(6/9/2023 / 20:45:14)

I'd like to start this review by saying that I sincerely recommend this game. Hopefully, this will ease some doubts about merit of World Tour mode.

( Disclaimer: Funnily enough, what I think is the most important part of World Tour, the Master system, didn't entirely fit in the review. Link to that section here,[//]along with the very end if you'd like to keep reading. )

Most fighting game "campaigns" essentially come down to an extended arcade mode. Instead of a still frame or two explaining the story they have a handful of cut-scenes, maybe a visual novel-esque exposition dump, and maybe some unique enemies. Before this game the most expansive single-player experience I've seen for a fighting game was Smash Brothers Brawl. Albeit Brawl isn't a traditional fighting game, it had expansive levels, puzzles, unique bosses, and pretty damn good enemy variety. I'd say the World Tour mode isn't close to brawl in execution but still a great start I believe other fighters should follow the example of.

This game has an incredible character creator. Of course, you can use it to create whatever eldritch abomination you want; but for the rest of us it's pretty damn good. The only feature I'd really say is limited is the amount of hairstyles. I have no qualms with the amount of facial hair options the game gives you, those are quite expansive, but for hairstyles the selection feels sparse despite the size. For instance, out of 45, there are only 8 styles of long hair (Shoulder length or longer) and only two of those are for men. It's not a big issue, just something to keep in mind if you had an idea beforehand like me.

Once you actually get started the game does a good job of settling you in. It's around an hour of tutorial before you really get the freedom to explore a bit. The game seems to take a lot of inspiration from the Yakuza series with the World Tour mode. The world isn't very big but it feels dense your first time walking around. It's packed with little nooks and crannies to dig up items in and find NPC's with goofy dialog. It was around this time the game kind of established what the rest of the experience would feel like. You won't find any Witcher-tier side quests here but everything about this game just oozes character. The world isn't vast or impressive but it's charming.

The plot for this game isn't very good. Like at all. Until the end of the game practically everything you think might happen, WILL happen. They set up a rival character that practically the whole rest of the game revolves around despite the MC only knowing him for a couple of hours. You fight, spend an afternoon together, then MC decides to fly across the whole damn world following lead after lead to figure out how they can help him. That's the long and short of it but if you'd like a more expansive look, spoiler section below:

Bosch, your rival, steals a bag from the Mad Gear Gang. You help him escape so Mad Gear threatens you to get it back for them, how does MC respond? He finds a craftsman to make them a new bag.

This is when the game establishes that your character is kind of retarded. You just kind of mindlessly help Bosch when the only thing he's done is reject your attempts to befriend him and now you find out he's a thief. The game genuinely expects you to write off a lot of would be plot issues down the line because they set up that MC is genuinely stupid. So, MC gathers the materials including an insignia from Marisa that she says herself, "doesn't give to many people." You bring it to a member of Mad Gear and they throw it in the street and call you an idiot, obviously.

They give you an ID card he dropped as a lead and coincidentally you find him in London right when he's getting kidnapped by Juri. (It's also never explained why he's in London anyway) You fight her, win in the game, lose in the cutscene, and that's the last time you see Bosch for about 45 hours. Before he gets swooped, he hands you a tech card. However, it's encrypted. Who the hell at Mad Gear could decrypt it when half of their members can barely tie their shoes? Don't think about it.

This is when Chun-Li's surrogate daughter, Li Fen comes into the plot. She was introduced earlier as a "white hat hacker" and you turn to her for help with the tech card. She says it'll take a few days, (Now it's even more confusing how they expected Mad Gear to decrypt it, unless Li Fen just isn't good at it either)

Now we reach the games filler bit, the most fun part honestly, THE (novice) TOURNAMENT ARC! Here's where the game puts main plot aside and acquaints you with the masters. I'll talk more about this later so we'll move back to the story, awful of me, I know.

All you gotta know about the tournament is that a woman passing by tells you to forget about "something you're holding onto for a friend," and that the man walking with her loses to you in the tournament. You get your win, find an information broker through the tech card Li Fen cracks, and give them info on your masters in exchange for plot progression. Again, mixing the best part of the game with the most "mid" part of the game.

Finally, you find out that Bosch is actually part of a Nayshall terrorist group resisting against the government and- blah, blah, blah. Point is, the resistance tells you not to interfere with them or what stunt they make it very clear they're pulling at the The Suval'hal Martial Arts Tournament. You get into the tournament by working with Mad Gear (or the Crows) and then Bosch contacts you. You find that he's being ripped apart by Psycho Power. Supposedly... The game says this but he manages to somehow escape from them to go to Metro City, give you a bunch of instructions later, and even save the day later. We'll get to that. Point is, whoever got their hands on him pumped him full of the stuff and entered him into the tournament as a tool. Bosch plans to use this by getting you to give some stuff to the resistance. Unquestioningly, MC obeys and unwittingly gives them parts to put a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ BOMB in the champion belt.

The man from the Novice Tournament was supposed to be in your shoes to use the bomb but Bosch plans on beating you and using it himself to kill JP. A villain the game establishes is evil but doesn't really give you much of a reason to hate. (which is hysterical later) Bosch loses, but gets 3rd place. He's still in a great situation to put the Kabosch (get it?) on JP and blow him up. Instead he lets JP trigger the explosive, hand it to his sister, and then he waits till the last second to grab it from her and he runs the OPPOSITE direction from JP. He tries to throw it into the audience (lmao) and dies. MC fights JP after everyone evacuates, you win, he essentially says, "Ok, now what? *laughs* " then the game ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ ends. Not even joking, credits roll.

Afterwards, it cuts to MC talking to Luke on the phone. MC says they haven't learned what strength is and Luke essentially says, "You'll probably never know, I don't." Game over, that's it, you beat World Tour. For me it was one hell of a ride and the ending certainly caught me off guard but despite all of the tropes and having such an awkward conclusion it was still definitely worthwhile for me

That's because, the vast majority of your experience doesn't even focus on this plot. The main drive of the World Tour mode is the Master system. Something I won't be able to finish here unfortunately. Link to the rest here.

[h1] Just finished World Tour Mode [/h1] (6/9/2023 / 20:45:14) I'd like to start this review by saying that I sincerely recommend this game. Hopefully, this will ease some doubts about merit of World Tour mode. ( [b]Disclaimer: Funnily enough, what I think is the most important part of World Tour, the Master system, didn't entirely fit in the review. Link to that section [url=https//gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2987663020] here,[/url]along with the very end if you'd like to keep reading.[/b] ) [h1] Some Background [/h1] Most fighting game "campaigns" essentially come down to an extended arcade mode. Instead of a still frame or two explaining the story they have a handful of cut-scenes, maybe a visual novel-esque exposition dump, and maybe some unique enemies. Before this game the most expansive single-player experience I've seen for a fighting game was Smash Brothers Brawl. Albeit Brawl isn't a traditional fighting game, it had expansive levels, puzzles, unique bosses, and pretty damn good enemy variety. I'd say the World Tour mode isn't close to brawl in execution but still a great start I believe other fighters should follow the example of. [h1] The Intro [/h1] This game has an incredible character creator. Of course, you can use it to create whatever eldritch abomination you want; but for the rest of us it's pretty damn good. The only feature I'd really say is limited is the amount of hairstyles. I have no qualms with the amount of facial hair options the game gives you, those are quite expansive, but for hairstyles the selection feels sparse despite the size. For instance, out of 45, there are only 8 styles of long hair (Shoulder length or longer) and only two of those are for men. It's not a big issue, just something to keep in mind if you had an idea beforehand like me. Once you actually get started the game does a good job of settling you in. It's around an hour of tutorial before you really get the freedom to explore a bit. The game seems to take a lot of inspiration from the Yakuza series with the World Tour mode. The world isn't very big but it feels dense your first time walking around. It's packed with little nooks and crannies to dig up items in and find NPC's with goofy dialog. It was around this time the game kind of established what the rest of the experience would feel like. You won't find any Witcher-tier side quests here but everything about this game just oozes character. The world isn't vast or impressive but it's charming. [h1] The Plot [/h1] The plot for this game isn't very good. Like at all. Until the end of the game practically everything you think might happen, [b]WILL[/b] happen. They set up a rival character that practically the whole rest of the game revolves around despite the MC only knowing him for a couple of hours. You fight, spend an afternoon together, then MC decides to fly across the whole damn world following lead after lead to figure out how they can help him. That's the long and short of it but if you'd like a more expansive look, spoiler section below: [spoiler] Bosch, your rival, steals a bag from the Mad Gear Gang. You help him escape so Mad Gear threatens you to get it back for them, how does MC respond? He finds a craftsman to make them a new bag. This is when the game establishes that your character is kind of retarded. You just kind of mindlessly help Bosch when the only thing he's done is reject your attempts to befriend him and now you find out he's a thief. The game genuinely expects you to write off a lot of would be plot issues down the line because they set up that MC is genuinely stupid. So, MC gathers the materials including an insignia from Marisa that she says herself, "doesn't give to many people." You bring it to a member of Mad Gear and they throw it in the street and call you an idiot, obviously. They give you an ID card he dropped as a lead and coincidentally you find him in London right when he's getting kidnapped by Juri. (It's also never explained why he's in London anyway) You fight her, win in the game, lose in the cutscene, and that's the last time you see Bosch for about 45 hours. Before he gets swooped, he hands you a tech card. However, it's encrypted. Who the hell at Mad Gear could decrypt it when half of their members can barely tie their shoes? Don't think about it. This is when Chun-Li's surrogate daughter, Li Fen comes into the plot. She was introduced earlier as a "white hat hacker" and you turn to her for help with the tech card. She says it'll take a few days, (Now it's even more confusing how they expected Mad Gear to decrypt it, unless Li Fen just isn't good at it either) Now we reach the games filler bit, the most fun part honestly, [b]THE[/b] (novice) [b]TOURNAMENT ARC![/b] Here's where the game puts main plot aside and acquaints you with the masters. I'll talk more about this later so we'll move back to the story, awful of me, I know. All you gotta know about the tournament is that a woman passing by tells you to forget about "something you're holding onto for a friend," and that the man walking with her loses to you in the tournament. You get your win, find an information broker through the tech card Li Fen cracks, and give them info on your masters in exchange for plot progression. Again, mixing the best part of the game with the most "mid" part of the game. Finally, you find out that Bosch is actually part of a Nayshall terrorist group resisting against the government and- blah, blah, blah. Point is, the resistance tells you not to interfere with them or what stunt they make it very clear they're pulling at the The Suval'hal Martial Arts Tournament. You get into the tournament by working with Mad Gear (or the Crows) and then Bosch contacts you. You find that he's being ripped apart by Psycho Power. Supposedly... The game says this but he manages to somehow escape from them to go to Metro City, give you a bunch of instructions later, and even save the day later. We'll get to that. Point is, whoever got their hands on him pumped him full of the stuff and entered him into the tournament as a tool. Bosch plans to use this by getting you to give some stuff to the resistance. Unquestioningly, MC obeys and unwittingly gives them parts to put a fucking BOMB in the champion belt. The man from the Novice Tournament was supposed to be in your shoes to use the bomb but Bosch plans on beating you and using it himself to kill JP. A villain the game establishes is evil but doesn't really give you much of a reason to hate. (which is hysterical later) Bosch loses, but gets 3rd place. He's still in a great situation to put the Kabosch (get it?) on JP and blow him up. Instead he lets JP trigger the explosive, hand it to his sister, and then he waits till the last second to grab it from her and he runs the [b]OPPOSITE[/b] direction from JP. He tries to throw it into the audience (lmao) and dies. MC fights JP after everyone evacuates, you win, he essentially says, "Ok, now what? [i] *laughs* [/i]" then the game fucking ends. Not even joking, credits roll. Afterwards, it cuts to MC talking to Luke on the phone. MC says they haven't learned what strength is and Luke essentially says, "You'll probably never know, I don't." Game over, that's it, you beat World Tour. For me it was one hell of a ride and the ending certainly caught me off guard but despite all of the tropes and having such an awkward conclusion it was still definitely worthwhile for me [/spoiler] That's because, the vast majority of your experience doesn't even focus on this plot. The main drive of the World Tour mode is the Master system. Something I won't be able to finish here unfortunately. [b] Link to the rest [url=https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2987663020] here[/url]. [/b]