Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Conflict Overview (PS5)

As arguably the most important anime and manga franchise on the planet proper now, all writer Bandai Namco needed to do was put collectively a serviceable adaptation of Gege Aktusami’s modern-day sensation and reap the rewards. Regrettably, the dismal Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Conflict is the worst sort of tie-in: a vapid money seize clearly developed on a shoe-string finances with few redeeming options for present followers or fascinated newcomers alike.

The sport, developed by Japanese outfit Byking – the identical studio behind the My Hero One’s Justice sequence – falls into the trimmings of rote enviornment brawler, however this isn’t an inherently unhealthy factor per se. Sadly, it’s a very unhealthy one, with restrictive gameplay and an unrefined fight system, which lacks the balletic fantastic thing about its supply materials. For a sequence outlined by its outstandingly choreographed fight scenes, this outing is an abject failure.

It lacks the flare of different anime variations, too. JoJo’s Weird Journey: All Star Battle has its points, but it surely might by no means be accused of failing to seize the zany vibes of Hirohiko Araki’s outlandish sequence, with its menus fizzing with every kind of refined references. Right here, the dearth of finances is virtually unattainable to disregard, as even key options just like the character choice display screen are relegated to a soulless listing of character names within the forgettable Free Battle mode.

Story mode is the principle draw for solo gamers, but it surely lacks any of the pizazz of the property it’s primarily based on, with the plot restricted to simply the primary season of the anime and its prequel film. This seems like a weird determination contemplating the second season launched not too long ago, and it makes the sport really feel out-of-date earlier than you even get began. Regardless, the fiction is difficult to comply with when offered on this kind, with largely static character artwork and textual content bubbles.

Even inside its confines, common characters are lacking, like Kasumi Miwa and Mei Mei – though Bandai Namco is mostly fairly good relating to post-release assist, so there’s a great probability they’ll be added in later as DLC. After all, whether or not you’ll wish to pod out much more cash on an already bitterly disappointing expertise is unlikely, so their absence is pretty pertinent from the outset in our opinion.

Key characters like Yuji Itadori, Satoru Gojo, and Nobara Kugisaki can be found from the outset, however enjoying as them is a relatively depressing expertise, as alluded to beforehand. Every fighter has three core assaults and two specials, in addition to a brilliant transfer. However you’ll be able to usually get via many of the sport’s content material by mashing a single button, and the dearth of animation selection or general affect makes this a desperately drab affair.

Outdoors of a few first rate animations, you by no means actually really feel as highly effective because the characters you’re enjoying as, and an invincibility system which renders all opponents invulnerable when on the bottom means you’ll end up ready round for foes to rise up as a substitute of punishing them whereas they’re knocked down. It’s all so sluggish, and it’s compounded by the default 2v2 workforce situations, which makes every match really feel overly lengthy and laborious.

There’s a web-based co-op possibility which duties you with working alongside mates and strangers, however the fight is so crap you’re not going to wish to interact with it for quite a lot of hours. And whereas there are numerous unlockable objects, many of those fall into the class of profile prospers, like identify tags and avatars and so forth. It’s not a adverse that there’s lots to acquire, however the rewards are unlikely to amuse even essentially the most ardent anime followers for lengthy.

It is only a unhealthy sport from top-to-bottom actually, which fails on its main targets. As an accompaniment for present followers, the bundle feels light-weight and out-of-date – and as a tie-in, it’s unlikely to draw newcomers to the franchise as an entire. Byking has failed to duplicate the depth of the anime’s battle scenes, serving up a soulless enviornment affair that doesn’t actually seem to have any reverence for the supply materials it’s impressed by.

Conclusion

Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Conflict is sadly cursed trash. Its shallow, unsatisfying fight system fails to seize the balletic brilliance of the anime and manga’s putting skirmishes, and its disjointed single participant marketing campaign is unlikely to be loved by franchise faithfuls or potential new followers. Given the big recognition of Gege Aktusami’s sequence, it’s frankly unfathomable how badly Bandai Namco has dropped the ball right here.