There’s a definitively cheesy charm to this new Vita game that’s going to be lost on anyone who seriously stacks it up against the other, better fighting games released on the handheld and that’s too bad. Sure, the game loses itself in trying WAY too hard to be intentionally campy and the actual combat is loose and a bit frustrating if you’re a hardcore arcade junkie, but there are some cool bright spots. Snapping backgrounds for the augmented reality fighting indoors or out works really well, the character edit function is pretty deep and with some work (and a better resolution camera upgrade on the Vita), I can see this getting a MUCH improved sequel…

As for the canned corn here, I have NO idea why developers don’t think this stuff through, but I felt the camp value was overplayed yet paradoxically, undercooked. Yanking in the Mr. Miyagi character from the original Karate Kid movies gives the game a weird “it’s for OLD people!” vibe that may go over the heads of younger players who just want a casual button masher. Of course, some stupidly generic cartoon characters here would be the kiss of death sals-wise, but I guess a game with players as the stars could suffer from the same fate if you over-think it too much. As for the obvious vulgar content that some users will generate, we’ll have to see what happens as some not so wise sorts start using that Vita camera to snap stuff you don’t want to see in ANY game and start spreading it around (eek)…

Anyway, as a launch title, it’s OK overall, but not really a system-seller unless you’re so new to gaming (or not at all jaded) that you can overlook the flaws. My advice for any developer trying to add humor to a game like this is to avoid going TOO far back with the pop culture references lest you want your user base to be spending half the time on Google looking up stuff when they should be playing. I guess a straight send-up of an old Kung Fu flick would have worked better, but even then, you’re treading a thin line between hilarious and offensive to some out there. Ah, the eternal balancing act of life, art and common sense continues, grasshopper…