Developer: Culture Brain Publisher: Culture Brain Release: 02/91 Genre: Action
If at first you don’t succeed try again. Flying Dragon was an attempt at distilling a karate movie in 8-bit video game form. It succeeded in some areas but like many of Culture Brain’s games was flawed. They cannot all be Magic of Scheherazade I guess. But I will not knock them for trying to offer something different. Flying Warriors is their second attempt and a title that I have conflicted feelings on. I appreciate many of its gameplay ideas but their execution is often bad. I like it overall but I do not know if I would recommend it.
Flying Warriors is an exclusive release in the US. It merges gameplay elements from Hiryu no Ken II & III (released exclusively in Japan) to create something that would appeal to Americans. Long ago Demonyx, a demon from the Dark Dimension tried to invade the Light Dimension. After a long battle, the hero of the Light Dimension, Dragonlord, sealed Demonyx away using the Mandara Talisman. But Demonyx prophesied that he would return one day under a Red Evil Star. In present day Rick Stalker is finalizing his training with is master when awakens as a Flying Warrior, one of many destined to face Demonyx on his return. Now he begins his journey to awaken the rest of his compatriots and face destiny.
You cannot blame them for trying. Flying Dragon was the first in one of Culture Brain’s longest running series. I can see how they wanted it to break out in the West. With Flying Warriors they tried to create something more appealing to American tastes, in this case superheroes. The game was heavily marketed, especially in Gamepro magazine where it had a comic strip that ran for well over a year. Whether it was successful I do not know. But considering no other games in the series came over I will say no which is a shame as the later Hiryu no Ken games are legitimately good.
Flying Warriors can be a bit hard to describe from a gameplay standpoint. For the most part it is an action side-scroller. You fight enemies like an action game but it throws in a healthy dose of platforming. When you fight in tournaments or are taken to the dark world it becomes a fighting game albeit one with unique mechanics. Even still a few of its boss fights are turn based battles like a RPG. In fact RPG mechanics are all over the game with experience, levels, shops, and an inventory system. This hodge podge of gameplay styles makes it a different experience and one that is enjoyable when it all works. Unfortunately I cannot say that it does all of the time.
The controls….I am not sure whether I like the controls or hate them. In standard mode you can jump by pressing A but can only kick to attack. In expert mode both A or Up jump with punches accomplished by pressing B +forward. On its face it makes sense. In practice it is stupid. You sacrifice gameplay using the standard option as you lose attacks and the game ends prematurely. Expert Mode has more depth but the control and its quirks are frustrating. You can adjust after a while but it never feels natural.
Flying Warriors continues the target marking system from Flying Warriors. In battle targets appear at various points on your bodies. The goal is to attack when your opponent is open and defend when you are vulnerable. Depending on the mode you can either the controls are simplified or more complex. During these battles Rick and his allies have a variety of attacks performed with simple button combinations. These range from punches and kicks to a hurricane kick. When you transform there are even more options. I like the simple back and forth flow of these encounters. When it works it is almost like a ballet or well scripted encounter that seems more complex than the NES is capable of.
The operative phrase here is when it works. Unfortunately the same issues I had with Flying Dragon persist here. At first the cadence is slow enough that you can keep up. Soon enough however the targets begin to cycle too fast. The controls cannot keep up and are unresponsive. Too often I jammed on the appropriate button and nothing happened. In fact it happens far too often. Missing a window of attack often means spending way too long waiting for another chance. As the enemies grow in hit points the game becomes incredibly tedious. It is not out of the ordinary to dodge four attacks, miss a half second attack window and watch the tusk soldier use a special attack and the cycle repeats. The last third of the game becomes a grueling, boring mess because of this.
It is honestly enough to ruin what is otherwise a decent adventure. The combination of platforming, exploration, and combat is fun when it works. But the various issues drag it down to the point you dread every fight. It sucks as the game is enjoyable otherwise. Even the tournament mode is fun in short bursts. The frustrations of dealing with an aggressive and unfair AI disappear when competing against friends. Playing as the fighters from the campaign’s story is cool but obviously lacks the depth of a proper fighting game.
In Closing
I have mixed feelings regarding Flying Warriors. I enjoyed it when I got it for Christmas in 1992. But even back then I recognized the issues that I had with the game and they still apply today. The unique gameplay elements are bogged down by repetition and inconsistent controls. There is fun to be had but you will have to tolerate a lot of frustration to appreciate it. You might want to look elsewhere in that case.
