Reviewed on: Nintendo Switch

A minimalist game that exposes the heart of fighting games in a simple, fast and direct way

Today’s review will be short and straightforward, fitting well with the game in question, One Strike. It’s all about going straight to the point, and your objective is to connect a single (and lethal) strike on your opponent. A true samurai duel, classic and old school.

Fun Factor: 7/10

One Strike is a minimalist game in every possible way. Its design reinforces that you have only one very well-defined goal: to land a hit on your opponent before they hit you. Controls are simple and present only the basic actions, allowing players to explore tactical depth rather than the difficulty of executing complex inputs.

It certainly is not a formula to be followed by every game, but the format does work and manages to turn every fight into a tense, cerebral duel, giving immense satisfaction to those who achieve victory.

Mechanics: 7/10

OS is a simple game that relies on simple controls: Left/Right moves your fighter, one button dashes forward and another dodges backward more quickly, one button defends/dodges and one button prepares/delivers the attack. Every action has wind-up and cool-down times, creating “windows” that leave your fighter open to incoming attacks, and with that the game naturally draws the players’ focus to minimizing their openings while exploiting those of their opponent.

Despite the huge technical barrier imposed by high speed/reflex requirements and an overwhelming variety of controls, the true essence of a fighting game is this: to find and capitalize on your opponent’s openings. One Strike strips away everything that is not essential, and manages to deliver the core experience of fighting games in an accessible format.

The game has 6 characters, each with a different fighting style that influences attributes such as reach, mobility, wind-up time and cool-down time for actions. The low variety may seem bad but is at the same time good, as it allows players to recognize and get used to all the possible scenarios more easily… There is very little to learn, but a lot to consider. And this contrast is what makes OS a polarizing game: everything that stands out about it can be seen as both good and bad at the same time, and it should divide public opinion quite a bit.

Presentation: 5/10

As with so many other indie titles, One Strike uses pixelart visuals and chiptune sounds. While the soundtrack is able to create an epic, tense mood, the visuals turn out to be the weakest aspect of the game. In its pursuit of simplicity, the 8-bit look leaves the fighters excessively simple and lacking detail, which somewhat harms the gameplay experience. Players would benefit if the sprites were a bit more detailed, as that would allow more subtle and fluid animations, more appropriate for a fighting game. Even 16 or 32-bit visuals would enrich the gameplay, and so the game’s presentation ends up being a marked weakness in the experience as a whole.

Final Considerations

One Strike is different. By removing almost everything fighting games normally offer, the game manages to deliver the purest experience of the genre in an accessible way. Its presentation harms the final product, but it is still a good recommendation for those curious about fighting games who are intimidated by the barrier to entry.

Scores

Fun Factor = 7
Mechanics = 7
Presentation = 5
Worth the 5 dollars? Yes, at least for enthusiasts of alternative fighting games, and also for those who are interested in the genre but never had the courage to try it out of fear of its highly technical requirements.

Final: 6.4/10

Reviewed with the Nintendo Switch version.