REVIEW: 9 Monkeys of Shaolin

People are re-inventing retro games as a result of recent events. It's unclear if this is due to people being dissatisfied by modern games or wanting to re-experience retro games. However, we know that retro gaming genres are experiencing an increase in interest.

Streets of Rage4 is an example of such a case. 9 Monkeys of Shaolin is another product of this upturn. This side-scrolling beat'em-up has a Far Eastern theme and combines both Chinese-Japanese aesthetics. This game was developed by Sobaka Studios, and published by Buka Entertainment as well as Koch Media. It is definitely a product that should be capitalized on.

If you've played side-scrolling beat'em up before this will not bring any new or significant differences that would make you different from 9 Monkeys more experienced competitors. Your arsenal of abilities allows you to move from left to right in mini arenas. The gameplay loop is not necessarily bad, even though it's standard. The core gameplay can be quite entertaining, especially when you first start the game.

9 Monkeys of Shaolin has a parry mechanic that eases combat and makes combos feel more satisfying. Wei Cheng is able to strike, jab or kick with his staff as well as avoid inbound attacks. These abilities are quite stylish for a game like this. Wei can also move around the stage in multidirectional fashion, much like Streets of Rage. Levels are held on a stage in front of Wei, where he and his enemies can move and reposition themselves as they wish. Wei can also earn experience points by completing missions. These are used to enhance his attacks.

You can start the levels via the camp hub. This is accessible after you have completed the tutorial. You can use the experience points to buy new items and staves as well as start multiplayer using both local and network options. This works in the same way as God Eater. To begin the mission, you speak to the quest-giver and accept the quest.

Master Zongfei must be consulted by players to spend experience points. The upgrade menu allows players to increase the damage of their attacks, enhance them, and even earn abilities that make Wei invincible, or learn magical attacks. It makes the game an easy task.

This sounds like it should work smoothly, judging by the description. It's fun to play, the character progression system is solid, and the mission initiations add depth and interest to the game world. What's the problem?

Let's return to gameplay for a second. Wei has a unique ability called "deflect". Wei can pirouette and deflect projectiles or inbound attacks if timed correctly. You will also learn that the game teaches you to deflect when you see a glowing gleam on an enemy's weapon. This is usually when they are preparing for a ranged attack or swinging. Timing is the problem. There are some enemy types that have unusual timings when deflect moves will work. Some enemies are very generous with their timing with the golden glow appearing at the peak time. Some, like staff enemies, see the glint earlier than others. This causes a premature deflection, and an inevitable bonk in the bonce.

The colouration of the "glint" is another issue. It's a beautiful gold. The majority of the stages in this game have a warmer color palette. This often causes the golden glint to be lost amongst the warm colours and my inability to react to the swing. This was corrected during a night mission, when the glint was much more visible and I was able respond accordingly. Another flaw with the golden glints is that they don't always appear to be the top layer. This means that if there are two enemies blocking your view, the glint will not come from the guy behind. You're also taking damage. You will be surrounded by enemies all the time, which is a good thing.

They are cheap and will sit in the corner firing darts at your face. It's not too difficult to deflect them.

The shield enemies are also ridiculous, you know! You can't even deflect the gold glint they emit when they attack. You have been taught that deflection is equal to a golden glint, but the game does a 180 and throws it out of the window.

These torture-like issues were finally cured by the encounter with the ghost enemy. Regular attacks won't harm ghosts, so you need to make use of your Qi. They gave the ghost the power to drain your Qi. You ask? Damned if you don't know. You can't use Qi abilities if you are stationary. This is the main downside. The ghost can use this Qi sapping ability to spam you and drain your energy if they have to stop you from winding up the attack.

At this point, the fight was also uncooperative. The camera fixes on the arena room that you can enter from the bottom. The camera wouldn't allow Wei into the room so it was fixed on the arena. While the ghost chased Wei out, all I could see was the health bar going down and my controller vibrating until I died. It was fun, I know.

The camera bug that caused the above bug was quite obvious throughout. It was followed by another bug that occurred in a mission inside a burning building. The goal is to save ten residents in the given time. This is accomplished by tearing down their front doors. The last one didn't break and the level was restarted. Other bugs, like lighting glitches or ragdolls becoming stuck in terrain, also appeared. I was able to play 9 Monkeys of Shaolin with PS4, but the Switch version has bugs that cause level crashes and break gameplay.

The game's graphics are not very impressive at first. It was created using Unreal Engine 4 and it looks great. It was a very disappointing game. The tutorial looked stale and dull. Although that feeling was temporary, each level had its own feel and the art style shined when the lighting and assets could be used to greater effect in the later stages.

It is also very generic. This story is also very generic. Wei Cheng, a fisherman, is attacked by what appears to be mere bandits. His village is set on fire, his family and friends are killed and he is the sole survivor. Shaolin monks rescue him and inform him that the bandits are pirates called the Wokou. These monks defeated them years ago. Many monks dismissed Wei as a fisherman. However, Wei is actually a master fighter who is skilled with staves. The monks finally decide to hire him. It's a cliche, and I have seen it many times before. While some may argue that the game attempts to replicate retro martial arts stories from years past, I find the story uninteresting. This makes the story very replay-friendly.

If the gameplay isn’t worth it, then the story isn’t worth reading. Bugs make the game less enjoyable, while the art style is what makes the experience worthwhile. It's not worth the price, with a nerve-racking PS15 on Steam, an eye-watering PS25 for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. The gameplay bugs, lack of story and other bugs make it difficult to recommend.

Although many of these annoyances might seem cheap, they aren't sold as such.