Power Stone

by Capcom

Product Details

• ASIN: B00000K10O
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.5 x 5.5 inches ; 6.1 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,702 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Editorial Review

Packed with all the energy and over-the-top moves of a Jackie Chan movie, Power Stone revitalizes the fighting game genre with fully functional 3-D combat environments and frenzied strategy. Face your opponent in a London courtyard and you can hurl café chairs and tables at him before taking him out by swinging around a lamppost. Or fight in a dilapidated shopping mall, and beat your foe down with a giant stuffed teddy bear after tossing him through a storefront window. Each multilevel combat area is stocked with crates, barrels, clubs, even ray guns, and everything can be used as a weapon.

Interactive fighting environments are fun, but what really sets Power Stone apart are the power stones. Collecting all three stones transforms the character into a superbeing, unlocking new and devastating attacks. Since the overall goal of the game is to beat up your opponent, and the superform lets you do the most damage, competition for the stones is fierce.

If you're tired of the standard fighting game formula and want a little more, Power Stone is the game for you. It's a perfect translation of the arcade hit, and the uncomplicated, frantic combat will bring a grin to many a jaded gamer's face. --Mike Fehlauer

Pros:

• Easy to learn, fast-paced gameplay
• 11 unique, multilevel, interactive fighting environments
• Great use of VMU
• Smooth, vivid, arcade-quality graphics

Cons:

• Game may be too frantic for some players

GameSpot Review

Capcom's got more than a decade invested in the fighting-game business. Most of Capcom's fighters have followed in the footsteps of the Street Fighter games, keeping the same basic 2D gameplay. While the company has ventured into 3D in the past, nothing it's done has been even remotely like Power Stone.

Yes, Power Stone is technically a fighting game. But it's hard to compare it to your standard fighter. For starters, there's no block in the game. So all of the defensive maneuvers consist of staying out of the way of your opponent's attacks. This isn't nearly as hard as it sounds, given the game's 3D nature. Rather than pressing up to jump, you use the Dreamcast's analog pad to run around the arena in any direction. So you're free to run away from your opponent's larger attacks. The rest of the game's control is equally simple. You've got a jump button, a punch button, and a kick button. The rest of the buttons are used to execute combinations of the three main buttons, making throws and super moves easier to execute than in the three buttoned arcade version.

The aim of the game is the same as every other fighting game, but the methods you use are quite different. For example, there aren't really any special attacks. Your standard character won't be shooting fireballs or doing dragon punches. Instead, you must use the arena as a weapon. Each playfield is littered with crates, benches, signs, and other items that you can pick up and toss at your enemy. There are also various items that pop up, including hammers, swords, pistols, flamethrowers, Gatling guns, and rocket launchers. But the main items in the game are the three power stones.

At the beginning of a round, each fighter starts out with one power stone. The third stone eventually spawns at a random location in the arena. Getting all three stones shifts your fighter into overdrive, complete with a costume change. While powered up, each button press unleashes a super attack, usually resulting in a projectile. Each one of these attacks takes up a bit of your super meter. There are also super moves that do a significant amount of damage and usually look pretty flashy, as well. These supers use up the rest of your bar, turn you back into your regular self, and scatter all three of the gems around the arena. Given the explosive nature of the supers, it's in your best interest to get the gems and, obviously, keep your opponent from getting them. If your enemy possesses a stone, you can hit him a few times (or less, with stronger attacks or items) and cause him to drop the stone. So, most fights revolve solely around the stones and the jump kick (which automatically points you at your enemy and causes him to drop a stone if the kick connects) to keep your opponent from holding any stones for too long. A cheap tactic, yes, but also an effective one. Unfortunately, jump kicking at your opponent gets pretty old pretty quickly. The one-player game picks up some of the slack, as there are quite a few things that can be unlocked, including three characters, three VMU minigames, a different camera mode, and additional items that weren't in the arcade version of the game.

The graphics in Power Stone are well done. The polygonal fighters are nice and smooth. The fighters are designed in a very cartoony style, and the stages are all incredibly nice. However, portions of the game (some of the more extravagant super moves, or when players are on fire, in particular) are plagued with slowdown, marring an otherwise explosive display. The game's sound effects and music are very good, but the announcer's voice, which you hear mainly when you are picking up or dropping a power stone, is stupidly annoying.

All in all, Power Stone is a very fun and unconventional fighter. It's easy enough for even non-fighting game fans to pick up the basics extremely quickly. However, the excitement is short lived. Expect to enjoy it immensely for the first week or two, but don't expect to find very much long-term fun. --Jeff Gerstmann
--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited. GameSpot and the GameSpot logo are trademarks of GameSpot Inc.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fast, and beautiful!, August 26, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Power Stone (Video Game)

I've been playing this game since it's Japanese release and it still is one of my favorites. While the single player game might eventually leave you wanting more, the two player aspect is where this game really shines.

The game takes a very basic approach to a fighting game. You have a punch, jump, and kick button, which can be linked together for combos and juggling type moves. The speed at which the game runs is insane. Once the round starts your heart is racing, frantically trying to pounce your opponent with a chair or table, while they're trying to do the same, and whoever collects 3 "Powerstones" first turns into a super charged version of themselves with new moves and a lot more power!

Also worth mention is the little extras you get for beating the game. New characters, weapons, VMU mini games, character endings, the list goes on and on.

Even though I've played the game to death, it still gets it's daily spin in my Dreamcast. This game should definintely be on everyones 'must have' list.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't overlook this awesome game!, November 27, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Power Stone (Video Game)

With all the other great Dreamcast games out there some folks might overlook this awesome game. It's a totally unique experience to say the least. A lot of the other reviews sum this game up well but I'm going to touch more on the characters you can play as.

You can choose from one of 8 different fighters and several more will unlock as you play for a total of 11. Each fighter has their own strengths and weaknesses. Big strong fighters like Galuda and Gunrock *sometimes* don't even need powerstones to win. They can chuck tables and barrels at you like a Randy Johnson fastball. They can also rip a support beam out of the ground and smack their opponent across the arena like they was Mark Maguire. The smaller more agile fighters like Ayame, Wang Tang and Rouge are weaklings at best and couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with their weak throw strength but move so fast and grab Powerstones so often that they don't need to rely on throwing stuff or damaging grab moves. Other more rounded characters like Ryoma and Falcon are typically good for beginners who aren't yet accustomed to the intricacies of the game. They're good but they don't really play with the style or flair that the other characters do. And then there's Jack the Slayer, the wierdest character in the game. He crawls on the ground like an insect and he moves along at a pretty alarming rate. His moves are unorthodox and can confuse players. After you beat the games several times you unlock extra weapons that you pop up randomly during each battle adding new ways for you to pummel your opponent with the quickness.

Bottom line: This is one of the funnest 2 player games on the Dreamcast right now and if I were you I would pick it up as soon as possible. It's a classic that no one should miss out on.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best with friends, November 28, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Power Stone (Video Game)

Upbeat scintillating graphics blended with furius beat-down action are the magic formula creating Powerstone. As a 1 player game its somewhat average. Most of the time the cpu will pound me to the ground unrelentlessly. With two players however the true beauty of this game shines through. Use lamp posts, benches bazookas, you name it to pummel the competition to submission. And if you happen to collect three powerstones you are transformed into super ass whipper. A fun but horribly unbalanced form that is nearly impossible to protect yourself from. as I mentioned before, far more entertaining with a friend than by yourself. I give it 3/5 one player play and 5/5 2 player play!