt to be in this world. The game tells a deep story and all of which is handled through its dialogue-free moments and the sounds throughout the scenes. It really does a great job of illustrating those heavy moments from the films that it’s homaging.

Replayability

This title is nothing if not infinitely replayable. Not only is it a roguelike so that means that it wants you to try and try again to finally finish it but it wants you to truly hone your skills. I feel like this is a breath of fresh air in the roguelike genre because of the fact that it purposely sets you up to master its mechanics as if you truly were a master of Kung Fu. It’s also extremely fun to play over and over again even if it means getting your butt handed to you a lot.

What It Could Have Done Better

When it comes to shortcomings, this game really doesn’t have too many though the ones it does have can hinder your experience a bit. The worst is the game’s camera. I all too often found the camera got the better of me as enemies came in from off-screen. It also became a nightmare at times because of the fact that it seemed to get caught behind the environment. It just wasn’t very user-friendly and quite frankly, pissed me off more than anything.

Other issues can be boiled down to things like frame rates dropping entirely at times and even a game crash during a boss fight. This one was annoying because I had to start the fight from the beginning yet again after being killed half a dozen times already.

Verdict

Sloclap has hit it out of the park with Sifu. While it doesn’t go fully in on the roguelike trappings, this is its strength as it brilliantly uses the elements of the genre that work towards its own endgame goal, creating a near-endlessly entertaining Kung Fu game. In a nutshell, this title reinvents the genre in the best possible way. Sure, it has a couple of hang-ups, but none of them truly detract from the epicness that Sifu really is overall. This is the next roguelike to sink days’ worth of gameplay into. I did, and I’m still going to play even more.