There are a lot of influences that Capcom can easily say it drew from when it was putting together Asura’s Wrath alongside the team at CyberConnect 2.  Dragon Ball Z definitely comes to mind, especially with all the rage bursts that seem all Vegeta-like.  For that matter, we also spotted a little God of War, Panzer Dragoon, the Incredible Hulk and even a little Mr. Furious from the Mystery Men films (though obviously that’s a small percentage – Ben Stiller this guy ain’t).  But somehow it all blends together into a gaming experience that’s more style than substance, yet it’s something that shouldn’t be missed.

Asura’s Wrath goes off the deep end compared to most Capcom content and, in a way, that’s kind of what makes it so ridiculously nutty.  The game features a demigod by the name of Asura who fights for the good of his fellowhood, as well as for the sake of his beloved daughter.  But, of course, leave it to ego to get in the way, and soon he’s ousted from his perfect Heaven by his peers, left to die.  But Asura doesn’t perish.  Instead, he gets angry.  And I mean SUPER angry.  We’re talking the kind of rage that would make planets crumble.

What Asura brings to the picture are little gameplay segments embedded in episodic fashion.  One could easily confuse this game for a packaging of an anime series with the way it’s formatted, complete with recaps at the start of every new stage to catch you up to speed.  From there, there are a lot of cinematics to check out (or skip through, if you just want to fight) and then the gameplay begins.

Something is offered for everyone here.  There are shooting stages where you can lock on attacks or rapid-fire fist punches at incoming enemies; routine third-person action segments where you pound enemies into oblivion using your rage; and quick-time events that, remarkably enough, don’t wear out their welcome, but actually play their part in the game overall, especially during boss fights.  It all comes together into one stylish package.

That said, God of War this isn’t.  While there are plenty of epic moments through Asura’s Wrath (as well as head scratching moments involved with the conversation), the game doesn’t really chain together like a full-fledged action game should.  The cinematics and story disjoint it often, and may leave some folks frustrated that they have to sit through so much bread just to get to the meat.  But then you’d be missing out on the experience, which is really something in itself.

About the Author

Robert Workman

Senior Writer/Editor

Robert has years of experience in the video game industry, writing for such sites as AOL GameDaily, PlanetXbox360 and Comic Book Resources.  He can also outdrink you any day of the week.  And twice on Sunday.  Follow him at www.twitter.com/thedcd.