Toribash Review

Toribash is an odd one. It's a free physics based fighting simulator. In fact I believe it is the only one of it's kind. Let me explain as this game is incredibly complicated and unique.

Toribash puts you in control of a mannequin that has to kill another mannequin a la fighting game. The interesting thing about it though, is that it's a simulation. Fighting games aren't meant to be realistic in any sense of the word. Toribash lets you map out each and every muscle movement in full 3D space including your hands. This lets you slay your opponent in an almost infinite number of ways. This makes for some interesting situations when both players are trying to struggle and execute each other at the same time.

As you can see I'm completely rotten at it. Toribash is an art unto it's self. It has quite a steep learning curve and is almost impossible to master. Mapping out each and every possible movement AND predicting where your opponent will strike is almost impossible. Multiplayer matches almost always lead to a bloody struggle and a disappointing draw. This is where Toribash fails. It gives us too much freedom and too much margin for error. You see, most players can't comprehend where each and every muscle will land leading to a disappointing mess of tangled arms and blood. Furthermore you can just memorize the executions and put them into play frame by frame. However, they are all highly unfeasible as your opponent moves just as you do so vital limbs may be hard to catch.

All in all Toribash is a great game, especially for free. It is quite fun if you can get the hang of it and is quite quirky. However, it may prove to be to complicated for some users and for that the most I'll give it is a neutral rating. If they make it more accessible to new players by adding in tutorials that aren't complete shit than maybe I'll change it to neutral-positive.