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Nintendo have put their own spin – in some cases literally –
on the fighting game genre with
ARMS
, one of many fresh,
new IPs to hit the Switch.
Words
Alesha Kolbe
A
child-friendly fighting game,
ARMS
features a roster
of different characters
to choose from, and then enter
into a ring for some arm-to-arm
combat.
These characters include
everything from the seemingly
innocent Ribbon Girl to the crazy,
Tom Cruise/Brendan Fraser
nemesis Master Mummy. There’s
also a girl called Min Min who
has ramen for arms. Nothing’s off
limits for Nintendo.
Each of these are uniquely
customisable, in that you’ll be
able to select from a handful
of different types of Arms for
your fighters, from speedier,
less lethal ones to slower,
more dangerous bludgeoning
weapons – and even things like
boomerangs and rockets. They
all have their own characteristics,
and advantages/disadvantages
according to type, so there are a
lot of options available in terms of
customisation. Weight also plays
a factor in how fast/slow you’ll
be hitting, so you’ll need to take
a few things into account during
the selection process.
If the game sounds borderline
dangerous, that’s because it is.
Being a Switch title, you’ll need to
get up and about for this one, and
we’re not messing around when
we say you should be leaving a lot
of leg room nearby. You’ll be using
the Joy-Cons to take up arms
against your opponent, punching
(similar to
Wii Fit Boxing)
and, for
lack of a better word, thrashing
about to get the upper hand(s).
Depending on how you hold the
Joy-Con, and what extravagant
wrist movements you make
during the fight, your character
will react differently. You can jump
around, block and dodge, and
even unleash spinning pummel
attacks to do away with your
nemeses.
And if that isn’t
enough, once your
special meter is
charged, you even
have access to a kind of super
attack, which will vary depending
on which character you’ve taken
up arms with. And don’t forget –
when you’re kickin’ arm in-game,
you’ll be racking up points to use
in the little arcade ARM Getter
(no, we didn’t make that up),
which will allow you to outfit your
cute fighters with more limbs,
making you even more well-armed
than before.
There are different arenas to
fight on, too, each with their
own environmental obstacles/
enhancements. That’s not to
mention the multitude of different
single-player and multiplayer
modes you’ll have access to.
ARMS
has its own versions of
volleyball and
basketball, as
well as a Grand
Prix – a 1v1 battle
tournament similar
to
Smash Bros
Classic mode.
ARMS
is a fighting game,
but you won’t be ripped limb-
from-limb if you fail. Being a
House of Mario title, there’s no
gore, just good old fashioned
TKOing.
ARMS
is quite the
handful.
ARMS is a fighting
game, but you won't
be ripped limb-from-
limb if you fail
IN
ARMS
WAY
53
FEATURE
GAMES
THE
ARMS
RACE
•
ARMS
is out June 16
Spring Man
Remember when you were a
kid and your dad asked you
to draw a superhero, and
for some reason they all had
squiggly arms? This is what
dreams are made of.
Master
Mummy
He looks like what you’d
get if you wrapped the
Incredible Hulk in toilet
paper – and just as happy
about it as you’d expect him
to be, too.
Mechanica
If you’ve played
Overwatch
,
you’ll recognise her as
a clunkier
D.Va.But
Mechanica has charm of
her own kind – including
rockets. Lots of rockets.