9 Monkeys of Shaolin

9 Monkeys of Shaolin is the newest game from Sobaka Studio, the team behind top-down shooter/beat-em-up Redeemer. Only this time round you have the power of martial arts instead of a gun. As Wei Cheng - a fisherman out to avenge the brutal murder of his family and friends - you will find yourself in a Shaolin temple alongside monks who have nursed you back to health after the attack on your village. These monks, along with a smuggler and yourself are the 9 Monkeys of Shaolin.

Using fast-paced martial arts style combat, you’ll feel a lot of nostalgia for older arcade titles such as Streets of Rage when playing 9 Monkeys of Shaolin. There can be a lot of action happening on screen at any one time, so it is important to be fast and ready to dodge in order to avoid trapping yourself. As the game goes on, your Qi, which can be utilised for additional abilities will upgrade, allowing for new moves in relation to your ever-growing catalogue of combat styles. It has a very fast and fluid gameplay, and even allows for a co-op mode if you choose to play with a friend.

The art style is stunning, with intricately detailed environments and a fantastic use of lighting. Seeing the reflection of lanterns on a rainy street really adds to the ambience, and the simple character designs work surprisingly well against the busy backdrops. Sound design is masterfully crafted, with plenty of oriental themes and instruments being used that meld beautifully with the gameplay. Similarly, the voice acting has been done superbly, with a full voice cast and plenty of personality and humour. Even the ambient noises and environmental sound effects of weapons satisfyingly smacking an enemy have been done well, and make everything feel well fitting.

Controls are fairly standard for a brawler, with light and heavy attacks as well as kicks. Attacks can be empowered using your Qi and will cause more damage or damage to a wider area of attack. These Qi abilities are tied to the combat style and upgrades you have attained so far, and moves can be upgraded through a skill tree to allow for more customisation of your fighting style. Breakable boxes are dotted around levels, each containing power ups in the guise of different flavoured teas, to replenish health and Qi to help keep you going on your quest.

There are little golden monks hidden throughout 9 Monkeys of Shaolin, and collecting these will allow for optional cheats, in the vein of our retro faves, which can be implemented for some additional humour. Who doesn’t love playing as a character with a giant bobble-looking head? This was something that encouraged us to not only return for additional searches, but also kept us on our toes throughout our initial run, too.

Priced at £24.99 on Xbox One, there’s plenty to keep you interested here - particularly if you’re a fan of beat ‘em ups, and at a relatively low price. There’s not a whole lot of variety in the enemy types, which is a shame as you unlock masks related to their appearances as you defeat them, so having some more distinctive styles would have been interesting. We encountered a few issues when playing co-op, as one of us being defeated would boot both back even if the other was handling the situation fine, if you feel that this will cause too many issues (particularly if playing with someone with a far lower skill level) then I’d recommend sticking to solo play! Aside from this, we didn’t really encounter any real issues, and had a fun time with 9 Monkeys, while it lasted.

In the end, we decided to give 9 Monkeys of Shaolin the Collecting Asylum rating of 7.5/10.

Have you played 9 Monkeys of Shaolin yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!

- V x

Thank you to Koch Media for the 9 Monkeys of Shaolin Xbox One review code!