When my 6-year-old, Nikolai, saw the Kung Fu Panda video game in the store, he asked me if it would be possible for him to review it in order for him to get a chance to play it.  So on his behalf, I checked to see if a review copy was available, figuring that that would be the extent of my involvement in this video game review, after all he said he wanted to review it… I should have known better.  Now I don’t want to criticize Nik’s first video game review, because it was succinct and straight to the point, unfortunately it read too much like an Ernest Hemingway novel; “The game was fun.  The graphics are cool.  I liked it.  You should go buy a copy for yourself.”   So I guess it will be my job to now tease-out and expand upon his overly concise evaluation.

Before we begin, there are a couple of things I should note.  First, we had the opportunity to play the Kung Fu Panda video game available for both the Nintendo Wii and the Nintendo DS, so we’ll do our best to compare and contrast the two gaming platforms.  Second, the game is rated ‘E’ for Everyone due to Fantasy Violence and Language, and the game carries a recommend age of 10+.  As his parents, we keep an eye on the video game violence in the games Nik plays, and the violence associated with this particular game is hardly worth a mention.  As for the game playing challenge designated by the ‘recommended age of 10+’, well that doesn’t appear to dissuade Nik in the slightest.  Heck, the kid prefers to assemble the Lego kits targeted at kids 8 and 16+, so there you go.

The Chi of Kung Fu Panda

So unless you’ve had your head under a rock, then you know that the Kung Fu Panda video game is based on the DreamWorks Movie by the same name and its release coincided with the release of the film.  So, we’re going to call an apple an apple, and an orange an orange and therefore designate this video game for what it is; movie branded merchandising. 

As an aside, I half suspect that the video game programmers for the motion picture industry work with a proprietary programming kit which could help explain how they are able to produce movie branded video games so quickly and why they almost all appear to be the same game…

Motion Picture Video Game Programming Kit (Version 4.2)
Input Gaming Platform: Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, Wii, and DS
Input Genre: Multi-level Fighting Saga
Input Recommend Age: 10+
Input Story Location: Feudal China
Input Bitmap for Main Character: Big, fat panda bear
Input Voice for Main Character: Jack Black
Input Bitmap for Secondary Characters: scan oper?/function.bit cd:/dir/home folder/movie folder/projects/KUNG_FU_PANDA.mov; designate keyword: ‘Co-Star’
Input Voice for Secondary Characters: scan oper?/function.voc cd:/dir/home folder/movie folder/projects/KUNG_FU_PANDA.mov; designate keyword: ‘Co-Star’

That said, we haven’t had the opportunity to see this movie yet, so we’ll be reviewing this particular video game based on its own merits.

The Quest

An air of tranquility has reigned over the Valley of Peace for many years due to the ever-vigilant eyes of the Kung Fu Masters, Furious Five: Tigress, Monkey, Viper, Crane, and Mantis.  But when that peace is shattered by the daring prison escape of the evil Tai Lung, it is up to an unlikely hero, a panda named Po, to learn the secrets of Kung Fu and become ancient China’s most legendary Kung Fu Warrior, The Dragon Warrior.  Trained by Master Shifu and assisted by the Furious Five, Po travels across the differing environs of China learning, practicing, and perfecting his Kung Fu skills, leading him to face his final quest and realize his potential…  Can you help Po defeat Tai Lung in the Ultimate Kung Fu Showdown?

It should be noted that in the Wii version of the game, you control Po as well as Master Shifu and the Furious Five as you advance through the game, whereas on the DS you only control the actions of Po.  The Wii version is also set-up for multiplayer whereas the DS is single player.

Mastering One’s Kung Fu

Surprisingly, the instruction manuals for both versions of the game are a bit thin, but that’s okay because the early parts of the game give you a tutorial as to how to control Po and his attack moves.  Nikolai appreciated this feature because like most kids, he’s discovered that actually stopping to read the manual uses up valuable time which can be better spent playing the game.  Instructions in the form of visual cues on the screen along with descriptive dialog by some of the characters help you to master your Kung Fu.

Now the Wii version of the game takes full advantage of the built in accelerometers of the Wii-mote and Nunchuk and… Hmmm.  Very interesting, a video game where the designation “Nunchuk” actually makes sense.  Anyway, where were we?  Oh yeah; Running Attack, Jumping Attack, Juggle Attack, Dodging, and The Panda Quake are all controlled by physical movements of the Wii-mote and Nunchuk.  Since the movements were very similar to those found in Wii Sports, Nik adapted very quickly to controlling the character’s actions.  However, he’ll be the first to admit that there is some finesse involved, hence the recommended age of 10+.

As for the DS version, it uses the Stylus and Touch Screen to control Po’s Kung Fu Attacks.  Simply put, to attack your foes, you slide and tap the Touch Screen with the Stylus.  This was first time we’ve experienced this kind of input with the DS in an action game of this nature, so the movement was kind of unique.  Watching Nik play, I though it looked awkward but when I tried it, I discovered that it was very easy to control Po’s Kung Fu--almost too easy.  Nik concurred, stating that of the two versions he found the DS easier to control.  That said, watching a 6 year old aggressively attacking his DS touch screen with a stylus can be a bit disconcerting. The DS version also takes advantage of the double screen by displaying all of the action on the lower Touch Screen and a map of the area on the upper screen.

Breaking Boards

Game play is fast-paced and graphically appealing in a manner similar to other games of this genre, with an increased sophistication nod going to the Wii, which is to be expected.  Both versions of the game feature the actual actors from the movie providing the voices for the characters, with Jack Black being counted on to give comedic wit to Po’s Bodacious Humor.  This had Nik chuckling on more than one occasion, whereas I tended to roll my eyes.

Punching Empty Air

I realize that this video game is movie branded merchandizing, however what surprised me is playing with it and watching Nik play it has not increased my inclination to go see the movie.  The same cannot be said of Nikolai who doesn’t understand the term movie branded merchandizing and is now very keen on seeing the film.  Perhaps after seeing the movie, I will develop a vested interest in the characters and therefore increase my appeal for the game, as for now, on it’s own, the game seems a little flat.  In a word, meh.

Overall Impressions

Nik found both versions of the game to be challenging, with the Wii version being a little more difficult than the DS, which is good because I hate it when he ‘walks’ through a video game in less than a week.  That said, he decided to give both versions of the game 95 of his patented Thumbs-Up out of 100 stating that sometimes the game may have been a little too challenging. As for me, well the game maybe for ages 10+, but I also felt it was for ages 16-, so I can only give it 4 Dancing Elephants out of 8.

Parting Thoughts

For his part, I’ll have to admit that Nikolai took this review very seriously.  In fact, every time he booted up the game, I swear I could hear him singing to himself, “Everybody was kung-fu fighting, Those cats were fast as lightning. In fact it was a little bit frightening. But they fought with expert timing.”  A nod to Carl Douglas.