Wow, my day has just been made. Because I (Robin Ek, TGG) was just informed that Sokaikan‘s upcoming 2D martial-arts platform game “Okinawa Rush” (a game which made me think about a mix of “The Last Samurai“, “Tekken”, “Street Fighter 2” and “Mortal Kombat”) is coming to Kickstarter on the 14th of August:
“Hi,
Today I have an exciting game to show, and the game is called Okinawa Rush. Okinawa Rush is an intense and uniquely fluid beat-em-up, 2D side scrolling fighting game, inspired by the by the retro 16-bit era with its classic late 80’s, 90’s arcade style design and gameplay experience. If you enjoyed playing them back then and currently still enjoy retro games like The Last Samurai, Street Fighter 2, Tekken, or Mortal Kombat, and want to relive that experience and more in Okinawa by battling enemies, avoiding traps, fighting bosses, discovering secrets, collecting loot and saving hostages, then this game will surely enthrall you. The game was Greenlit on steam back in May 2017 and will air on Kickstarter at 6 a.m. PDT next Monday August 14, 2017.” – Sokaikan
Furthermore, I was also informed that there is a playable demo for “Okinawa Rush” (the demo is for Windows only). That’s also why I’m going to give the game a go as soon as possible 😉 Anyways, so what is “Okinawa Rush” all about then? Well, here’s the actual story and gameplay description for the game:
The Story
A tale of power, greed, sorrow, and vengeance… A ruthless army of ninja known as the ‘Black Mantis’ clan has come to Okinawa to loot, pillage and kill anyone that gets in their way. Above all else, they are searching for the legendary training scroll of Hiro Yashima who has honed his martial skill to a supernatural level, summoning flame and sound to vanquish his foes. He returns home one night to find his children missing, his wife slain, and a note in her bloody hand.
About the Gameplay:
The core of Okinawa Rush is fast, intense combat with a unique “parry everything” system – you can block projectiles, smash traps and parry every boss attack if you time the input correctly! Doing so increases your “rage bar” which can be used to unleash a fearsome “kia stomp”, which destroys everything around the player; including, sometimes the ground and scenery – opening up hidden areas. There is an “edit dojo” feature, where you can create your own training room and furnish it with ornaments bought or found within the main game. Placing the items in certain patterns will unlock “feng shui” bonuses which increase your stats beyond their natural potential. We have included several mini-games in which the player can train their character, including a karate kata area stylized in a dance rhythm game.
As for in-game features. Well, these are the said launch features for “Okinawa Rush” (the game is said to launch in December this year for Windows-based systems):
Key Features:
– Train your hero for optimum power and speed.
– Customizable training Dojo
– Co-op two player mode.
– Feng Shui item system.
– Parry anything system.
– Intense boss battles!
– Fast, fluid combat with a unique fighting engine.
– Online high-scores and time-attack.
– Ingame “splits” for speed-runners!
*Local Co-op 2 player option just added!
However, it’s worth pointing out that “Okinawa Rush” needs to raise 10,000 pounds on Kickstarter in-order to become a reality (the Kickstarter campaign starts on the 14th of August). So I wish everyone at Sokaikan the best of luck with everything (I will try my very best to give “Okinawa Rush” some exposure in my upcoming gameplay video for the game). I have no doubt that “Okinawa Rush” will do really well on Kickstarter though, because the game got Greenlit on Steam in a rather short period of time (“Okinawa Rush” got Greenlit back in May this year).
And with that said, what do you boys and girls think about “Okinawa Rush” so far? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section down below!
About the Development Studio
Sokaikan is a small, indie-game developer team based in the UK with big plans to develop pixel-art style games and apps for PC and mobile devices. Our objective is to create accessible and fun games inspired by the arcades from the early 90’s and the home consoles from that period too. Everything we create is unique – no preset engines or “borrowed” graphics. Visit us on the web here: www.okrush.co.uk/sokaikan Twitter: https://twitter.com/okinawarush Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/okinawarush
Robin “V-Act” Ek
Editor in chief
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround
More by Robin Ek:
Tags: Indie games, Kickstarter, Martial-arts games, Okinawa Rush, PC games, Retro games, Sokaikan