An update of Streets of Rage with a very nice twist. One word, two syllables: Crazy!

User Rating: 8.9 | God Hand PS2
By Bodboy466 | Review Date:
Note: I am going to a little in depth but believe me when I say this game is incredibly easy to just pick up and play, and yet can be deceivingly complex. For people who feel extremely out of their element in Xenosaga because of the major amount of story, here is Xenosaga's foil: God Hand. A game that gives you a basic idea of what you are doing and then sets you free to wreak havoc on nearby enemies. And the variety of ways that you wreak havoc on these evil-doers is extremely satisfying. The way it works is you have a small number of different moves to work with at the start: the square button is your basic combo button, and you have a number of other button combinations to customize moves whether you want them to be roundhouse kicks, sweeps, or upper-cuts or whatever else you have available to you. The basic combo button is of course also customizable. You can set it so your combo is an uppercut, then a somersault, followed by a high kick that sends them flying hundreds of feet across the fighting area. In addition to your basic combos you have, instantly available to you, God Hand techniques for when you really want to lay down the hurt. Moves such as kicking someone into the sky, sending a blast of God energy at your enemies, and plenty of others to whet your appetite with. Yes, moves can and probably will do exaggerated and quite amusing things to your enemies. Things such as throw them ten feet in the air, send them impossible distances and any number of things which I think is one of the most important aspects of the game. It gives you a feeling of power, fun and at times it's pretty funny. This game really is a mix of satire and adventure. The circle button is a sort of "all-purpose" button that integrates perfectly: you use it during combat when it gives you the option to do something specific to that particular enemy. Say you're beating one of those heavy-set guys and he goes in to a dizzy- you can hit circle if it gives you the option to use the Stinger which is where you ram your knee into his head repeatedly. In addition, if you are good at button mashing you can do extra damage by hitting circle quickly and repeatedly. One the more common uses of the circle is to "Stomp" and enemy on the ground. Yes, Gene shows no mercy. And for a major boom-boom you have the option to use your Heat-Up gauge to unleash the God Hand which basically makes you super-fast and super-powerful for a small amount of time. This is for those really resilient enemies or when there are a lot of enemies. You know, your basic berserk-button. And that's everything you can do from the very start. Had enough? Of course not.

Between each level you can use the money you gained in the levels before to buy new techniques, Roulettes (God Hand techniques) and upgrades to health, Heat-up gauge etc. to power up Gene. Additionally, you can use the practice arena to test the effectiveness of your combo, test out new moves and fight in the Extreme Fighting Arena. And one more addition: having trouble making money? Are those stupid evil-doers not coughing up the dough? Take what you've got and gamble! Yes, the casino is open 24/7 to help you get rid of what you have left in the attempt to get more. Actually, the casino usually ends up giving you plenty of money in stark contrast to real-world casinos. And if you do lose all of your money? You remembered to save beforehand right? Of course you did. So load that game and everything will be all right.

The casino can be really fun in the beginning, making all of that money, but once you have all you need, it's just there. Or is it? While the money-making part is important, part of the game in the casino is earning tickets at the slot machine to take a chance at getting special prizes that you can't get anywhere else. Be sure to check that out.

Now, the fact that the story is sparse does not mean there isn't one. No, in fact there's more than the average gamer will realize. For those that need story, there is an entire back story in the manual that never gets mentioned in the game (or only gets touched on). This game is first and foremost an amusement. If you go heavy on serious games all of the time, then I greatly suggest this as a break. It took me a good twenty hours to complete and the ending will at least make you smirk. This game truly doesn't take itself seriously and is that really such a bad thing?

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