Asura's Wrath: Finished, including all the DLC.
Ignoring the ethical concerns regarding it, I'll just say this about them:
True Ending is worth it. Its needed for actual closure, and no, its not a cliffhanger. Its a full genuine ending and the game treats it as such (it does have a silly "To be continued" instance in the end, but its just silly...if you ever see it, you'll know what I mean.) To be honest, though, why its necessary I don't know. I mean, yeah, it explains who one of the characters is, and gives more backstory for Asura and his family, but the game COULD have ended at Episode 18, without the "Alt Ending" that leads into the "True Ending" nonsense and it would have been a complete story.
BUt regardless, its a good ending to the game, and worth getting if you ever pick up the game. It also manages to CONVINCINGLY out-over-the-top Bayonetta. I can't really explain how, just trust me!
The Interlude DLC is NOT worth it. Its literally an Anime with QTEs, and it doesn't really do much. Its just action scenes to show what happened off screen. I'm not saying its stupid that it was DLC, more just I didn't find it worth it; it tells you nothing you couldn't figure out based on results of other chapters. For what its worth, these chapters definitely come off as After-thoughts, with a "Hey, wouldn't it be cool if we showed this fight in some manner?"
The Street Fighter DLC is...fun and silly fanservice. Worth it if you're a fan of Street Fighter 4.
Overall thoughts on the game?
While I normally trash QTEs and what not, Asura's Wrath actually makes them work. Selling itself as an interactive anime rather than "Action game THAT'S A CINEMATIC EXPERIENCE!" like...oh...God of War does means that QTEs are actually justified and help with emersion to some degree...for all that the entire time, you're just watching for action. There is actual genuine gameplay segments (basic button mashing fight scenes, and shooter segments), which are fine in short bursts...which is all you get from them. Ok, there are some bosses (like, say, THE FUCKING ELEPHANTS) that definitely have this "ARGH HE WON'T DIE" feel to them, and overstay their welcome, but they're in the minority.
Story...its the kind of story that knows its not deep, knows its ridiculous, and knows its taking itself seriously...and somehow works. The basic story is just "Asura is Angry, he wants Revenge on being betrayed" and...basically just that. Doesn't pretend there's a deep underlying meaning here other than "Asura's Angry" Hence the name of the game! The game makes you think its going to pull a"Hey, Asura finds a strength NOT from rage!" but...no, that's not what it does. More like saying "Asura won't stop until he's convinced his Wrath is subsided." Kind of makes sense actually; if he's not ANGRY about anything, he has no reason to fight. Its more the angle of "What is his rage driven from, and why is he angry?" rather than "Is Strength from Rage TRUE strength?" The more noble his reasons for being angry, the better he is!
...I know I said it wasn't deep, but that's because the game is pretty damn blatant about that stuff. It doesn't try to hide it for you to analyze, just says "That's what it is, so shut up and watch Asura punch something really damned hard."
As far as the characters go...
AsuraAngry Dad is Angry, and wants his daughter back. He's a Dragon Ball Z character, in the grand scheme of things, except with better art and character design!
I know the two aren't identical, but Asura feels like what Kratos SHOULD have been. His rage is understandable, and his mission of vengeance is something you can sympathize with. Furthermore, we actually SEE Asura's relations with his family, other characters, etc. Rather than just implied "He loved his wife and daughter, but was too busy killing shit" like Kratos had (the only scene with Kratos' family we see in GoW1 involves his wife saying "Please, honey, stop this violence!"), and he doesn't feel like he's taking things too far, as the guys he fighting are, in fact, much bigger assholes than he is. In fact, while Asura is clearly a muscle-bound thick headed jerk, there's clearly instances of him being a good guy, and wants to be a good father, more just he doesn't know HOW to deal with it. I think the line that best sums him up as a father is:
"Her crying...what can I do to stop it? All I can think of is punching the guy who made her upset!"
Basically, he's just fun because he's like another take on the Incredible Hulk or something.
MithraDamsel in Distress Daughter of the protagonist, that's really all she is. Won't comment beyond that.
DurgaShe dies in the 2nd episode, so there isn't much too her...but I guess I'll give her props for actually coming off as a supportive and loving wife in the flashback scenes, understanding Asura's point, while not actually feeling like a whipped fangirl or something.
YashaThe only other character in the game besides Asura to have ACTUAL DEVELOPMENT, as to be expected since he's the token Shonen Rival of the main, and the game even calls him the "2nd Main Character." Asura's Power is all about being ANGRY, so what's Yasha's power? Being EMO!
...I'm actually kind of serious there. His Mantra is "Melancholy" after-all, so basically, the more depressed and sad he gets, the stronger he becomes? I really don't know how that works, but nonetheless, he was basically there to foil Asura. Won't get into details otherwise because SPOILARS!!!
Sergei
...that is all...
AugusBest way to sum him up would be this instance:
"Oh, hey, I'm suppose to kill you...but you know, you WERE my pupil, and you are injured after taking down an ENTIRE MILITARY FLEET SINGLE HANDEDLY, and at your best, you'd probably be really strong...so we're going to rest in this hotspring and reminisce until you're at 100%. Oh yeah, I hired some maids in bikinis to bring us booze."
So yes, he loves Women, Alcohol, fighting and NOTHING ELSE.
KalrowUgly Old Man whose all about STRATEGY...and then gets his ass kicked. I really wish I had more to say about this guy...
Wyzen
Really all you need to know about this guy.
OlgaToken female villain henchman; the cliche chosen for her is "loyal because she LOVES the villain and thus everything else is irrelevant, SO LONG AS SHE CAN BE WITH HIM!" She's a total bitch, and completely uninteresting.
DeusI...guess he qualifies as an evil Space Pope, but I'm honestly not sure. I think he also kind of qualifies as a Well Intentioned Extremist since his goal is to rid the world of the BIG EVIL TENTACLE DEMON LIVING IN IT, but his methods are...ah...questionable to say the least. He also uses a Nunchaku.
Don't think anyone else is worth mentioning!
