I really should learn not to stick my hand up when anime/manga based games come through the letterbox here at TheXboxHub. You see, I have reviewed, in the past, a couple of games based on the Bleach series of books, and ended up having to buy the whole collection, not only of books but DVDs too. The same happened when I played Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba, and I’m now working my way through those series as well.
With that in mind, I’ve been handed reviewing duties for MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice, the latest from ByKing and Bandai Namco. And yes, it has already made me go out and buy the first book to see what is going on. It’s a conspiracy, I tell you!
A Cinematic Take on Manga History
Now, not wanting to get too deep into spoiler territory for those of you who aren’t up to speed with the overarching narrative of the MY HERO ACADEMIA books, I’ll attempt to explain what we are doing here.
Basically, the game replays the final battle from the manga from a number of different perspectives, and that is what Story mode is all about; a lot of different characters I’ve never heard of, such as Bakugo and Deku. It says here that it is a unique and cinematic take on the established story, and it does seem that way.
Faithful Presentation
Presentation of MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice is as you’d expect from a game based on an anime series; really good. The cut scenes appear to have been lifted directly from the anime, and the action when fighting is fast, fluid and flowing. The personality of the characters, both good and bad comes through in spades, and this is a testament to the love for the source material that is on display. Whether we are fighting or running around the hub town looking for missions and new recruits to our line up, everything looks very good indeed.
If I had my super critical head on, I’d argue that the obstacles in the various arenas we fight in seem to be purely decorative, as it is entirely possible to be combo’d through a massive rock, but this is a small matter and easily overlooked.
Sound is also excellent, from the cries of the various characters as they unleash their battle moves and Quirks through to engaging them in conversation. Music, the ambient sound and all the other functions work nicely too, and so I can award a decent mark for the presentation as a whole. Basically put, should you be a fan of the books/anime, you’ll feel right at home here, but luckily it doesn’t feel like the barrier to entry for us newcomers is too high.
Local Brawls and Ghost-Town Servers
So, let’s have a look at what we are doing in the game, shall we? Well, as you’d expect, there are a variety of ways to play, both single player and multiplayer. We’ll kick off in the multiplayer arena, as here the news is very mixed indeed. You see, playing against your friends and family in local competition works very nicely indeed: the action is just as good as in the single player modes, and pummeling my son, and being pummeled in return, has been a great deal of fun. The Free Battle mode, where this happens, also allows you to battle the CPU if you don’t have a handy opponent.
However, when venturing online to take my skills to a waiting world, the news is less good. MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice is extremely quiet in terms of player population; so much so that at times over the weeks it’s been tricky to establish whether the online is working, or if it is just lacking in numbers. If you do get in, things are fine, but don’t come to All’s Justice expecting a super busy online world.
Single Player Depths
The news is better in the single player modes, of which there are many. Story mode allows you to play a branching narrative, as each battle that you win unlocks not only new cutscenes, but extra fights, with differing viewpoints. As we begin, we are fighting against a character called Shigaraki, while getting to the end of that branch allows us to play as Shigaraki and see the story from his perspective. This is an interesting way of viewing the story, and keeps you playing just to see what else is going to happen.
Other modes include Training, where we can practice with our favoured team of heroes and learn to unleash their powerful moves. There is also Character Memory which allows you to experience things that have been seen before, This allows us to live out the histories of all 20 of Class 1-A’s heroes, as well as taking part in Archive Battles, reliving more historical moments from the manga. There is also a Customisation option, which unlocks cosmetic items, from banners for each fighter to being able to select a favourite victory pose. These have no impact on the gameplay, but do allow you to express your own personality.
Team-Up Battles and Roster Recruitment
Finally, Team-Up Battles take place in a virtual training space, ensuring you are given the chance to go and run around freely, interacting with faces from the source material. These characters can be fought, or spoken to and added to the roster of support characters.
Hell, some can even be added to the team, allowing us to use their abilities to navigate the virtual space. There are a lot of things to find and do in this arena, and this is where I have spent the majority of my time.
An Accessible Entry Point for Newbies and Pros Alike
The fighting action on offer, in all the modes, is really intuitive to pick up, and MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice is helped by having a simple control system in place. You can go to a more traditional control method once you are used to the gameplay, but being able to pull off some impressive, flashy combos using only a single button is incredibly satisfying.
Aside from the online multiplayer issues, MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice is an extremely solid game to play; suitable for fans of the source material, but also well up to the job of dragging in any newbie.
Important Links
The Final War Starts Now In MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice – https://www.thexboxhub.com/the-final-war-starts-now-in-my-hero-academia-alls-justice/
MY HERO ACADEMIA: All’s Justice Adds Star and Stripe As First DLC Fighter – https://www.thexboxhub.com/my-hero-academia-alls-justice-adds-star-and-stripe-as-first-dlc-fighter/
Buy the Standard Edition – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/my-hero-academia-alls-justice/9P183CW04582/0010
Go Deluxe – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/my-hero-academia-alls-justice-deluxe-edition/9NVKXBKK08J9/0010
You can also go all-in with the Ultimate Edition – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/my-hero-academia-alls-justice-ultimate-edition/9N7NTF1SM7TK/0010
