Stroffolino
06-02-2010, 08:31 AM
This is a user review for Karate Champ ($1.99) for ipod/iphone from Revolutionary Concepts. I am a hardcore retrogaming/arcade fan and long time developer for the MAME project.
The iPhone/iPod port of Karate Champ is impressively accurate to the original game. Every pixel, animation, and sound appears to be perfectly duplicated, and most importantly the gameplay mechanics are spot on. If I didn't know better, I'd think I was playing an arcade-perfect emulator. All the little arcade tricks like "feinting" (by releasing an attack joystick before the attack has completed) are intact, and the AI appears to be identical to the original. I'll do a true side by side evaluation later, but Revolutionary Concepts clearly didn't cut any corners when it came to producing an authentic version of the classic arcade game. Given that almost every other classic game port I've ever played had obvious gameplay discrepencies from the original, this is a great testament to Revolutionary Concept's attention to detail.
All the great things about the timeless original are intact, from the precise collision detection to the funny, challenging bonus rounds. My favorite is the bull killing stage complete with skull cracking and brains popping out - let's hope PETA doesn't catch wind of this.
I'm pleasantly surprised to see that the game has been well received in terms of user reviews, without complaints about the chunky pixels. However, at the risk of being a heretic, I wouldn't mind seeing an in-app purchase for a reskinning at some point, to provide alternate backgrounds and higher resolution sprites. It seems something that could slot in easily without disrupting the excellent gameplay.
It would also be nice to see more of arcade marque art incorporated, and/or support for the original Japanese version which took place in a dojo setting.
Hopefully the recognizable license will be enough to ensure that the developer makes a tidy profit, and can continue to make official arcade ports of this quality.
The iPhone/iPod port of Karate Champ is impressively accurate to the original game. Every pixel, animation, and sound appears to be perfectly duplicated, and most importantly the gameplay mechanics are spot on. If I didn't know better, I'd think I was playing an arcade-perfect emulator. All the little arcade tricks like "feinting" (by releasing an attack joystick before the attack has completed) are intact, and the AI appears to be identical to the original. I'll do a true side by side evaluation later, but Revolutionary Concepts clearly didn't cut any corners when it came to producing an authentic version of the classic arcade game. Given that almost every other classic game port I've ever played had obvious gameplay discrepencies from the original, this is a great testament to Revolutionary Concept's attention to detail.
All the great things about the timeless original are intact, from the precise collision detection to the funny, challenging bonus rounds. My favorite is the bull killing stage complete with skull cracking and brains popping out - let's hope PETA doesn't catch wind of this.
I'm pleasantly surprised to see that the game has been well received in terms of user reviews, without complaints about the chunky pixels. However, at the risk of being a heretic, I wouldn't mind seeing an in-app purchase for a reskinning at some point, to provide alternate backgrounds and higher resolution sprites. It seems something that could slot in easily without disrupting the excellent gameplay.
It would also be nice to see more of arcade marque art incorporated, and/or support for the original Japanese version which took place in a dojo setting.
Hopefully the recognizable license will be enough to ensure that the developer makes a tidy profit, and can continue to make official arcade ports of this quality.