.jpg "Game review: Power Stone")
Capcom never did manage to get around to giving a beat 'em up of theirs a good story. So it won't take me long to explain Power Stone. There are three mystical gems which collectively become a Power Stone and turn the bearer of the stone into a being of their inner wishes, dreams and desires. Translate this to the game: you run around in a small arena to collect these stones, so you can transform and lay a smack down in amidst of explosions, projectiles and fire so bad that the person on the receiving end will feel like rubbish. That's Power Stone for ya. Silly. A little stupid. Strange. Bu oh-so-awesome!
The premise of Power Stone is simple. You batter your opponent to death with anything you can lay your hands on. Most objects and fixtures within stages can be picked up and uprooted. Benches, boxes, lamp posts, tables, chairs: it's all game. If you're lucky enough you may find a flame-thrower, rocket launcher or a lead pipe lying around to help dish the pain. During your scrap, gems will appear. Collect 3 of these and you can transform into a souped up 'minister of K.O', unleashing powerful attacks which are deadly and bloody difficult to avoid. This transformation doesn't last forever though. And if at any time a character with a gem in their possession is hit, they lose it. So battles are constantly switching between standard scraps, to defensive, to all out offensive. The game features very few intricacies in the way of button configuration. You've got punch, kick, jump and grab. Power Stone is as accessible as it gets. There is no learning curve or amazing intricacy to this game. It's as simple as A B D. Oh no wait, hold up...
Power Stone is a decent looking game. Despite how much is going on, the frame rate never drops and you are always able to keep track of your character, weapons and the all important power stones. When viewed up close, the models do look blocky, lack serious detail and look a bit shit. But this is a minor thing considering how crisp, clean and colourful the graphics are, and that the game runs as fast as it does. Bottom line: Power stone is a nice enough looking game and the job gets done just fine.
The sound effects in Power Stone are incredibly dynamic. Every sound effect feels amplified and really does draw you into the game. Think Power Rangers' Megazord fights turned up a few decibels and mixed in Dolby, and you're kinda there. Every hit, explosion, transformation is accompanied by a vibrant sound effect which rings and echoes in the speakers for great effect. The audio truly does help bring this game to life. Characters only have a few lines of speech between them, along with the obligatory "Oh", "Oooo", "Yaaaaa!", "Ho!" and death cry. But the voices suit the characters well, and thankfully: the few amounts of the speech the characters do have, is all recorded in Japanese. So you won't have to wince at horrendously delivered trash talk in English (Yes, I'm loon at'choooo Virtua Fighter!)
The music compositions aren't all that strong. Capcom will never EVER deliver a soundtrack for a beat 'em up which is as classic and as iconic as Street Fighter II's, but it would be nice of them to try. Power Stone's music is well composed. But none of the music in the game is even remotely memorable. And during the battles, the sounds of the beatdowns pretty much drown it out any way; which goes to show how much of a role it plays.
The Power Stone crew are a cool bunch. And in true Capcom fashion, they pander to your usual stereotypes (the Japanese girl is a ninja, the British guy is a war pilot, the Native American is a Shaman, the Japanese guy is a Samurai, and the Indian girl is a belly dancing gypsy). It's bad, but we chuckle, laugh at just how bad it is and then love the characters all the same. Each character has their own unique charm and none of 'em fight alike. Some of the characters even throw tongue in cheek references to popular characters within the anime and comic world. Wang-Tang's is a blatant wink-wink, nudge-nudge to Dragon Ball Z's Goku. The greatest thing about the characters is that you can tell Capcom are in on all of the design jokes (as politically incorrect as some of them may be). Capcom doesn't expect you to take any of the characters seriously. They just want you to have fun with them.
Power Stone is a fun game and a breath of fresh air. It played unlike any other beat 'em up on the market when it first released, and it still stands today. It's amazingly refreshing to have had Capcom develop such a unique game in the midst of constant sequels on spin-off's of their existing franchises. What causes Power Stone to suffer however, is the lack of game modes. There's no Time attack, Survival mode, Training mode, Story mode. Nothing. Once you've completed this game there is very little to go back to. And even in Versus mode the novelty of this game wears off very quickly, as matches become a case of: get three stones, unleash an attack, K.O, new round. It becomes monotonous. But Power Stone is still a charming gem of a game. It embraces its simplicity and cliche's, which is what makes it insanely loveable, and a cool 'pick up and play for 20 minutes' kinda game.
Power stone is a great game that every Dreamcast owner should play at least once. Capcom would be wise to revisit this franchise: treating current gen console gamers to a re-release or a sequel. Because I honestly don't think enough gamers got to witness first hand, the insane fun and value this game offered while it lasted.
The good
+ Easy to pick up and play
+ Great fun
+ Clean looks
The bad
- The novelty can wear off
- A distinct lack of 1 player modes to keep single players interested for long
The premise of Power Stone is simple. You batter your opponent to death with anything you can lay your hands on. Most objects and fixtures within stages can be picked up and uprooted. Benches, boxes, lamp posts, tables, chairs: it's all game. If you're lucky enough you may find a flame-thrower, rocket launcher or a lead pipe lying around to help dish the pain. During your scrap, gems will appear. Collect 3 of these and you can transform into a souped up 'minister of K.O', unleashing powerful attacks which are deadly and bloody difficult to avoid. This transformation doesn't last forever though. And if at any time a character with a gem in their possession is hit, they lose it. So battles are constantly switching between standard scraps, to defensive, to all out offensive. The game features very few intricacies in the way of button configuration. You've got punch, kick, jump and grab. Power Stone is as accessible as it gets. There is no learning curve or amazing intricacy to this game. It's as simple as A B D. Oh no wait, hold up...
Power Stone is a decent looking game. Despite how much is going on, the frame rate never drops and you are always able to keep track of your character, weapons and the all important power stones. When viewed up close, the models do look blocky, lack serious detail and look a bit shit. But this is a minor thing considering how crisp, clean and colourful the graphics are, and that the game runs as fast as it does. Bottom line: Power stone is a nice enough looking game and the job gets done just fine.
The sound effects in Power Stone are incredibly dynamic. Every sound effect feels amplified and really does draw you into the game. Think Power Rangers' Megazord fights turned up a few decibels and mixed in Dolby, and you're kinda there. Every hit, explosion, transformation is accompanied by a vibrant sound effect which rings and echoes in the speakers for great effect. The audio truly does help bring this game to life. Characters only have a few lines of speech between them, along with the obligatory "Oh", "Oooo", "Yaaaaa!", "Ho!" and death cry. But the voices suit the characters well, and thankfully: the few amounts of the speech the characters do have, is all recorded in Japanese. So you won't have to wince at horrendously delivered trash talk in English (Yes, I'm loon at'choooo Virtua Fighter!)
The music compositions aren't all that strong. Capcom will never EVER deliver a soundtrack for a beat 'em up which is as classic and as iconic as Street Fighter II's, but it would be nice of them to try. Power Stone's music is well composed. But none of the music in the game is even remotely memorable. And during the battles, the sounds of the beatdowns pretty much drown it out any way; which goes to show how much of a role it plays.
The Power Stone crew are a cool bunch. And in true Capcom fashion, they pander to your usual stereotypes (the Japanese girl is a ninja, the British guy is a war pilot, the Native American is a Shaman, the Japanese guy is a Samurai, and the Indian girl is a belly dancing gypsy). It's bad, but we chuckle, laugh at just how bad it is and then love the characters all the same. Each character has their own unique charm and none of 'em fight alike. Some of the characters even throw tongue in cheek references to popular characters within the anime and comic world. Wang-Tang's is a blatant wink-wink, nudge-nudge to Dragon Ball Z's Goku. The greatest thing about the characters is that you can tell Capcom are in on all of the design jokes (as politically incorrect as some of them may be). Capcom doesn't expect you to take any of the characters seriously. They just want you to have fun with them.
Power Stone is a fun game and a breath of fresh air. It played unlike any other beat 'em up on the market when it first released, and it still stands today. It's amazingly refreshing to have had Capcom develop such a unique game in the midst of constant sequels on spin-off's of their existing franchises. What causes Power Stone to suffer however, is the lack of game modes. There's no Time attack, Survival mode, Training mode, Story mode. Nothing. Once you've completed this game there is very little to go back to. And even in Versus mode the novelty of this game wears off very quickly, as matches become a case of: get three stones, unleash an attack, K.O, new round. It becomes monotonous. But Power Stone is still a charming gem of a game. It embraces its simplicity and cliche's, which is what makes it insanely loveable, and a cool 'pick up and play for 20 minutes' kinda game.
Power stone is a great game that every Dreamcast owner should play at least once. Capcom would be wise to revisit this franchise: treating current gen console gamers to a re-release or a sequel. Because I honestly don't think enough gamers got to witness first hand, the insane fun and value this game offered while it lasted.
The good
+ Easy to pick up and play
+ Great fun
+ Clean looks
The bad
- The novelty can wear off
- A distinct lack of 1 player modes to keep single players interested for long
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