PixlBit

I want to start this review by stating that Asura’s Wrath was sitting in my backlog for a good few months. I bought it on a whim on Amazon (along with Bayonetta; still unplayed) and was waiting to get hit by a desire to play. Everything I had heard about Asura’s Wrath told me that I would enjoy it: story driven, insane cutscenes, epic battles, anime inspired; but I kept holding off telling myself that the “desire” to play would eventually arrive. Ok so arrive it most certainly did, with a BANG! (or perhaps an AAAAARGHH! )

Again, it's pronounced AAAAARGHH!

In a word, Asura’s Wrath is fun. Fun with a capital FUCK YOU. I started the game sometime Sunday afternoon and was not able to get it out of my head until I finished it Tuesday night. (Please note I did not download any additional content so by finish I mean what was already included. More on this later…CAPCOM!). It’s rare enough that I’ll play a game more or less straight through till completion in less than a week, but Asura’s Wrath really consumed me mentally; I just had to finish.

The gameplay in Asura’s Wrath is hard to describe. Anyone who has tried it will appreciate what I mean when I say that. Making some sort of an attempt, I would say it’s one part 3^rd person beat ‘em up with QTE’s and one part rail shooter with QTE’s. Really there are quite a lot of QTE’s so if that’s not your thing, stay clear. However, merely giving this description, in my opinion, does not do the game justice. The scope and magnitude of the action in Asura’s Wrath is straight up ridiculous strapping you in for a non-stop roller coaster ride filled with testosterone and PAIN!! Seriously, you feel the pain. There were moments in playing this where I literally had to stand up while pounding on the controller to fill a bar (PSOne Classic "International Track & Field" style) so Asura could pummel his opponent into submission. While I generally dislike this gameplay mechanic, I felt it fit well here. By making me struggle to fill a bar, I felt as though I too had physically defeated Asura’s opponents and it felt GOOD! The tempo on this was also nice; the struggle got greater as I got further, as it should do.

Caught "red handed".....sorry

Story wise, Asura’s Wrath is broken up into episodes; each with a separate start and finish included credits. This lets you feel as though you are actually playing an anime which is pretty damn cool in my book. Generally, episodes finish with a boss fight of sorts which satisfy. In my opinion, the pacing here is great with no steep difficulty jumps. While not exactly being easy, I wouldn't call it difficult either (playing on normal). I would actually call the game fair in that regard. At times when I died, I pretty much knew it was an issue with my approach to the combat rather than any fault of the game per se. Going back to story and being anime inspired; episodes actually have a 30 second or so advance preview letting you know what to expect in the upcoming episode. It might sound dumb to read but I found that kinda awesome in practice.

I’m glad that I generally do not give a numbered score when I review as this game would be difficult to score fairly. Sure some gameplay moments aren’t exactly amazing on their own right (rail shooting?? Hello 1995 anyone?) but when taken as a whole, this game just works and fulfills any expectations I may have had going in.  

One thing that bugs me is the whole DLC side of things. Asura’s Wrath is broken up into four separate parts with the fourth being paid DLC. While I felt that the three parts I played ended nicely, it’s a little annoying to know that the “real” ending as such is behind a paywall. I’m sure this is nothing new to most people on this website as it was well documented at the time, but Capcom suck for this. I paid about $20 for this game so I’m not too upset but if I had paid the full $60, I would most certainly be pissed. Rightfully so yeah? Whatever your opinion on DLC may be; for a developer to not include the full ending in the original content is BS. Absolute 100% BS.

Anyway, in conclusion, while certainly not for everyone, Asura’s Wrath can be a very enjoyable experience if given a chance. Players do need to be prepared for a “watch”/”play” ratio possibly favoring the “watch” side of things but it’s a damn good time. I would almost suggest that this game actually be played when you are in the mood to watch an action orientated tv show. Overall, I highly recommend it.

Asura’s Wrath gets two thumbs up.