Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style

"Wu-Tang is for the children."

As I'm sure you can infer from the title, this game chronicles the adventures of the members of the popular rap syndicate, the Wu-Tang Clan. In reality, the actual members of the Wu-Tang Clan don't know any kung fu. In the video game world, they get to live out their Bruce Lee fantasies by endowing their digital counterparts with kung fu mastery.

Storymode takes you on a quest to rescue your sensei, who's been kidnapped by your classic old and evil ''Fu Manchu'' Chinese guy. So, off you go from Staten Island to China to do battle. Along the way, your fights are enjoyably mixed up with different objectives. Rather than having to directly fight against an opponent in each battle that leads to the final boss, you're occasionally given a teammate to help out. Other times, you may have the odds completely against you while trying to survive against 3 clones. There might even be an endless army of ninjas to contend with. The variety of objectives is impressive and welcomed.

Practice mode is well suited for this game. Rather than just letting you have free reign to try out anything, you're given a move to execute. After you complete it successfully, you're given another. It works more like a set of lessons than free practice. If you get stuck on one move, you can select another move to try out.

Move execution is similar to the Tekken games. While not nearly as complex, there's still some depth to it. The characters tend to follow a similar scheme; perhaps wider variations in the different players would have helped.

I like the stylized art of the members at the player select screen. During the fights, the style is translated well, albeit polygonal. Backgrounds range from Chinatown to a basketball court, though some areas needed more detail.

The framerate maintains itself even with four fighting on the screen. There are some nice flashy effects thrown in for excitement, as well as what is becoming the most overused trick in the special effects industry; when you finish the match, the camera swirls around the fighters in a ''bullet-time'' (as seen in The Matrix) knock-off.

If your musical interests lie in hip-hop melodies, this game excels. While there are three average songs done by the group, the other pieces work well enough.

Overall, Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style is a great game to play with a group of friends. Although it features the Wu-Tang Clan, it is still just an average fighting game with features that have been seen elsewhere.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 04/18/03, Updated 04/18/03