Johnny Kung-Fu offers up some fun times if you grew up with either Game & Watch, Tiger Electronics LCDs, or enjoyed beat ‘em ups as a kid. It’s an enjoyable nostalgia trip that doesn’t have much depth or variety, but is worth spending a few bucks on if you’re on a nostalgia kick.
Pocket Gamer: Throwback visual design continues to be a hallmark of this generation. From VVVVVV to Wizorb, independent developers have used archaic graphics to elicit warm glows of nostalgia.
At times, Johnny Kung Fu goes further back than the 8- or 16-bit days, right back to LCD games like those on the Game & Watch. Unfortunately, it doesn't get the look quite right. Moreover, the mechanics accompanying these sections are archaic, and the moments when it attempts anything modern feel just as decrepit.
At first, Johnny Kung Fu appears to have potential, with its mix of retro electronic-gaming-inspired gameplay and the kung fu combat levels. Unfortunately, it takes less than 15 minutes to realize it squanders this potential by doing absolutely nothing with it.
SBG: "In this super-sized episode, the crew says goodbye to the Wii with impressions of The Last Story, says goodbye to GameCube-compatible systems with a look at the console’s best and says goodbye to the summer with Andrew’s return to the panel. But that’s not all! (Not by a long shot.) Other topics: the surprisingly-great Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time, the waning appeal of Mass Effect 3 DLC, the frustrating Record of Agarest War 2, the evanescent Johnny Kung Fu, the ever-confusing Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance and more.
Check out the show on our site, check us out on iTunes or use the RSS feed in your favorite podcast aggregator. Let us know what you think!"
Hosts: Jeff DeSolla, Chris Dominowski, Chris Ingersoll, Andrew Passafiume, Graham Russell, Henry Skey, Shawn Vermette.
Music: Podcast theme by Tom Casper.
