Jump Force: Deluxe Edition

While definitely not for the online competitive community due to the game’s lag issues, manga/anime fans looking for a fun time are going to really enjoy how well all of these characters translate into the game, even if they're sometimes a bit nightmarish.

Even with the beloved characters and charming interactions, as with most Shonen Jump crossover games, how much you get out of it will largely depend on how much you love these stories. For fans who only have access to a Switch, the journey will be worth it for you to experience this game, especially as the holidays loom and sales come through, but for anime fans looking for the best version of the game, you might want to get out that Dragon Radar and look at the offerings on PS4 and Xbox One.

If you can’t wait to get your hands on Jump Force and you only own a Switch this version is nearly just as good as the other versions. It’s actually impressive that the game didn’t have any dropped content to make it to Switch, but it all seems intact. I would think many Switch owners would play this game in handheld mode, so you most likely won’t even notice that much of a difference in the overall graphics compared to the other systems. The game is nearly no different from the other versions except for a few framerate and graphics issues that are often in Switch ports.

Jump Force: Deluxe Edition isn't a terrible title, but you have to be willing to forgive its numerous issues to enjoy it. The fighting is flashy, but it lacks depth since you can button-mash the attack button and win just about every match. The character roster is smaller compared to previous Jump games, and some of the dream interactions are hobbled by a less-than-stellar story and a lack of voices to make the interactions impactful. There are certainly better fighting games on the system, including a few licensed ones, and the only reason to give this one a look is if you really, really need to have some sort of crossover going.

Overall, Jump Force feels less like a celebration of beloved anime franchises and more like a half-assed attempt to cash in with the widest fanbase possible. With other great crossover fighters like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Injustice 2 out there, it’s hard not to think that these iconic characters deserved better.

Jump Force Deluxe Edition arrives on the Nintendo Switch with some concessions regarding its technical aspects and if the character roster and special moves will certainly appeal to the fans of the series that are portrayed here, the rest of the audience will mostly feel that the game's shortcomings regarding its visual performance and rather lacklustre combat is not enough to stand out from its peers.

Jump Force Deluxe Edition has great ideas and intentions but fails to execute them in a meaningful way. Its story woefully underutilizes the incredible roster of characters at its disposal, and some technical and design problems keep it from being the smooth experience a modern fighter on Switch needs to be. The simple but flashy combat can be fun while you try out some signature moves from your favorite anime characters, but the lack of depth means that this novelty will eventually fade away. How far your mileage goes before that happens will just depend on how much you enjoy these properties.

Jump Force is a good time for a short time; a simplistic button-masher that looks and sounds great in action but can't deliver in terms of providing players with any more than a handful of hours of dumb fun before it all becomes a bit of a bore. If you're a huge fan of the shows involved or you like your fighting nice and easy you'll get more than most out of things and jumping into an online battle – if you can find one – adds a little spice to the mix but, overall, this is a disappointingly dull, one-note affair that doesn't do its roster of ever-popular characters any sort of justice.

Even though Jump Force has tried its best to stay in the fight years past its release, it just can’t land a punch. All of its problems far outweigh its positives, leading to an experience that only hardcore Shonen Jump fans can enjoy. If you’ve been waiting for the Switch port of the game to finally jump in, you’re almost certainly better off just waiting for something better.

If you’ve ever wondered who would win in a fight between Luffy and Goku, this game will satisfy that itch…but if you’re someone for whom the first half of this sentence is meaningless gibberish, then there’s really nothing here that you’ll find appealing. And honestly, despite the number of Japanese games I play (which is entirely due to my Vita addiction, rather than because of some fondness for anime), I can’t say that I fall into that camp. Which means that all that’s left in Jump Force is an ugly-looking game with extremely repetitive action — and honestly, why waste time or money on that?

The fighting mechanics are passable at best, and the huge roster of fighters is a great boon, but with its incredibly poor performance and boring story mode, it is just best to avoid JUMP FORCE altogether.

Even then you will still have to contend with the Switch version being an unbelievable graphical downgrade compared to the other versions of this game, and if handheld mode is really your argument for picking up the Switch version, I will be blunt and implore you: Don't. Jump Force: Ultimate Edition goes to show that maybe not every single game should be ported to Switch. While the core gameplay and ideas presented probably wouldn't feel at home regardless, the Switch version really shouldn't be the way to experience this game. If you are looking for a portable version of Jump Force I'd recommend putting some manga in your backpack. It will probably last you longer.

Jump Force Deluxe Edition on the Nintendo Switch is about as fun as the original when it works. The game firing on all cylinders is such a rare occurrence due to the poor attempt to squeeze such a hardware-intensive game onto the Nintendo console, but this doesn't always ruin the experience, especially if players go in with a deep enthusiasm for the characters on offer. The game is a decent way to pass time on the go, but is by no means a fully developed substitute for the PlayStation and Xbox versions, which remain the superior ways to enjoy Jump Force.