Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Conflict Overview (PS5)

As arguably the largest 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 funds with few redeeming options for current 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 area brawler, however this isn’t an inherently dangerous factor per se. Sadly, it’s a actually dangerous 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 diversifications, too. JoJo’s Weird Journey: All Star Battle has its points, nevertheless it may by no means be accused of failing to seize the zany vibes of Hirohiko Araki’s outlandish sequence, with its menus fizzing with all types of refined references. Right here, the dearth of funds is virtually not possible 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 primary draw for solo gamers, nevertheless it lacks any of the pizazz of the property it’s based mostly on, with the plot restricted to simply the primary season of the anime and its prequel film. This seems like a weird choice contemplating the second season launched just lately, and it makes the sport really feel out-of-date earlier than you even get began. Regardless, the fiction is difficult to observe when offered on this kind, with principally static character artwork and textual content bubbles.

Even inside its confines, well-liked characters are lacking, like Kasumi Miwa and Mei Mei – though Bandai Namco is usually fairly good with regards to post-release help, so there’s a very good probability they’ll be added in later as DLC. After all, whether or not you’ll need 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 are out there from the outset, however taking part in 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 possibly can typically get via many of the recreation’s content material by mashing a single button, and the dearth of animation selection or total impression makes this a desperately drab affair.

Exterior of a few first rate animations, you by no means actually really feel as highly effective because the characters you’re taking part in 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 an alternative of punishing them whereas they’re knocked down. It’s all so sluggish, and it’s compounded by the default 2v2 crew situations, which makes every match really feel overly lengthy and laborious.

There’s a web-based co-op choice which duties you with working alongside buddies and strangers, however the fight is so crap you’re not going to need to have interaction with it for various hours. And whereas there are a lot of unlockable gadgets, many of those fall into the class of profile prospers, like identify tags and avatars and so forth. It’s not a unfavourable that there’s rather a lot to acquire, however the rewards are unlikely to amuse even probably the most ardent anime followers for lengthy.

It is only a dangerous recreation from top-to-bottom actually, which fails on its main aims. As an accompaniment for current followers, the package deal 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 area 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 hanging skirmishes, and its disjointed single participant marketing campaign is unlikely to be loved by franchise faithfuls or potential new followers. Given the big reputation of Gege Aktusami’s sequence, it’s frankly unfathomable how badly Bandai Namco has dropped the ball right here.