JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD's storyline follows the tale of Jotaro Kujo who has recently unlocked a special fighting power known as the Stand, which allows him to summon an avatar of sorts with powers great enough to fight against other combatants while not putting his own body in harm's way. The boy is taught to use this power by his grandfather and then sets off on a quest to rescue his mother from the vampire Dio Brando and rescue from her own, unstable Stand powers. As with any fighting title, the game will feature many different endings and storylines based on which character you choose in story mode, and while the game's storyline isn't a pivotal part of gameplay, it works well enough for an old-school fighter to keep you playing through the game with various characters.
Many features that weren't present in fighting games of its generation make up the fighting styles and controls in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD. While you have your typical special moves that are activated with a spin of the control pad and a button press, you'll find plenty of great combos, special attacks and meters that need to be tracked at all times. As you progress through a battle, you can summon your Stand to fight alongside you in combat. This fresh take on the classic Capcom fighting system is really interesting, but don't keep your Stand out for too long and allow it to take too much damage, or you will pay the cost by becoming stunned for a short period of time. Fighting is smooth and is controlled really well. Fighting fans will really enjoy this one once they've learned to play.
One of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD biggest problems comes in the game's presentation. In a generation where fantastic graphics have become standard for any game release, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD looks very dated even among PlayStation Network titles. In addition, there is no easy way to learn to play JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD. The lack of tutorials or helpful move lists and practice modes stick out like a sore thumb making the game have a super steep learning curve. Characters are also not balanced very well which makes you want to cheese your way through battles to keep the same from happening to you. The game's soundtrack is fine, and between the game's ridiculous animations and funny voice acting, you'll be laughing your way through many fights, so all is not lost. There is also an impressive roster of fighters that make up JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD with over 30 characters to choose from the first time you boot up the game.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD is far from perfect, and this could be enough to drive people away from the $20 price tag, but the game is a lot of fun when you actually sit down to play it with some friends. The game also boasts fantastic online features with great game lobbies and an ability to quickly run a rematch against an opponent if you so choose. Still, the game feels and looks dated even with the optional graphical enhancements that smooth over the rough edges. If you're a hardcore fighter fan, you'll want to pick up JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD immediately. But for the rest of us, you may be better off spending some time with Skullgirls, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Street Fighter X Tekken or some other fighter and saving your money for some other title.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure HD is now available for Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network on August 22, 2012 and can be purchased for 1600 Microsoft Points or $19.99 respectively. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure HD is rated T by the ESRB for Partial Nudity, Suggestive Thems & Violence. For more information on JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure HD, check out the official Capcom website.
Game Information:
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Platforms: Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3 (reviewed)
Release Date: August 22, 2012
