Bloody Roar: Primal Fury

"Not bad, but it could be better..."

Gameplay: Basically, this is your typical 3D fighting game, with a twist. Each fighter has the ability to transform into a beast form. When transformed, their attacks are stronger, they have more attacks and combos available, and they slowly regenerate some of their life. This adds another dimension to an otherwise straight forward fighting game. This game has a solid comboing system. My only complaint is that while this game doesn’t do anything wrong, there are other games that do things better. Still, the beast mode transformations add a much needed extra layer to the gameplay.

Controls: The control scheme is pretty good, IMO. The functions of each button work well with the layout of the Gamecube controller. My only major complaint is the analog stick/control pad problem of the GC controller. The control pad is far too small, yet more useful for fighting games such as this. The analog stick is a bit awkward when it comes to performing fighting game moves, if you ask me.

Graphics/Sounds: Great. Each character looks unique. The 3D graphics are as good, if not better, then similar 3D fighters. The beast forms are particularly nice. They’re extremely well detailed, and look great overall. The anime style cut scenes when you beat the game are impressive looking as well. As far as sounds go, this game contains the standard fighting game sounds, plus “growls” when players transform into beast mode.

Story: A bit lacking. The only forms of story are the cut scenes when you beat the game as each character. Said cut scenes are a little lacking though, story wise.

Replay Value: You’ll want to beat single player mode several times, in order to unlock everything. After that though, single player kind of loses it’s appeal. You might want to beat it as each character, in order to see the different cut scenes, but that’s about it. Multiplayer mode is what makes this game truly fun, if you ask me. Playing this game with a friend adds much more replay value, then if you just play by yourself.

Buy or Rent?: This is a tough question. If you’re a fan of fighting games (which are few in number on Gamecube), then feel free to buy this one. If you aren’t a fighting game fan, I suggest a rental. That way, you can see if it appeals to you, before you shell out $50. If you like it after renting it, feel free to buy it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 08/21/02, Updated 08/21/02