Cleverly staged, the game's introductory sequence serves as both credits, tutorial, and screenplay presentation. Simple and effective, the story is that of a Chinese hero who seeks revenge for the murder of his family by eliminating one by one the five responsible for the drama (the Botanist, the Fighter, the Artist, the CEO and the Leader ). This starting point echoes a typically and cinematically Asian atmosphere, which manages to recycle all the classics of the genre (revenge, gangs, urban neon lights, kung-fu…) without ever leaving an unpleasant impression of opportunistic clichés. It's also a safe bet that the developers are true martial arts enthusiasts, as Absolver has already been able to prove in the past. The artistic direction of Sifu seems to us even more attractive than that of its predecessor. Slightly "low-poly" (but not too much), it displays splendid cold or warm colors depending on the scene, offers quality light effects, and is adorned with a grainy filter inherited from analog films of yesteryear.
The cinema seems to have guided the developers right down to the management of the camera which, while remaining controllable by the player, does not hesitate to move away, approach or change axis automatically, the aim being to offer in all circumstances the best frame possible. During your first contact with the game, do not panic if you feel some discomfort when you find that the camera initially located on the hero's right shoulder ends up on his left shoulder at some point, without you even realizing it. transition account. You actually get used to this system very quickly. This versatility also allows developers to vary the pleasures, as during the famous "sideways" passage seen in the trailers. Again fluidly and skilfully, the camera switches from a third-person view to a profile view, the time of a "one against all" brawl taking place in a long corridor. The homage to Old Boy is obvious, but gamers can also see a nod to the 2D of yesteryear. In this way, Sifu affirms both his love for Asian cinema and his status as a beat'em up.
ALREADY CANE!
In truth, Sloclap's game is halfway between a beat'em up and a classic fighting game. Understand by this that it is out of the question to chain the same two or three attacks in a loop to successfully defeat all the enemies. Rich and technical, the fights start on a simple basis (light attacks, heavy attacks, dodges, parries) which very quickly turns out to be insufficient. It will be imperative to maximize the score multiplier and pull out multiple combos, some of which can also be tricky to place. Triggers, slice buttons, joystick and classic buttons are all put to good use. Some combos require you to press several keys at the same time, others to leave a slight pause between two commands, others must on the contrary be performed quickly, and still others are only available when faced with a particular state. enemies. The only moment of respite comes from the focus attacks, which slow down the action and allow you to calmly choose which unstoppable blow to place. But don't dream, the focus bar recharges quite slowly, so these special attacks aren't available very often. Either way, combat is always fluid, dynamic, and as enjoyable to watch as it is to play. All shots offer excellent sensations, as sounds, opponents' reactions and camera shakes provide excellent "feedback". This is even truer when grabbing a weapon to hit enemies, billiard cues, table legs and other bottles being of indisputable usefulness. The progress and the choreography of the clashes also benefit from the possibility of quickly passing over tables and other railings, just to take temporary shelter or to separate a group of enemies.
GIT GUD
The game also comes with an amazing and magical age mechanic. Each time your hero dies, they instantly resurrect with a few more years on the clock. And each time he passes ten, he becomes less resistant but hits harder. Once past the age of 70, the slightest defeat will then be final and synonymous with the end of the game. This concept is articulated with different mechanics inherited from rogue-likes. If the levels are not generated randomly (and so much the better), we find on the other hand a principle of skills limited to the current game, and combos to "farm" (you can temporarily unlock them against a little xp or permanently against many), as well as keys unlocking different shortcuts. All this is a bit complicated to describe in detail, but remember this: you will have to do and redo the different levels. Moreover, the age system obliges you to try and retry the adventure until you achieve an almost perfect course. On the one hand because some improvements impose a maximum age to be unlocked. On the other hand because each level can only be launched with the best age at which it has been reached. And of course, starting a level at 60 is almost guaranteed defeat.
Sofu therefore embraces the philosophy "git gud" ("become good"), popularized in particular by the Dark Souls. It's up to the player rather than their character to gain experience and become ever better. A laudable principle, which still risks confusing those who hoped for a simpler and more accessible experience. Enough to revive the famous debate on the absence of different levels of difficulty in certain games... Exciting but not totally perfect, Sifu is surprisingly encumbered with a mini system of dialogues of no great importance (since the outcome is always a fight) and still has some bugs. In particular, we had to restart a game because of a boss who had become insensitive to our blows and did not respond to ours. Lack of luck, it was during a particularly successful run!
