Martial Arts Icons in Video Games
Fighting games have the opportunity to create as many characters as their roster wants to hold. In some of the most popular games like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Tekken, you’ll likely see some characters that have taken inspiration from certain action archetypes that have been portrayed by film stars. Then, there are times when a video game is built around a martial arts star. In the 80s, the Commodore 64 had a game simply titled Bruce Lee while the Nintendo had Jackie Chan‘s Action Kung-Fu.
In the 2000s, after certain Hong Kong action stars crossed over into American shores, some video games would be developed around them and gamers would have the chance to fight a population of henchmen like some of their favorite martial artists. Today we take a look at some of these games.
Jackie Chan Stuntmaster – Playstation
In the year 2000, Radical Entertainment and Midway Games released Jackie Chan Stuntmaster for the Playstation. The developers were incredibly determined to give players an authentic “Jackie Chan movie experience.” The secret to it in his films was usually the ferocity in the speed of the action. So, in order to keep the speed of the gameplay up, the developers sacrificed processed details and quality of the graphics and the loading times would get quite trying. While it’s somewhat indicative of the era, Stuntmaster would sport a simplistic, cartoony look. You play Jackie as he fights his way through gangs and mobsters in New York City after his grandfather gets kidnapped. The game would employ his signature parkour and prop fighting style and Jackie would even do the motion capture and voice work on the game.
Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon – Xbox
Microsoft had just entered the gaming ring with the Playstation 2, Dreamcast and GameCube already duking it out. The company had announced that they had partnered with Universal Interactive to make exclusive Bruce Lee games for the Xbox. In 2002, Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon was their exclusive title, but the negative reception would force them to cancel any plans for a sequel. Quest of the Dragon came from Ronin Entertainment and it would be a 3D beat ’em up with the Legend himself. Lee tries to retrieve his kidnapped father and a golden relic from the Black Lotus organization. His fight takes you through locations like Hong Kong, London and San Francisco.
Universal Interactive would also release Bruce Lee: Return of the Legend for Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance a year later in 2003.
Rise to Honor – Playstation 2
Jet Li broke out in America in the late 90s with Lethal Weapon 4. His stardom wasn’t as big as Jackie’s in the West, but he was recognized for the badass that he is and Sony Computer Entertainment would fashion an action game around him in 2004, titled Rise to Honor. The game was able to mimic the look and feel of a Hong Kong gangster movie with Jet at the center. It’s another beat ’em up and this title featured a unique fight system. Jet’s moves were quick (along with the man himself doing motion capture) and his Wu Shu style was captured by having the right analog become the attack button. You would flick the joystick in the direction of the person you want to attack and Jet would perform a move to strike in that direction, whether if he was already facing them or not. It wasn’t as revolutionary as the Batman Arkham series’ system, but it was an interesting way to capture Jet’s fighting style.
Stranglehold – Playstation 3 and Xbox 360
This one is a little different as it’s not a game developed around just Chow Yun-Fat, but it also serves as a sequel to one of his most beloved collaborations with John Woo — Hard Boiled. Midway Games would first use the Unreal Engine 3 on this title and it was released on both the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3. Tequila is caught in the middle of a Triad war over territory in Hong Kong as he goes investigating into the disappearance of a police officer. The carnage is inspired by the signature bullet ballet of Woo’s filmmaking style and you can duel-wield guns, dive, roll and jump in slow motion, just as you’re watching a John Woo movie. The style of the gameplay had been compared to the Max Payne series. A sequel called Gun Runner had been planned, but Midway’s fate would ultimately cancel the development of the game.
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