Here it is! The return of a champion! Killer Instinct is the return of a fantastic franchise that I've longed to see for quite some time. My father and I used to play the original on the SNES back in the 90's together, and to this day I still recall the first time he pulled off an Ultra combo. The third official installment of this series lives up to the legacy of the predecessors in almost every way, and is a great game to pick up if you're just an amateur in the fighting genre, or a seasoned veteran.
There is a list of things that Double Helix has done right in their first shot at the franchise. The combo system makes a triumphant return, and feels as if it's even cleaner than it once was. Simply by using a well oiled formula, you'll find yourself running intense combos in no time, and it works like this: Combo opener -> auto/manual -> linker -> auto/manual -> linker/ender. The beautiful part is you don't have to end it there; depending on the types of attacks you use, a meter fills, that once it gets to the end, the combo will be dropped, and you could potentially lose your potential damage you've built up, as potential damage requires that an ender be successfully landed to let the full damage happen, but you can really drag the combo on for what feels like an eternity. This concept really makes the game competitive, since a novice button masher could cause a massive combo to trigger from a fast character, such as Sabrewolf, but not do much damage if the finisher is not done.
I could go on for hours about how the fighting system gets really intricate, but for brevity's sake, I'll only dive further into the counter system. The moment you hear the announcer scream shadow counter, there's no possible way to get upset at the opponent who did it to you, because it feels so intense. Any time someone begins a combo, you can counter the combo by pressing the punch and kick buttons of the same strength that they used to generate the attack. If you do this correctly, you hear the famous "C-C-C-Combo Breaker!" phrase, and if you botch this, you hear "Lockout" and earn the exclaimation point of shame over your head. While locked out, you get a 5 second penalty that prevents you from countering, and you get to watch your character get punished for your error. Special moves can be countered as well in the same way, except the timing is much tighter and you must successfully press the combination 3 times. It sounds difficult, but I've pulled this off several times online so far, and it surprises every person.
So let's look at the cast. All but one of these characters are familiar, as are the two DLC characters that have been teased. Jago is the free character, with Orchid, Glacius, Sabrewolf, and Thunder returning, Sedara being introduced, and Fulgore and Spinal coming soon. Each one represents the general archetypes you've undoubtably seen in previous fighting games around. Jago and Orchid are well rounded characters in speed and damage, Sedara and Sabrewolf are quick and light on damage, while Glacius is slow and does massive damage (I wont talk much about Thunder as I don't feel like I'm up to par enough with him to be accurate). No matter your playstyle, theres bound to be someone that'll click for you. Most of the online community seems to favor Jago, but I believe that's because he's free. The second most popular award is granted to Sabrewolf, as his combos are quick, he's quick, and they link so easily. My advice in fighting him, combo break with light attacks. It seems to be the go to strength for most players.
The big highlight of this game, though, is the audio. The announcer truly gets me amped up to fight more when he shouts "ULTRAAAA COMBOOOOO" or the famous "C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER". The soundtrack is fantastic too, even though it seems to be nothing more than a hard rock version of the original soundtrack, it really fits the mood well when you're in the menus and fighting. I'd also point out the sound effects used on Glacius. Perhaps it's because he's my favorite character, but I really enjoy the little sounds that are made when he moves and shape shifts. It's definitely apparent that he's an alien of sorts, which is almost a shock to me, because all I remember from my childhood of him is protruding crystal type attacks and a glassy look. Combined with the name Glacius, my assumption was always that he was a creature of ice, but hey, we learn something everyday.
So with all the good, there always has to be some not so good. The shortcomings aren't too heavy for the game, and most of it is justified by the fact that the game is (effectively) $20 for the standard version. There's no real offline match types worth playing. the standard ladder matches found in 99% of other fighting games doesn't exist. A real bummer is the dojo mode. It has 32 great challenges for you to take on...only as Jago. None of the other characters currently have this mode available. The only thing you can really set up offline is Player vs. Computer, but there doesn't feel like there's any reward for doing so. This is definitely a game best enjoyed with XBox Live. Another drawback point is the graphics. The visuals don't look bad, they just don't look like something I'd expect on the XBox One. To further accent this shortcoming, the lackluster resolution really stands out while you're playing. The game's resolution caps out at 720p, and there appears to be no real antialiasing technology running behind the game, so the edges of the characters constantly look quite jagged. One last little gripe is the ranking system. I don't understand why developers want to hide this information from users. No one that I've talked to online has had a solid answer for how the two separate ranks displayed really work, but I'm beginning to think that the first number is your exhibition rank, and the second is your ranked rank.
In the end here, I'm voting everyone who owns this console should pick this game up as well as an XBox Live subscription. Feel free to send me an invite online and challenge me!