Kung fu rabbits? The devil, you say! And made by Wolfire, too!
Killer bunnies aren't exactly a common plot device, outside of Monty Python and Night of the Lepus. Anthropomorphic killer bunnies are even more of a rarity. (Except when wandering through Second Life.) Thus, Lugaru has one major attraction right off the bat: it is very unique.
There are countless kung fu action games out there, and just as many humanoid animal games. If these subgenres are chocolate and peanut butter, then Lugaru is a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Inexplicably addicting... in small amounts.
Lugaru is the brainchild of David Rosen, founder of Wolfire Games.Wolfire is an independent developer that specializes in highly original game concepts. Lugaru is their first "full" game, preceded by equally addictive freeware titles like Lightning's Shadow and Black Shades.
Now, I know what you're thinking. Lugaru is some furry-based Raving Rabbids type affair, right? Wrong. Very, very wrong. Blood spatters the walls and ground with almost every fight. Knives, swords, and sticks can slice, slash, impale, and shatter the bones of anybody that crosses their wielder's path. The actual gore is in very small amounts, but the sheer force of the average fight more than makes up for the tiny puddles it leaves.
I must stress that Lugaru is an independent title. I repeat this because the first thing you'll notice about it is the very amateur graphic design. This game can be described in many ways, but "pretty"is not one of them. The character models are decently detailed and varied, so they do stand out in a drab, pointy world. Most of the structures are little more than giant blocks, and terrain is incredibly simple in texture. Grass, snow, sand, trees, bushes, a hill or three.That's the whole of it. On the positive side, the lack of detail makes for a huge arena to fight in.
Thankfully, this game doesn't need interesting environments, as you won't be doing any traveling. Instead, Lugaru is split into what can best be described as vignettes. You complete a section's objective(usually "kill everything that moves"),then you are brought back to the map to click on, and instantly appear in, the next segment. This is for the best, since each level is very open on all sides, with little to mark your path. This gives an illusion of open-endedness, as there are a few ways one can tackle each battle.
On the subject of battles, Lugaru is nothing without its brilliant, if admittedly slightly flawed, fighting system. Most games of this sort have simple "A to punch, B to kick" style controls. Lugaru, on the other hand, assigns 99% of attacks to the left mouse button. What move you pull off appears to be mostly context based, though I may be wrong.The default attack is a roundhouse kick that sends your opponent flying as a ragdoll through the air, looking far more damaging than it actually is. Crouch, and your attack will be a sweep kick, again temporarily making your opponent go ragdoll. A running start on four legs will give you a tackle move that can kill weaker enemies right off the bat. The rest of your extensive fighting repertoire is reliant on split-second timing and the occasional counterattack. The most difficult to pull off are the finishers, which can put even the hardiest of prey down in an instant. Pick up a weapon, and you have a whole new set of moves. There is also a scoring system that depends on what moves you use.
There's only one problem: Your enemies have a very similar moveset, and it can be extremely difficult to get the best of faster assailants.Wolves are especially formidable, as they are lightning quick,ridiculously strong, and almost unfairly able to shrug off normally devastating moves.
This can lead to major frustration, and is my only major beef with Lugaru. Difficulty is fine, but it should always be a gradual thing.Going from very easy to "throw the monitor out of the window"frustrating in the blink of an eye may turn off the less dedicated players.
You may have noticed that I haven't written a single word about the plot. That would be because the plot in this game is merely an excuse for rabbit fighting action. The in-game conversations are entirely text-based, and entirely forgettable. Replace every line of dialog with the sentences "Kill rabbits before rabbits kill you, Protagonist Rabbit!", and "I am going to kill you, Antagonist Rabbits!", and you won't be missing out on anything. But honestly, who plays games about rabbits for the storyline?
Sound is similarly sparse, with little but footsteps and general thwacking noises to treat your ears with. Alerting a patrolling enemy will start a repetitive (yet surprisingly not annoying) "badum badum badum" type noise that lasts until said enemy, or you, dies. There is music, but it's nothing extraordinary. It's well made, just a bit generic.
On the technical side of things, Lugaru is as efficient as one can reasonably ask it to be. Any halfway modern computer can run it flawlessly, even with all of the eye candy (like motion blur) cranked to maximum. Ragdoll effects are a bit glitchy, but they serve their purpose well. Indie games are notorious for being unpolished, but Wolfire has created a very professional, if aesthetically outdated,engine.
Lugaru may be a short and slightly repetitive game, but to call it anything less than a bargain for its quite reasonable price tag would be a boldfaced lie. A solid campaign, a wide variety of "challenge"levels, user-made content, and an extremely moddable engine all work towards giving you your money's worth, and then some. It's not a masterpiece, but it is an extremely promising genesis for a very talented developer. I can easily see Wolfire becoming a big name in the indie scene, as long as they keep up the level of quality they have shown so far.
There is also a sequel on it's way, called Overgrowth, which looks like it may hopefully fix the negative aspects of the original. If it doesn't, well, it'll still likely be a well-made game worth playing.
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