Rise to Honor garnered its share of hype last summer when it was announced that Jet Li will lend his voice and motion capture to the game. Needless to say, this was met with some skepticism after the disappointing release of “Bruce Lee: Quest for the Dragon” a couple years earlier. SCEA set out to make Rise to Honor a truly cinematic experience while offering many types of gameplay modes. Does Rise to Honor offer the same cinematic experience of a Jet Li movie, or is it just a mediocre beat-em-up using Li's star power as a gimmick?
Jet Li stars as Kit Yun, who is an undercover cop acting as a bodyguard for Hong Kong crime syndicate leader, Boss Chiang. However, your vendetta changes as an incident forces Kit to travel to San Francisco in search of Chiang's daughter (and Kit's childhood friend) Michelle. The catch is that a rival syndicate is also out to get Michelle along with a letter Kit has and send them all back to Hong Kong .
Rise to Honor features multiple gameplay modes and consists of traditional beat-em-up levels, 3 rd person shooting levels, and stealth action levels. While this offers some variety, some modes such as the stealth levels, aren't executed well. One original feature of RTH is the fighting system. Instead of using buttons for punches and kicks, attacks are executed by tapping the right analog stick in the direction of an enemy. Well-timed taps will result in suave looking combo attacks that end with a nice slow-motion shot of the final blow and the result of the enemy being thrown back. Once the game is played, this system makes sense in that Kit will find himself constantly surrounded and can distribute attacks in multiple directions like the movies. When attacks connect, or as Kit is taking damage, an adrenaline meter fills up. Once full, Kit can unleash a chain of attacks where Kit can juggle foes in the air and perform physic-defying moves for really big chains that are somewhat reminiscent of the “Alpha attacks” from the Street Fighter Alpha series. Kit also blocks and dodges with the R1 button and when R1 and L1 are pressed, Kit can block and counter an attacking enemy. Kit can also grapple while holding R1 and tapping towards and enemy; if he's with a partner, Kit can grapple the partner to perform team attacks. Once you're used to the fighting system, these moves can be performed with ease. While running around levels, you'll see pop-up indicators that let you perform actions such as jumping, climbing, and kicking off of walls. These can also be integrated into battle, though the action indicators aren't too intuitive. There are times where you'll be chased by helicopters or exploding bridges and forced to run a gauntlet of jumps. Sometimes, the indicators won't go off and you end up blocking instead of performing the desired action. This can stick you with a number of multiple, if not mindless attempts. You'll also be able to pick up an assortment of dropped weapons from enemies such as wrenches, crowbars, and tasers. Kit can also have one weapon in each hand for some real action. The problem here is, unlike hand-to-hand fighting, you can't run and attack with weapons. You have to run, stop, then attack. Not a big issue, but can be maddening in tight situations.
The shoot-em-up portions of the game take some getting used to. You find Kit running through alley ways, hospitals, and office buildings. You can target enemies using the R2 button and inanimate objects, such as exploding barrels with the L2 button. The right analog stick controls the direction you're shooting. These controls aren't too intuitive and tend to give you hand cramps after some time. Despite the run-and-gun feeling these levels provide; there is some strategy involved. You'll have to use cover often as you're constantly under fire in some cases.
The stealth missions are another case. They feel somewhat tacked on. You'll encounter a number of security guards armed with flashlights who move in patterns. It's your job to sneak through without getting caught in their lights while knocking them out. Once a guard is knocked out, you won't have to worry about moving a body since the guards never overlap their paths. Guards never react if a nearby guard screams in pain while being knocked out and there is rarely danger if you're standing right next to a guard while waiting for his light to go out. These levels basically become a simple lesson in learning patterns along with trial and error.
As you can see, RTH tries to be a lot of things at once. Beat-em-up levels are the best of the bunch with destructible objects that can be thrown at enemies, or that enemies can be thrown through; though the surroundings tend to get a little claustrophobic at times. Shooting levels also feature destructible objects that can be shot down onto enemies ducking behind cover. There are some problems with the level design where you'll find yourself at a dead end and not knowing where to go or what to do to open the next door without any type of an objective. Prepare to wonder aimlessly at a couple of points throughout the game. Enemy AI is sufficient, if not a little predictable since they all move in patterns. Towards the end of the game, you'll discover that cheap tactics are the way to win and you'll find yourself constantly blocking and countering the entire time.
Visuals in RTH are a mixed bag. Fighting looks great and the motion capture really enhances the action. You'll see a lot of suave moves from Li that you wouldn't normally see in the movies. Outside of fighting though, the characters look a little more stiff and wooden. Climbing and running animations just don't look natural. Enemy models look good as well, and do a decent job of selling the powerful moves from your character. You have a good variety of them as well as you move from Hong Kong to San Francisco and back, though you'll start to notice some recycling towards the end.
Sound is one of the departments where RTH shines. Aside from Li's voice work, the supporting characters all do a decent job as well. Li seems to put forth some effort in his part and doesn't sound bored or lifeless. One cool aspect is that the characters all speak Cantonese in Hong Kong and English in America . Aside from the usual grunts and groans, enemies have their own little sound bites, but they tend to get repetitive after a while; especially when you have a number of them in one room and they're all saying the same thing.
ise to Honor attempts mix a number of varying gameplay styles into one with some success. The game is non-stop action from start to end. Though one can finish it in 10-12 hours, it's a short, but sweet ride. Once you're past the learning curve, fighting and shooting are enjoyable. The game also has some special features packed in, such as a behind the scenes documentary right off the bat. Once beaten, you'll also gain special features such as a harder difficulty, alternate costumes, concept art, models, and story boards. Though once you beat the game, you'll most likely have no desire to go through the game again unless you are just dying to see Li as a Shaolin Monk. All-in-all, Rise to Honor isn't the greatest game but can be an enjoyable experience that is worth a weekend rental.
Final Word
With all do respect, I wasn't expecting much from this game. I was really skeptical about the control scheme and about how complicated it would be, but it turned out to do the job well. Though the fighting tends to get repetitive towards the end of the game, it's enjoyable for anyone who wants a good old school beat-em-up.
- Brad Hicks (aka Dr. Swank), SwankWorld Media
