Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

"Good for a short-lived thrill"

I guess this game was developed solely for the purpose of pleasing anime fans, because unless you're one of them, you will definitely be unfamiliar with anything it represents. It is because of this, and a few other reasons that you should approach Jojo's Bizarre Adventure with caution.

Graphics 8/10: Since I've never actually seen the arcade version, I can't make a direct comparison between it, and the DC version. I will say however, that I doubt it's anything less than a perfect CPS3 port. The characters themselves aren't very spectacular at first glance. It's when they bring out their "stand" that your jaw will drop in amazement (A "stand" being something similar to the helpers in Marvel vs Capcom). Animation of these odd helpers is so good, it almost looks like a full blown cartoon. They're full of little details that add that much more personality to each of the game's fighters. The backgrounds though, aren't so impressive. Out of all Capcom games, this one has to have the most boring backgrounds. They just seem empty and unimaginative. And because this is such an important part of the experience, it really puts a damper on the whole visual presentation.

Sound 7/10: Some of the music can be annoying but overall, it's fairly well done. The sound effects are good and the voices are clear as well. That's about as much as I can say about the audio.

Control 10/10: Things are a bit different this time around. Instead of going with the usual setup which has served Capcom so well in the past, they decided to bring in a new system. Three of the buttons are used for attack(light, medium, hard) and the other three are used for taunting, bringing out your "stand", or making a more powerful attack(one button being a default for all three degrees of assault). This seems strange at first, but is actually very friendly once you get used to it. To top it off, super combos can be executed using only a QCF+2 attack buttons; similar to MvsC.

Gameplay 6/10: Despite the fact that Jojo's tries to be a totally unique fighting experience, there just isn't enough to separate it from anything you've seen before. Think of it this way: It's not as challenging or deep enough to be a Street Fighter III, but it's not crazy enough to be an X-Men vs Street Fighter. What you end up with is sort of an "in between" game. Something that's great at first, but becomes only mildly entertaining after you've beaten it for the 15th time. Upon first play you'll say "Wow, this is fun!!.....And look at all those weird characters!!". Later you'll say, "This sure is getting boring......maybe I'll go play Street Fighter Alpha 3." Not that it's a bad game; it just doesn't have enough long lasting appeal or features to keep you interested for more than a few weeks.

Final Thought: If you like the anime, or just have some extra cash to toss around, then I would recommend picking this one up. Those who are looking for a quality fighting game well worth their hard earned money will have much better luck with Street Fighter III or Marvel vs Capcom.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/16/00, Updated 01/16/00