Furi Review - Is It Worth It?

Updated:

21 Apr 2020

By “worth it” I mean, is being pummeled into the ground hundreds of times and finally succeeding after many attempts worth it? Relax, it gets better. Or you will anyway.

For those unfamiliar, Furi is a single player top down 3D shoot em up game(that was a mouthful) developed by The Game Bakers and released in 2016. You play as the Stranger, battling your way to freedom against an assortment of unique and challenging bosses . Furi received “generally favorable reviews” upon release for its sometimes enraging difficulty paired with precise controls.

Story

An overarching story doesn’t play a huge role in Furi, which is not to say that it should be overlooked completely. You awaken in a prison cell and attempt to leave only to be stopped by your first boss fight. Gradually you fight your way to the exit, but what does the outside world hold? Though it may not be the most complex story, it’s certainly enough to keep you wondering throughout.

Gameplay

Versus The Chain: Wreck or get wrecked

There are only two distinct phases of gameplay in Furi: fighting and walking to the next fight. Although this may sound monotonous, the lack of initial variety is made up for by the distinct bosses and their arenas. The walk between each fight is used for exposition from the Voice, an enigmatic ally. Or is he?

Each boss brings a unique personality and thematically fit within their self contained world. The Chain, the first of these bosses kicks off the game with a vengeful tone, boldly claiming that you have no chance of winning. These claims serve to fuel the player as they begin to gradually get the hang of the controls.

In terms of replayability, the game suffers somewhat. For the more dedicated players, replaying the game on the Furier difficulty setting offers an enticing option, but for others the game is likely over after the final fight.

Combat

Describing Furi as“hectic” would be an understatement.. What makes Furi unique is that you begin every tool already at your disposal which consists of a chargeable gun and sword, a dash, and a parry. Relatively straightforward at first, along the journey your playstyle gradually evolves as you learn to stretch the limits of these few tools. The result is fast paced and precise combat in which the player must prove themselves capable of making the most of their small arsenal.

Quest/Mission System

As noted earlier, in terms of objective Furi is rather simple: defeat the bosses. This is your only mission, and should be made known prior to purchasing the game if you’re expecting something else. . I can’t imagine a reality in which adding anything more to Furi would have been a good choice. The experience doesn’t need any additional fluff to make it worthwhile.

Aesthetic/Atmosphere

The transition sequences are a truly treat for the eyes

The opening track aptly named “Danger” by artist Danger immediately creates a tone of urgency in the player. Heaving synths invigorate the tense fight and you might find yourself instintictly dashing to match the beat. Luckily this isn’t unique to the first level, as the soundtrack of Furi is robust throughout with its nostalgic yet futuristic synthwave selections that are worth listening to outside the context of a game.

In terms of atmosphere, each level is vibrant and caters to specific boss characteristics. For instance with the Scale, the stage is aquatic themed, and the Line is a sage old man that manipulates time with his arena floating among clouds. Looking beyond these arenas, it appears that entire worlds exist to be explored.

From a visual standpoint, the game’s technological/cyberpunk theme is cohesive, beginning with the neon laden title font and carrying throughout the game into character and stage design. The endless waves of energy walls and multicolored bullets to be dodged are scintillating arrays of mandalas, although it can be hard to notice the finer details when you’re in the thick of it. Precisely timed parries lead to rewarding animations in the battle and give the player a sense of truly wrecking the bosses, especially the more verbose ones such as the Chain.

Developer

The Gamer Bakers began with mobile gaming and are gradually moving to console releases, with the upcoming JRPG styled Haven due sometime this year. It’s clear that a great deal of time and effort went into Furi, evidenced by its precise controls, high level of challenge, and attention to detail with aesthetic and atmosphere. So far only one DLC package “One More Fight” has been released, which is part of the Definitive Edition. It doesn’t appear that any additional content is on the way, though this fight will likely keep you busy for a while. Even without One More Fight the game feels fully realized.

Price

Furi is frequently on sale on Steam, sometimes as low as $10.00, which is well worth the price for this experience. Even at its normal price of $20.00, you get your money’s worth if you’re looking for a novel challenge. Furi is currently available on Steam, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.