Sifu, an upcoming martial arts action game developed by Sloclap, has recently revealed new details on the game, including new details on gameplay mechanics and new release date. Building off of Sloclap’s previous online multiplayer title, Absolver, Sifu seeks to bring a more personal singleplayer experience by focusing on one Kung-Fu student’s mission to avenge the death of his (or her) family, but along the way, they must hone and perfect their fighting skills through trial and error, all while trying to avoid their inevitable demise.
Revealed in several gameplay videos, Sifu showcases two important details: The combat system, and the Death & Aging system. First going over the combat: fighting in Sifu isn’t all about mindlessly punching and kicking, as players will have to make use of parries, blocks, weapons, environmental hazards, and combo attacks with different properties such as pushbacks, knockdowns, and stuns. With each attack dealt with your opponents, a meter will slowly increase at the bottom of the screen, indicating the opponent’s balance. If an opponent has taken one too many hits, their balance will be broken, opening them up to a powerful finishing move, which is very similar to the balance system found in FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
In the next video, they revealed details regarding how death works in the game. Unlike most other action titles, failing in Sifu is part of the game. Every time players fall in combat, their character will come back to life, thanks to the power of an ancient pendant. All of the player’s experience and skills from previous battles will carry over once they revive, and can even gain new skills beforehand. However, reviving in combat does have cost, as your character will viably age by a few years, and while your aged character does not fight slower or become more feeble, it means that players will have fewer chances to complete their goal. Once your character has reached a certain age, the pendant will cease to revive, and falling in combat once more will result in a game over.
Finally, Sloclap has revealed in another video that the game’s release date has been pushed two weeks forward, from February 22nd, 2022, to February 8th, 2022. Players will be able to buy the standard edition for the game or spend a few more dollars for a deluxe edition, which includes a copy of Sifu, the game’s original soundtrack, and a digital artbook.
Sifu is set to release on February 8th, 2022 for Playstation 4, Playstation 5, and PC via the Epic Game Store.
