Fighter Within

Ubisoft changes the name of its "fighting" series meant for Kinect, but the result is always the same. Although version 2.0 of the motion controller has improved motion detection greatly, the gameplay is not convincing and the game feels poor in every aspect.

If we consider it as a fitness game or as a tech demo, Fighter Within can be interesting, but as a fighting games it's just hopeless. The characters are dull, the AI is horrendous, the solo is just a big tutorial, the Kinect nav in the menus works quite awfully and it's just a bit better in-game. In spite of this, the enjoyment of working you muscles for real is here, and the controller-less gameplay is functional if not very good. Actually as a fitness games, Fighter Within is not so bad.

Fighter Within has nice ideas, but it also lacks variety and its moves are entirely ruined by how you can handle its poor controls.

With its shallow gameplay mechanics and flawed controls, Fighter Within fails to demonstrate the potential of the new Kinect 2.0 and, ultimately, to provide an entertaining experience.

I can only hope that something else comes along soon to show us what Kinect 2.0 is truly capable of, because if this is it, we’re in for another generation of shockingly disappointing movement-controlled video games.

The imprecise combat of Fighter Within does an awful job of showcasing the new and improved Kinect 2.0 tech. This is easily one of the weakest Xbox One launch window titles yet.

Poor contents, unrealiable controls, bland artwork, no online game and few differences between characters: there is not too much to be saved in Fighter Within.

Better than Fighters Uncaged, but that wasn’t too hard. Fighter Within works, and that’s the only positive thing to say about it.

Fighter Within is the perfect example of how game designers shouldn't work on a project. Everything in this game doesn't feel right. The controls are a mess, the fighting system is boring, the character design is generic. Feel free to ignore it.

A fighting game for the new Kinect that's as bad as fighting games for the all Kinects. Really, there's no need to say anything more.

You will get bored with this game incredibly quickly. Good luck trying to find people who will play this with you.

Fighter Within is a lazy tech demo with a poor story, unimpressive fighting engine, and a forgettable cast.

Fighter Within could have been a demo disc for the power of the Kinect 2.0, but instead is an absolute mess that recalls all of the original sensor’s faults.

This is a big disappointment. Fighter Within fails not only as a game for motion recognition but also as an alternative for the likes of Tekken.

It's gesture recognition is abysmal, its fighting is shallow, and it wastes too much time trying to clumsily tell a silly, unnecessary story. In short, it's everything Microsoft promised Kinect 2.0 wouldn't be.

If you own an Xbox One, do not go anywhere near this game. Pick up Killer Instinct and be happy with a true fighting game experience. This is trash that I was hoping to avoid with the new iteration of Kinect.

Fighter Within was buried under the rest of the Xbox One launch lineup for a reason. This one-on-one fighter is a throwback to the problems of the first Kinect—and does nothing but sow seeds of doubt that the next-gen Kinect sensor is any different from its predecessor.

Fighter Within nearly manages to unravel all its hard work with a few misplaced punches to the groin. [Issue#143, p.108]

In every respect, Fighter Within feels hacked together and devoid of interesting ideas or precise execution. The result is a game that would’ve been lousy at the launch of the original Kinect, but on Xbox One it’s just embarrassing.

Perhaps as a tech demo and nothing more, Fighter Within would have raised a smile, but as a full-priced, next-generation it really isn't worth the time or money.

With the help of the new Kinect, Fighter Within features better movement recognition, but It is very difficult to exploit the subtleties of gameplay (counters, use of the environment and super moves) when your opponent just need to hit like a nag, without thinking, to put you on the mat.

This is a totally flawed game that offers little more than a slow, barely competent combat system and a laughable storyline. And hey, if you're that desperate to experience Fighter Within, get a friend to repeatedly kick you in the shins. It's free, a nearly spot-on representation of the game, and far less painful.

A shambolic demonstration of motion control you shouldn't allow within a hundred miles of your Xbox One.

Fighter Within is a boring and mediocre launch title, and basically the worst example of what the new Kinect has to offer.

Fighter Within’s storyline is a misery of clichés, reaching for kung-fu movie kitsch but delivering nothing of the sort. But even the ugly presentation and forgettable cast of characters could have been forgiven if the developer had managed to make good on its ambitions for a nuanced fighting game controlled with arms and legs rather than fingers and thumbs.

A bad game and a very poor start for next generation Kinect games, even if there is still some small cause for optimism beneath the bland fighting action.

The game that actually came out is broken, hampered by a control scheme that doesn't work more than half of the time. This, coupled with the weak writing, means that Fighter Within does a better job of emulating the pain and frustration of actual training — rather than its rewards.

The fighting genre has always been about precision, variation and uppercutting roid-addled maniacs into the sky. Developer Daoka has scooped each of these quintessential components into the bin, leaving behind a spectacularly poor experience.

If I can leave you with one thing before you leave this page, it’s that you should not play this game. Don’t spend money on it. It’s meant to be bundled with these consoles for suckers so eager to play with the latest in-home ripoff technology that they’ll spend more money to get games they don’t want with it.

If anything it gives all the Xbox One doomsayers a glaring example of why the Kinect should have been abandoned a long time ago. Even if this game was a fraction of its baffling $59.99 price tag, I would not recommend it for anyone. The Fighter Within has only one good thing going for it and that is you can burn a few calories after a fight or two. Otherwise, do yourself a favour, avoid this game as it’s awful.

A game so poor one of its biggest challenges involved navigating the menus. Atrocious. [Feb 2014, p.74]

As a fighter and a gamer, I’m deeply insulted by Fighter Within.

Boring when it works, frustrating when it doesn't, Fighter Within is one of the worst games you could ever have the displeasure of playing. [Issue#107, p.]

Fighter Within on the Xbox 360 would be a disaster reduced to a footnote, ignored and left to wither. As a launch title for the new generation it’s worse: a parasite, feeding off the goodwill and desperation of early-adopters. Avoid, avoid, avoid.

It's games like this that make me wish we gave out negative scores.

From its unreliable (or non-functional) mechanics to its doofy character designs and hilariously bad writing, Fighter Within is garbage. It fails to operate on any level, and the content isn’t deep enough to be fun even if everything worked. If you were hoping for an Xbox One launch title that shows off the technological leaps made by the new Kinect, you certainly won’t find it with Fighter Within.

Ubisoft should be ashamed of itself for trying to peddle more of this nonsense. And Microsoft needs its giant cyborg head examined for thinking this is a great way to show off the capabilities of its new hardware. It's like Tampax launching an ad campaign fronted by Danny Dyer.