Albacete Warrior from eastasiasoft and FAS3 is a weird beat ’em up with 3D areas and 2D sprites. Learn more in our Albacte Warrior review!

 

Albacete Warrior from eastasiasoft and FAS3 is a weird beat ’em up with 3D areas and 2D sprites. It’s a Rated M for Mature experience, so its crude humor and action are not going to be for everyone. You’ll take on the role of Spanish ninja Benito, who is currently a barman. Since he doesn’t look like a barman, he decides it’s time to tell us his story. The game takes place in Albacete, Spain. Benito was drinking a lot at a bar until he got in a fight and was kicked out and thrown on top of the trash. After waking up, he finds himself in some type of dojo. It seems that Benito is the chosen one who must don the suit provided by Paco sensei and protect everyone.

Once you start the game after the intro cutscene, you’ll be thrown into a tutorial segment. You’ll control Benito with the left analog stick, attacking with the Square button, which you can press several times to perform a combo. You can also use the Triangle button for a stronger attack and mix that with the Square button for different combos. The X button will be for jumping and double jumping. Benito can also air dash by pressing the R2 button after a jump.

 

As you progress through the game, you’ll gain new abilities. You will be able to shield from attacks with the L2 button once you find some characters that will act as literal human shields. Pressing right on the D-Pad will allow you to heal as long as you’ve found a healing item. Once you get Pepito – who is a chicken – you can press the Circle button to wield it as a mighty weapon. From the second chapter, you’ll also get to collect dark energy so that you can activate your wrath by pressing the L2 and R2 buttons at the same time.

Unfortunately, the controls are some of the worst I’ve experienced in a beat ’em up. For a beat ’em up, you need attacks that flow into each other so that you can work on creating some solid combos that can make short work of your opponents once you find the right window of opportunity. In Albacete Warrior, if you manage to pull off a combo after the sluggish punches of Benito land on an enemy without being hit, then you’re lucky.

 

But even then, you won’t be able to start attacking another enemy right away to keep your combo going because he, for some reason, can’t attack right after a combo. You’d think this would be the developer’s way of trying to balance things out, but you’d be wrong. Enemies – while not being the brightest of the bunch – can deal a lot of damage, especially larger ones that can destroy you in a couple of hits. Being able to combo your way to victory is crucial for a beat ’em up, and this game lacks that. Add a jump that decides to stop halfway during your ascent and some platforming sections that demand pixel-perfect precision, as well as wonky physics that make even walking a pain, and you most certainly have a recipe for disaster.

At least trophy-wise, the game has a full trophy list with a Platinum trophy for you to unlock. The game is also Cross-Buy, so if you decide to jump in with your trusty PlayStation 5 by your side, you’ll be able to work on two Platinum trophies. The list is a short one, featuring 2 Silver trophies and 11 Gold trophies. A handful of them will unlock as you complete each chapter. There are trophies for dying 5 and 25 times, for defeating 100 and 250 enemies, for drinking 25 healing beverages, and one for when you meet your new chicken friend. There’s one trophy in particular that will be a pain to get since it requires you to get a combo of 50 hits, which is easier said than done, given the aforementioned wonky physics and gameplay mechanics.

Albacete Warrior is a weird beat ’em up with 3D areas and 2D sprites that misses its mark. The gameplay feels off. The physics are off. The action feels off. At least the game is a Cross-Buy title with a $9.99 price, so if you have a PlayStation 5, you can work on adding two Platinum trophies to your collection.

Disclaimer
This Albacete Warrior review is based on a PlayStation 5 copy provided by eastasiasoft.