It's simple, it's gorgeous, it's good
The fighting system surely hasn't gotten incredible fame, but it actually deserves it. Here's a game that anyone can pick up and play, and be good at. The controls are very well done for the Gamecube controller, and you can figure out what to do in no time. It's not a matter of just smashing buttons and punching and kicking your way to victory; you can learn advanced moves just as far. Now for the other side of things, for the hardcore fighting-fans or those that like some depth in their combat, Primal Fury plays hosts to great deal of combos that require good memory and excellent button-rhythm. These chain of attacks, and special moves really require time and effort to master, but once you do so, you'll love to see them over and over.
Bloody Roar's gimmick has always been the ability to transform your character into a creature, and continue fighting like a human. Truth be told, besides slow health-regeneration, maybe some better speed and power, and a few new moves, changing into your Beast Form won't change combat all that much. But it's a still of lot of fun to do so, and some of the beasts look very good.
In fact, the entire game looks good. The fact that this game came out in early 2002 and features such beautiful graphics is beyond amazing; it beats out dozens of titles released on Gamecube, X-Box and PS2 from 2005, and even 2006. Animations are precise, texture and detail are top-notch, and the colors work perfectly. Then there's the anime cut-scenes/intro/endings, which actually look nice. Sure, they're no Cowboy Bebop or Gundam Seed, but then again, those are real cartoons, and this is a video game. Funny thing is, the anime in Primal Fury looks better than a lot of real animes.
In all honesty, there may be one or two blemishes, but they're so minor that you'll never notice them without seriously investigating. You'd have to glue your eyes to the TV and try to spot them out.
If only the game sounded as good as it looked. Now, the audio isn't bad, it's just, not great, is the best way to put it. Music's nice, but very few tracks are memorable, and the sound-effects work well, but the voice-acting is pretty poor. It becomes a matter of the good offsetting the bad to make it just, okay.
Bloody Roar: Primal Fury's a very fun fighting game that doesn't try any major twists on gameplay, and gives you straight-up, but interesting combat. And if you like that, then you could be playing this game for a while; 16 characters in all, a bunch of stages and all kinds of modes and extras to go through. Heck, you may even want to try and master the game so you can beat the ridiculously hard (though often cheap) high-difficulty levels.
Looking for a casual, but fun fighting game? Looking for one for your ambitious little Gamecube? Then treat it to Bloody Roar: Primal Fury.