A battle staff, hordes of enemies, and the scent of 70s kung-fu movies.

On these first votes, the profile of 9 Monkeys of Shaolin tells the story of a brawler that bets everything on the look. Its art style hits hard, ahead of three quarters of all games, by far its best line. Everything else sinks. The urge to take it to a desert island stays right at the bottom, the attachment barely higher, and its soundtrack lands among the quietest in the rankings. To confirm, since we are talking one or two votes per criterion, but the trend is clear: you notice the style, you bond little.

That is often the fate of old-school brawlers. The pleasure is immediate, controller in hand, in the satisfying crunch of each hit, but it fades once the console goes dark. Next to the beat'em ups that truly left a mark, it lacks that little something you keep years later.

So, who is it for? For you if you like sitting down for an hour, hitting in rhythm, soaking up an art direction that breathes martial-arts cinema. Much less if you want a game that clings to you long after the credits.